The legal system affects nearly every aspect of our daily lives, from navigating our complicated civil and criminal courts to buying a home, going bankrupt, structuring a will or employment contract and securing our own intellectual properties. Lawyers form the backbone of this vital system, linking it to society in numerous ways, particularly as advocates and advisors.

From champions like the late Johnnie Cochran to legal mavericks like Willie Gary to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, blacks have made tremendous strides on this nation’s legal landscape. This month, L.A. Focus is shining the spotlight on some of those lawyers who are changing the legal landscape right here in Los Angeles from criminal law to corporate law, malpractice to intellectual property, entertainment to elder law.

In putting together this list, we consulted some of the city’s most prominent attorneys as well as such legal organizations as the Langston Bar Association. With the exception of those deemed “up and coming”, those included had to be attorneys with reputations as leaders in their respected specialty areas as verified by their peers. We’ve spotlighted L.A.’s largest black owned firms and also highlighted those top lawyers who’ve been made partners in L.A.’s top ten majority-owned national and international law firms

L.A.'s Top Black Owned Law Firms

IVIE, MCNEILL & WYATT
For Ricky Ivie, Robert McNeill and W. Keith Wyatt, law is about experience and with a collective experience of well over 100 years of practice and more than 20 lawyers on staff, Ivie McNeill Wyatt ranks as the largest black-owned law firm in the city. The firm was honored in 2006 with the “outstanding service award” by the Minority Corporate Counsel Association. McNeill, known for his legal commentary on local TV newscasts and high profile cases like that of his 2006 landmark victory against Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, netting a settlement upwards of $6.1 million, was recently honored by the Daily Journal as one of the city’s top 100 attorneys.  Ivie, adept in intellectual property copyright, trademark litigation, personal injury, civil litigation defense work and business development, has been heavily involved in the local political scene, most recently putting enough heat on University of California Regents to increase the number of black students at his alma mater UCLA that the level of blacks being admitted this fall was restored to. Wyatt, a consummate litigator, has handled civil defense work for the City of Los Angeles, the L.A. Unified School District and L.A. Fire Department?  McNeill & Ivie believe what distinguishes them from others is “that all of our top lawyers are successful, proven trial lawyers”, including fellow partners Rupert Byrdsong who’s gained notoriety in the field of employment law with clients like Walmart; Byron Purcell who’s handled defense litigation for the likes of State Farm, Mercury Insurance and Golden Eagle Insurance; and Eulanda Lynn Matthews, who’s on tap for an upcoming bench appointment. “We’re the beneficiaries of one of the early black-owned law firms—Brody, Scarlett, Roberson (all of whom later became Superior Court Judges). Fortunately, we were not obstructed by that perception of the community thinking that we were not the best lawyers,” says Ivie of the firm they took over —and subsequently renamed in 1980 when Charles Scarlett, McNeill’s uncle, was appointed to the Superior Court. “There were very few firms of that size. Many of the major cases— especially the major criminal cases, came to that office and 90% of our clientele were African American, whether they were affluent or not.” Said Ivie, “One of the things that’s important for us is that we’ve been able to make a contribution to the community. This firm has been institutionalized in the community as a place where people know they can come for representation whether it’s a business or employment matter.” Adds McNeill, “We represent people who need our help. People who didn’t have money to pursue things that they were rightfully entitled to because they had been injured and that what we pride ourselves on—being able to help the little people that have been wronged or have been injured and have a right to be compensated.”

