May 31, 2023 By: Stephanie Shea The California Unruh Act (specifically, California Civil Code § 51) prohibits “all business establishments of every kind whatsoever” from discriminating based on citizenship or immigration status, among other things. That protection applies to all persons within the jurisdiction of California. At the federal level, (simply put,) the federal civil rights statute (specifically, 42 U.S.C. § 1981), prohibits alienage discrimination. As early as 2017, we began to see citizenship discrimination class actions filed against creditors. For example, see Perez v. Wells Fargo & Co., 2017 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 122722 (N.D. Cal. Aug...
Buchalter
Main Contacts

Adam J. Bass
ShareholderOffices
Overview
Buchalter is a full-service business law firm that has been teaming with clients for eight decades, providing legal counsel at all stages of their growth and evolution, and helping them meet the many legal challenges and decisions they face. Our clients are engaged in a diverse global economy governed by complex laws and regulations, and they trust us as advisers and business partners because we are involved in their world. They rely on our forward-thinking to help them resolve problems before they arise.
At Buchalter, we practice in that spirit.
Our founding principle-providing our clients with the best business solutions-continues to lead us. We value each client relationship, recognizing that their success is our success. Our overarching goal-getting the best results for the client in a timely manner with sensitivity to cost-has engendered client loyalty, and the firm has grown from that loyalty.
Our lawyers are accessible, resourceful, skillful and adept at responding to change. Our technological capabilities keep case law and rule changes at our fingertips and client communications current, enabling us to create efficient, superior outcomes.
We strongly believe that technology is a tool that furthers the practice of law and have used that belief to develop a cutting edge platform for our firm. We use a meshed (NVPN) network to facilitate work among offices, Cisco VoIP telephony and Video-over-IP conferencing. Sharing documents is seamless through FileSite, which is also utilized to create our Client Extranets. To support our litigation matters, we use Concordance and Opticon, as well as LiveNote and Sanction. Unlike many firms, we have the capacity to process e-Discovery in-house, reducing client costs.
Buchalter lawyers are also active members of the communities in which they live and work. Leadership is a value the founding partners practiced and passed on to the current generation of attorneys. Our lawyers sit on the boards of prominent organizations, teach and lecture frequently. We actively participate in many associations and groups including the Public Law Center, San Francisco Legal Aid Society, Practicing Law Institute, California State Bar Association, the Los Angeles County Bar Association and the LACBA Domestic Violence Project, the Sojourner Center, the Boys and Girls Club of Greater Phoenix and many others.
Buchalter is consistently ranked among the leading law firms by Chambers and Partners, Best Lawyers, The Daily Journal and the Los Angeles Business Journal. It is also ranked among the leading firms nationally by American Legal Media and the National Law Journal.
Buchalter's commitment to reflecting and enhancing the rich diversity of the clients and communities in which we practice is more than eight decades strong. The firm's diversity of attorneys and staff provides clients with a greater array of creative talent and alternative thinking, benefiting all.
Year this Office was Established: 1933
Lawyers Worldwide: 476
Areas of Practice
Professionals
Partners

Robert S. Addison Jr.
Shareholder
Kalley R. Aman
Shareholder
Paul S. Arrow
Shareholder
Farhad Bahar
Shareholder
Adam J. Bass
Shareholder
Ariel A. Berrios
Shareholder
Farah Bhatti
Shareholder
Oren Bitan
Shareholder
Bernard Bollinger
Shareholder
Mark A. Bonenfant
Shareholder
William S. Brody
Shareholder
Jed Burton
Shareholder
Harry W. R. Chamberlain II
Shareholder
Lee C. Cheng
Shareholder
Arthur Chinski
Shareholder
John Clough
Shareholder
Rick Cohen
Partner Emeritus
Robert S. Cooper
Shareholder
A. Blake Cooper
Shareholder
Mark T. Cramer
Shareholder
Jason Croft
Shareholder
Robert J. Davidson
Shareholder
Steven Di Saia
Shareholder
Douglas P. Farr
Shareholder
Joseph K. Fletcher, III
Shareholder
Michael L. Gallion
Shareholder
Robert S. Gillison
Shareholder
Gabriel G. Green
Shareholder
Julian Gurule
Shareholder
Brian T. Harvey
Shareholder
Harumi Hata
Shareholder
Robert B. Hinckley Jr.
Shareholder
David Hitchcock
Shareholder
Peter V. Hogan
Shareholder
Willmore (Bill) Holbrow III
Shareholder
John L. Hosack
Shareholder
Peggy Hosking
Shareholder
Suzanne Cate Jones
Shareholder
Jeffrey H. Kapor
Shareholder
Daniel Katz
Shareholder
Matthew W. Kavanaugh
Shareholder
Eric Kennedy
Shareholder
Mitchell Kim
Shareholder
Lance Lehnhof
Shareholder
Robert Collings Little
Shareholder
Cheryl M. Lott
Shareholder
Carol K. Lucas
Shareholder
David E. Mark
Shareholder
Mercedes O. Martin
Shareholder
Damaris L. Medina
Shareholder
Michael L. Meeks
Shareholder
William M. Miller
Shareholder
Robert Miller
Shareholder
Jennifer Misetich
Shareholder
Masahisa Mitsunaga
Shareholder
Joshua Mizrahi
Shareholder
Terese A. Mosher Beluris
Shareholder
Michael Muse-Fisher
Shareholder
Philip Nulud
Shareholder
C. Tyler Ohanian
Shareholder
Richard P. Ormond
Shareholder
R. Chad Pugh
Shareholder
Rajnish Puri
Shareholder
Josiah R. Reid
Shareholder
Peter Rho
Shareholder
Joshua M. Robbins
Shareholder
Mary H. Rose
Shareholder
Keven Rowe
Shareholder
Daniel M. Rygorsky
Shareholder
Joel G. Samuels
Shareholder
William Schoenholz
Shareholder
Andrew Selesnick
Shareholder
Matthew L. Seror
Shareholder
Daniel H. Slate
Shareholder
Scott O. Smith
Shareholder
Barry A. Smith, Esq.
Shareholder
Pooya E. Sohi
Shareholder
Steven M. Spector
Shareholder
Thomas J. Speiss, III
Shareholder
Ryan D. Staley
Shareholder
Larry Steinberg
Shareholder
George Stephan
Shareholder
Stephen J. Strauss
Shareholder
Blake Terry
Shareholder
David Van Pelt
Shareholder
Joseph Vargas
Shareholder
Tanya Viner
Shareholder
Michael L. Wachtell
Shareholder
Pamela Kohlman Webster
Shareholder
Jeremy Weitz
Shareholder
Marcus J. Williams
Shareholder
Marlene J. Williams
Shareholder
Michael Williamson
Shareholder
Robert A. Willner
Shareholder
Philip J. Wolman
Shareholder
Jeffrey S. Wruble
Shareholder
Daniel H. Wu
Shareholder
Michael Zerman
Shareholder
Nikole K. Zoumberakis
ShareholderAssociates

Sarah Andrzejczak
Attorney
Ronald J. Arias
Attorney
Jake D. Barney
Attorney
Anita Barooni
Attorney
Cameron Brown
Attorney
Natalie Bryans
Attorney
Sylvia Cheong
Attorney
Nicolette A. Cohen
Attorney
Kevin Connelly
Attorney
Nicholas Couchot
Attorney
Shir Davidovicz
Attorney
David DeBerry
Attorney
Olivia Durnell
Attorney
Aaron Elster
Attorney
Pokuaa M. Enin
Attorney
Eliana A. Fields
Attorney
Zachary R. Fountas
AttorneyTrevor B. Fugate
Attorney
Michael Fuoroli
Attorney
Eric Geier
Attorney
Karen N. George
Attorney
Blake Gillman
Attorney
Tia Gonzalez
Attorney
Frank Herrera
Attorney
Vahan Khodanian
Attorney
Matthew Kramer
Attorney
Graham Lambert
Attorney
Michelle Lopez
Attorney
Chadwick McCombs
Attorney
Grace Moore
Attorney
Marshall Olney
Attorney
Meghna Parikh
Attorney
Taylor Park
Attorney
Colin Rowe
Attorney
Lauren Jacobs Sanchez
Attorney
Eliana A. Spero
Attorney
Mi Tran
Attorney
Brett Voets
Attorney
Masataka Wada
Attorney
Daniel Zhivanaj
AttorneyOf Counsel