444 South Flower Street, 18th Floor
Los Angeles, CA 90071 • (213) 489-0028

ATKINS & EVANS
68-year old Nelson L. Atkins used to be one of the youngest black lawyers in the business to own his own law firm now he is one of the few that still remain. With ten lawyers on staff, he and partner Irwin S. Evans are credited as being pioneers on L.A.'s legal landscape have represented clients such as Ford, Coca Cola, Sprint, the city of Los Angeles, and MTA and the list goes on. “Every year around Black History Month this Conference comes around. They extend an invitation to 500 of the nations top firms inviting the black attorneys within the company to come network.” Evans admits that many corporations seek out people of color because they're in high demand due to the many clients that sue for racial discrimination. The real problem is that blacks are at a disadvantage of owning a firm. “African American lawyers get in firms and stay and work for years. But after working these years, they don't make partner like their white counterparts.” He continues: “African Americans do not have the same access others within the firms. We're not in the country clubs and our fathers did not work in the firms before. Fact is, this field is not based upon your talent; it's about who you know. Atkins & Evans LLP has been admitted as a member of The National Association of Minority & Women Owned Law Firms (NAMWOLF). The firm is also a member of the National Minority Law Group (NMLA).

3699 Wilshire Boulevard, Suite 890
Los Angeles, CA 90010•(213) 487-1400

CRAIG S. BARNES - Sedgwick, Detert, Moran & Arnold
An active trial lawyer with experience in tort and business litigation cases practices in complex business litigation, mass tort, products liability and general liability, Craig Barnes has successfully handled numerous high profile cases, including a wrongful death case arising from the 1992 Los Angeles riots, a defamation case involving the Korean Presbyterian Church and, a multi-million dollar breach of contract claim against Death Row Records and Marion "Suge" Knight. He has also served as a judge pro tem for the Los Angeles Superior Court.

SHAWN CHAPMAN HOLLEY  - Kinsella Weitzman Iser Kump & Aldisert
Her high profile clients have come to include Nicole Richie, Tupac Shakur, NBA basketball star Byron Scott and former Symbionese Liberation Army (SLA) member, Sara Jane Olson. She served on the defense teams of Black Panther leader Elmer "Geronimo" Pratt and O.J. Simpson, and served as the managing partner of the Los Angeles office of The Cochran Firm, while also heading up its national Criminal Defense Section. Ms. Holley is the rare trial attorney who practices in the areas of both civil and criminal litigation. Holley, who has more than sixty trials to her credit, also serves as a correspondent for the E! Network, and has frequently appeared on the Today Show, Good Morning America, PrimeTime Live, Court TV, Fox News and CNN. Ms. Holley has also served as a guest speaker at law schools on high-profile litigation, women in the law and the representation of “celebrity” clients.

CARL E. DOUGLAS - Law Office of Carl E. Douglas
In 1995, Carl E. Douglas was part of the nationally known defense team that helped earn the acquittal of O.J.Simpson. But much like his then-colleague, the late Johnnie Cochran, Douglas refuses to let the Simpson case be his one, defining moment. “I had offers to write a book - a couple of offers,” Douglas says of the post-trial popularity. “But I did not want to define myself by that one case and still don't want to.” After the Simpson trial, Douglas opened his own firm in 1998. He mainly represents clients who have been injured in accidents involving anything from defective products to police cars. Most recently, Douglas won a suit against General Motors in which his client received an award of $4.9 billion after an incident involving a faulty gas tank. And though Douglas will not allow the Simpson case to be his only calling card, the notoriety gained hasn't hurt the business he receives now. “The power of television is amazing,” Douglas says. “It's been 12 years since the verdict and even now I am recognized three days out of the week because of my work in that case.” In addition to the Simpson case, Douglas has also been involved in the high-profile cases involving pop artist Michael Jackson and the late rapper Tupac Shakur. Much of the cases he is presented with now involve police misconduct. Winning percentages are bleak in that field, says Douglas, with chances of winning being less than half. “You would be amazed that most police cases that go to trial lose,” says Douglas, who was raised in Los Angeles. “Since 9/11, the police are viewed as heroes and it's difficult to convince a jury that they might be as dastardly as we might contend in our lawsuit.” Regardless of the odds, Douglas persists in obtaining the justice he seeks for his clients. “I think that's why the creator made me a lawyer,” he says. “To represent victims of police abuse in Los Angeles who look like me.