Russell Allyn
Senior Counsel
Carly Briggs
Special Counsel
Alyssa Brown
Senior Counsel
Efrat M. Cogan
Of Counsel
Jessie Reider Cristo
Senior Counsel
Michael B. Fisher
Of Counsel
Michael C. Flynn
Of Counsel
Jennifer Guerrero
Senior Counsel
Landon Hardcastle
Senior Counsel
Dana Hobart
Of Counsel
Karl Israelsen
Of Counsel
Gerald "Jerry" Janoff
Senior Counsel
Vanessa LeFort
Senior Counsel
Aaron M. Levine
Senior Counsel
C. Dennis Loomis
Of Counsel
Melanie T. Marcheschi
Senior Counsel
Danielle Mayer
Senior Counsel
Selena Medlen
Associate General Counsel
Ashley Milnes
Senior Counsel
Andrea R. Musker
Senior Counsel
Steven M. Nakasone
Of Counsel
Anthony J. Napolitano
Senior Counsel
Alexandra Bijan Pakzad
Special Counsel
Mancy Pendergrass
Senior Counsel
Dallis Nordstrom Rohde
Of Counsel
Nicole Sahagen Schiff
Of Counsel
Scott M. Salomon
Senior Counsel
Jack R. Scharringhausen
Senior Counsel
Stuart A. Simon
Of Counsel
Gordon Stuart
Senior Counsel
Kenny Tamura
Senior Counsel
Sarin Tavlian
Senior Counsel
Blake Tengberg
Senior Counsel
Susan P. White
Special Counsel
Michael J. Worth
Senior CounselOther

Leonard (Len) Venger
Senior AdvisorArticles
Toxic-Free Cosmetic Act Enacted in Washington State
May 31, 2023 By: Marissa Alkhazov Governor Jay Inslee signed HB 1047, Washington State’s Toxic-Free Cosmetic Act (the Act) into law on May 15, 2023. The Act bans some of the most concerning chemicals added into cosmetic and personal care products, including PFAS, phthalates, formaldehyde and formaldehyde releasing agents. Washington State joins six other states,[1] enacting a ban on hazardous chemicals incorporated into personal care and cosmetics, but stands out as the most stringent state law in the country regulating toxic chemicals...
Press
Buchalter Recognized by Chambers & Partners 2023 USA Guide
June 1, 2023 Buchalter is pleased to announce that the following attorneys have been recognized by Chambers and Partners as “Leaders in Their Field”: California Commercial Finance: Robert Davidson William Schoenholz Robert Willner California Energy: State Regulatory & Litigation Nora Sheriff California Health Care: Carol Lucas Colorado Corporate/M&A: Betty Arkell Oregon Immigration:
Buchalter Adds New Shareholder in Denver
June 1, 2023. After the opening of its Denver office last year, Buchalter continues its expansion in Colorado with the addition of new Shareholder Jon Olafson. Olafson will Chair the Firm’s new Organizational Inclusion, Diversity, and Belonging Group and is a member of the Labor & Employment Practice Group. “Jon is a well-respected labor and employment attorney with a wealth of knowledge and experience in organizational inclusion and diversity,” said Adam Bass, President and Chief Executive Officer of Buchalter. “We are so pleased to welcome him in Denver.” Olafson is also an experienced complex commercial litigator and counselor...
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