BRIAN T. DUNN  - The Cochran Firm
At the age of 9, Brian T. Dunn experienced police brutality first-hand. It was an experience that he would never forget. So it comes as little surprise that for the last ten years attorney Brian T. Dunn has battled back against a system he says is plagued with an institutional bias - directed mostly towards young, black men. “I knew I wanted to be a civil rights lawyer,” says Dunn, who specializes in police brutality cases. “I wanted to attack institutional racism and oppression.” Dunn's concern with a system bias has led to heavy involvement with the “Three Strikes Law” and its application. “There was a study that was published around two or three years ago and it said that a black defendant is 13 times more likely to get 25 years to life than a white defendant or any other race by far,” the Baldwin Hills native says. “That's as clear an example of bias you can have.” Despite the bias he says exists, Dunn has been able to deal significant blows to the LAPD to expose what he says is their oft-used excessive force. He served as lead counsel for the wrongful death case of 13-year-old Devin Brown, who died after being shot 10 times by LAPD officers. Dunn ended up winning a settlement of $1.5 million to the family of Brown. Oddly enough, while the Brown case gained national notoriety, Dunn says that many police brutality cases don't receive much publicity. “Some have pretty severe injuries and no one knows about it,” Dunn says. Though Dunn has garnered much success, he is still trying to adopt some characteristics from his late mentor, Johnnie Cochran. “He never lost his will no matter the cards that were dealt to him,” Dunn says of Cochran. “Things weren't always so perfect, but he never lost his vision.”

DENISE HANNA  - Lord Bissell & Brook
As a child, Stanford Law graduate Denise Hanna, wanted to be a doctor. Little did she know that what she would make her mark in would be the legal aspect of healthcare. The experienced veteran began her practice in corporate law and fell into one of the most heavily regulated areas of health care. “The corporate practice was not something that I was familiar with growing up. Then I started realizing 'hey, this could be interesting. It's problem solving and the healthcare regulatory piece allows me to have an additional layer... enjoying the intellectual challenge.” Today, Hanna represents both health care and nonhealth care businesses in general corporate matters, mergers and acquisitions, strategic ventures, financings and complex business transaction, and played a lead role in a $2 billion acquisition of a multi-state managed care company.

WILMER J. HARRIS - Schonbrun DeSimone Seplow
Early on this Stanford University/UCLA School of Law graduate practiced civil rights law while employed at the Law Offices of Johnnie L. Cochran, Jr., but his focus changed dramatically when he joined Schonbrun De Simone Seplow Harris& Hoffman in 1999 where he concentrates primarily on the representation of employees in disputes with employers. Since 1996, Harris has worked on cases that have resulted in approximately $13 million in total paymentt to his clients. Mr. Harris' practice covers the full spectrum of employment disputes as the following few examples of case recoveries illustrates:

PETER HAVILAND  - Kaye Scholer
In 2003, Peter L. Haviland was chosen from the nation’s more than 20,000 black lawyers as one of “America’s Top Black Lawyers” named by Black Enterprise magazine. Haviland has provided services for singer Toni Braxton, and has brought suit against rapper Ja Rule and Def Jam Records on behalf of Ja Rule's former record company while his legal victories include a $132 million infringement case against Def Jam. With his participation in such high-profile cases, it's no shock that Haviland's focus is complex national and international commercial disputes. He also practices intellectual property and unfair competition claims, defamation and First Amendment issues, employment, fiduciary duty and non-competition agreements, class actions and antitrust. He is also well versed on the enforcement of domestic rights internationally, particularly in Europe and Latin America.

ROBERT JON “RJ” HENDRICKS  - Morgan Lewis
Rated Among the 500 Leading Lawyers in America by Lawdragon Magazine and winner of The American Lawyer's 2006 Litigation Department of the Year (Labor and Employment Law), Robert Jon “RJ” Hendricks is credited with the defense of one of the largest class actions ever filed against a retailer. With significant state, federal and administrative trial experience as lead counsel, Hendricks is a partner in the Labor and Employment Practice, with specific experience with the travel, hospitality, food service, entertainment and retail industries. He has also successfully briefed and argued several matters before the Ninth Circuit and California Courts of Appeal. In one such matter, he was able to obtain, via writ petition, a published decision establishing that union officials do not have a privilege to withhold from employers during litigation information known to them concerning harassment in the workplace and that, like employers, unions have obligations to prevent harassment in the workplace.

CHANNING JOHNSON  - Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld
Channing Johnson has developed a strong niche practice dovetailing between the firm's work for commercial enterprises and entertainment clients like Sony Pictures while representing recording artists like Stevie Wonder, African-American mega churches and other faith-based enterprises. Johnson's church roots had always been strong - his uncle was a preacher in L.A.—but he deepened them with the major role he played in the $24 million acquisition of the Great Western Forum by Faithful Central Bible Church. Johnson had already started building a faith-based practice, but working on the high-profile Forum deal at the end of 2000 was a watershed event, he said."It was the deal where it all came together for me," he said. "I realized that my historical experience had prepared me uniquely to present this client." Johnson has since become the go-to lawyer for similar clients. Now his list includes many of the leading black church leaders in the country - such as Ulmer and Bishop T.D. Jakes - as well as record labels like Gospo Centric who "comes from that same spiritual base."

MICHAEL A. LAWSON  - Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP
With extensive experience in business law, this Harvard Law School graduate heads up the Employee Benefits Group in the Los Angeles office of Skadden, Arps, covering all facets of executive compensation and employee benefits matters. His experience includes advising clients with respect to the structuring and offering of investment vehicles to pension plans and other institutional investors, as well as the fiduciary obligations of investment managers, trustees and other fiduciaries. Lawson regularly advises boards of trustees of pension and other employee benefits funds and boards of directors of financial institutions and of companies sponsoring pension plans concerning their duty of care, fiduciary responsibilities, conflicts of interest and other statutory duties under state and federal laws. In 2005, he was appointed by Mayor Villaraigosa to serve on the Airport Commission.

AREVA MARTIN - Martin & Martin, LLP
Starting her law firm 17 years ago, the world for Areva Martin was a very different place. “I didn't grow up in a family where anyone had gone to college and definitely hadn't owned any type of businesses,” says Martin, “Now I have employees that I pay over $150,000 a year.” Triumphing over adversity she went to the University of Chicago and then on to Harvard Law. “When I was in law school I thought I was going to be the latest greatest civil rights lawyer.” But after taking a look at her college loans she put civil rights on hold and for a legal specialty that would pay the bills. She moved to Los Angeles and took up a position at a large corporate law firm for a year but the job did not appeal to her, so she went into private practice, establishing Martin & Martin with her husband, who is a minority partner. Today, with the help of clients like AT&T and General Motors and a staff that includes 14 attorney, her firm-specializing in , Martin and & Martin LLP, one of the city's largest African American female owned law firm. With 14 lawyers on staff, the firm specializes in labor and employment law, corporate transactions, worker's compensation, general liability, and special education. Now, she's giving back. “Advocates for All”, a legal clinic she established this year provides free legal services to impoverished individuals as well as a "Special Needs Network". “In balancing our commitment to the legal process as well as our commitment to the community. We are able to play a role in the civil justice gap.” Her biggest accomplishment as a lawyer lies in the fact that she is one of few African American woman to own her own firm within the business. “When I look back at the other firms ran by women or minorities, I have seen that a lot of these firms have not made it. So, one of the highest accomplishments in my career has been developing a practice that has sustained itself over time.” She considers herself a combination of both savvy and lucky. While maintaining a self-sustaining practice, she has a successful marriage and three children. She confesses: “I don't profess to be the smartest person in the world but I have a work ethic that is not beatable.” “I feel like I am so blessed. I have been given so much and now I have so much to give back.”

CYNTHIA MCCLAIN
Growing up Cynthia McClain determined that the people who made the biggest impact in the black community were ministers, teachers or lawyers. She knew two things: she wasn't cut out for ministry and teachers didn't make enough. She chose law. “I discovered what I really like is the kind of practice involving decision making for communities. Whether it's getting a football team in south L.A, serving as legal counsel to an African American voter education and participation project, the Baldwin Hills Conservancy, or a project fostering economic development in certain communities.” What's more, McClain takes time in savoring the victories because her job is to make what seems impossible possible and with her 10-year old public policy law firm-Strategic Counsel-she does it all the time. “We seem to get hired by clients whose problems are almost insurmountable. One communications client had all of their buildings across the state shut down and they needed the decision reversed. In 10 days we got the stop work order lifted. Another client, International Truck and Engine, was a diesel engine manufacturer with the greenest technology in the world. They just introduced a hybrid diesel school bus. We got a $250 million appropriation that is a set aside for replacing school buses in California because we have another client who is in that market and had an economic interest in making that happen.” For the determined McClain, there is nothing worst than not achieving the objective. And while being a woman in a male dominated society has been challenging, success came relatively quickly. Within a year and a half of establishing her practice, the firm's client base included State Senator Mark Ridley Thomas and Ed Vincent, the firm's first big corporate client. Strategic Counsel L.A.’s Top Black-Owned Law Firms “The work we did around the Coliseum and getting the pro-football team on Ed's behalf was pretty significant. While we ultimately weren't successful, we won many battles along the way that established our firm as a high caliber firm both in legislative and strategic government practice, and we were able to build from that.” “You don't get a lot of opportunities to lose, so we have to come up with unique solutions. We represented AT&T Broadband and Comcast in their dealings with the city of L.A. and got one of the best deals in the nation. For every person who puts into my hands whatever project or future, I feel like we owe them.” Today, McClain is working to transform the practice that is largely branded around her. “I want to take it to another level where we are branded around an institution. We are aggressively looking at our client base and really thinking about how we can continue to make a contribution to the African American community that isn't driven by the dollars we make but the changes we make.”

523 West 6th Street · Suite 1128
Los Angeles, California 90014 • (213) 895-7010

WINSTON "KEVIN" MCKESSON  - The Law Office of Winston McKesson
Savoy Magazine listed him as one of the 15 most influential black lawyers in the United States in 2003. Forbes On-Air Magazine called him “one of nine lawyers profiled as a tribute to the great American Lawyer” for 2005-2006. He's been named a Southern California “Super Lawyer,” from 2004-2006, and was named “Criminal Defense Attorney of the Year” by the Century City Bar Association in 2000. But don't expect any of that information to be listed on the “Winston Kevin McKesson” Web site because he doesn't have one. Instead, he lets his accomplishments speak for him. Searching the Web for McKesson will indeed yield many results, including his AV rating by Martindale- Hubbell - a peer-reviewed rating for lawyers practicing with the highest ethical standards and performing with the highest legal ability. “When I went to law school almost 30 years ago there used to be a prohibition against advertising [among lawyers],” McKesson says. “Lawyers see it as sleazy. We try to do more advertising that's neutral.” One thing that won't come up in an Internet search of McKesson is the $100,000 price tag for his services. But Rafael Perez can attest to the worth of hiring McKesson. Perez, a former LAPD officer, was the central figure in the LAPD Rampart scandal -- a scandal that included the cover-up of a bank robbery and the theft of at least $800,000 worth of cocaine from evidence lockers. McKesson was responsible for structuring a more lenient deal for the disgraced officer. The final result was the reversal of almost 100 convictions and “Training Day,” a movie inspired by the character of the infamous Perez. “There are two things you don't try to cut costs on,” says McKesson, whose practice areas are criminal law, felonies and white-collar crime. “Brain surgery and if someone is going to spend the rest of their life in prison. “You have to take your liberty very, very seriously.”

DARRELL D. MILLER  - Miller & Pliakas, LLP
Named to Fade-In Magazine’s list of “Top 100 People in Hollywood You Need To Know” and to Black Enterprise Magazine’s Top 50 Showbiz Players list, Darrell Miller is fast becoming a powerhouse on the Hollywood scene. Since launching his own practice in 1996, the classically trained opera and musical theater singer’s impressive list of clients have grown to include Angela Bassett, Courtney Vance, Master P, Outkast’s Andre Benjamin, and Ludacris. He served a four-year term on the Board of Governors of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences and is set to release a book, “The Sixteenth Minute of Fame”, detailing his trailblazing apprroach for helping entertainment industry clients build and sustain brand success.

ANGELA REDDOCK  - Carroll, Burdick & McDonough LLP
For three years running, she was named a "rising star" by the Southern California Super Lawyers listing of outstanding attorneys. Last year, the California Legislature Assembly recognized her public and community service with a resolution, and the UCLA Black Law Students Association presented her with their "Distinguished Alumna Award". What's more, in little over a decade since passing the bar, Angela Reddock has served as legal commentator for KCAL/KCBS News; made a failed bid for L.A. City Council; partnered in a law firm with renowned Michael Jackson attorney Thomas Mesereau Jr.; served on the board of the Los Angeles African American Women's Public Policy Institute; and litigated several high profile cases including the wrongful death law suit of AKA pledge, Kristin High. “There were four young ladies pledging and two of them died from a drowning incident which was the result of hazing,” said Reddock, who served as lead attorney on the case that eventually settled. “It got quite a bit of attention not only to the issue of hazing in the Greek life but in other organizations as well.” Another high profile case involved then 13-year-old Gregory Harris, Jr., a Palmdale Little League player convicted of second-degree murder in 2005 after striking a 15- year-old in the neck with a bat. The blow severed an artery and the boy was pronounced dead two hours later. Reddock's appeal of the case resulted in a reduced penalty of voluntary manslaughter for Harris, currently serving in the California State Youth Authority. Ironically, Reddock's area of expertise is employment law, having written numerous articles on the nuts and bolts of hiring and firing, while advising corporate executives and human resource professionals on employment and labor law matters. Earlier this year, Reddock was offered a partnership in Carroll, Burdick, and McDonough, LLP, a prestigious downtown law firm. “I had not heard about [Carroll, Burdick, and McDonough, LLP] before,” Reddock says. “But once I looked into it, I realized that the firm was strong. I was attracted to the fact that there were a lot of women in leadership.”

CONSTANCE RICE - English, Munger & Rice
Hers is one of those names that's sure to top any list of the city's attorneys. And for good reason too. The key innovator behind the mayor’s new approach on tackling gang violence, Rice has been at the forefront of civil rights law in Los Angeles for more than three decades with the NAACP Legal Defense Fund and The Advancement Project. The Harvard-educated lawyer has had success winning cases like the famous bus riders case where she won her client three billion dollars and a 1999 coalition lawsuit that won $750 million for new school construction in Los Angeles. Yet for Constance Rice—who has eceived more than 50 major awards for her work in expanding opportunity and advancing multi-racial democracy— it has never been about winning rather “rewiring the system” and attaining what she calls “transformative change”. “I want change that impacts thousands of people. I want schools that work,” says the New York University graduate. Although she began as a litigation lawyer, Rice believes that winning cases has never changed anything throughout history and that, in fact, change comes from the transforming of people's ideas and the ways they view the world.

VIRGIL ROBERTS  - Bobbitt & Roberts
When Virgil Roberts entered the entertainment industry 35 years ago as a lawyer he could count the number of black lawyers on his hand. "Today,” Roberts says, “probably the biggest star in a motion picture is Will Smith. It has made people really open up and be accustomed to black excellence and less afraid to say I will let a black person represent me. It is a better time for blacks in the entertainment industry than ever before." Over the last two decades, Roberts clients have grown from thoe like BET and Virgin Records to PBS and Ford Motors. Roberts, managing partner for Bobbitt & Roberts, was former President of Solar Records (DGP) and came from a time when the musical talent in the market wanted white attorneys because they had all of the connections to the big time labels. "Before you would get someone who you start out with and you would help raise the crop. Then they reach a certain statue and would then say well now I need a lawyer who is of higher status. Soon enough they would dump you. So no one was really able to hold on to the big talent." Change came with the flourishing hip-hop movement of the 80's, when black artists began to seek out black lawyers because they were people they could relate to. "It was kind of like a counter cultural thing. They grew up in the “I’m-black-and-I’m-proud era,” Roberts says. These days, in a field where whoever controls the talent calls the shots, Roberts has found himself included in more and more A-list deals. And since1996 the Harvard law graduate works along side partner Leroy Bobbitt specializing in the music, film and television industry. "His expertise is film and television and my expertise is music, so together we have kind of covered the gamut of what the entertainment business is."

NINA SHAW  - Del, Shaw, Moonves, Tanaka and Finkelstein
With such A-list clients as Jamie Foxx, Laurence Fishburne, and James Earl Jones, it’s little wonder that Nina Shaw was named two years consecutively to the Hollywood Reporter's "Women in Entertainment - Power 100", featured in Black Enterprise's "America's Top Black Lawyers" and cited by Savoy Magazine as one of "The 100 Most Influential Blacks in America". The Columbia law graduate, a founding partner of the entertainment law firm Del, Shaw, Moonves, Tanaka and Finkelstein, has been described as a formidable negotiator. Practice areas include television, motion picture and live stage.

JOHN E. SWEENEY  - The Law Office of John Sweeney
John Sweeney is one of just a handful of lawyers who can claim boasting rights to the Million Dollar Advocate Forum. To become a member, you have to have a million dollar or better verdict in a civil case. Sweeney has several, including one of the city's largest elder abuse settlement on record and a $2.4 million verdict in the 1985 Baldwin Hills fire that scorched 53 homes and left three dead. And while very few have ever gotten a not guilty verdict in a death penalty case, Sweeney did just that in “People Vs. Ross Temple” (thought to be a slam-dunk for prosecutors. Other high profile clients for the Dorsey High graduate who specializes in criminal law and large tort cases include the Gap Band, comedian Chris Tucker, Wynton Marsalis, and Inglewood beating case victim, Donovan Jackson. Earlier this summer, he won a racial discrimination suit against Universal Films brought by a former assistant director to John Singleton fired off the set of “2 Fast 2 Furious”. The L.A. native who climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro on his 50th birthday, was hired by Johnnie Cochran at the D.A.'s office after graduating from law school. When Cochran left to start his own firm, Sweeney went with him and worked alongside Cochran on some of L.A. county's high profile civil rights cases. “I have a burning passion for justice and civil rights and have taken the mantle as one of the top lawyers in the state of California for the African American community as an honor.”

BART H. WILLIAMS - Munger, Tolles & Olson LLP
In 2002, this Yale Law School graduate was named by California Law Business Magazine “one of the top 20 lawyers in the State of California under 40 years of age”. In January 2003, The American Lawyer magazine profiled him as one of the top 45 lawyers in America under the age of 45, and in November 2003, Bart Williams was featured in Black Enterprise magazine as one of the top African-American attorneys in the United States. Practice areas include complex civil litigation, commercial contract disputes, attorney malpractice defense, employment law, product liability defense While serving as an Assistant United States Attorney (1991- 1994) concentrating on complex criminal prosecutions involving allegations of fraud or other business crimes, racketeering and money laundering,, he obtained convictions in 11 out of 11 jury trials.

AOMI YOUNG - Kauff McClain & Maguire
She has served as a Commissioner on the California Fair Employment and Housing Commission, as a referee to review lawyer disciplinary matters for the formerly constituted California State Bar Court, and as a volunteer mediator for the Los Angeles Superior Court. In 2003, the 30 year labor and employment law veteran, was named as one of America’s Top Black Lawyers by Black Enterprise Magazine. She has tried numerous cases to verdict in state and federal courts, and has vast experience representing employers in arbitrations, alternative dispute resolution proceedings and before administrative agencies, including the National Labor Relations Board and the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing. She represents employers in all types of labor and employment matters, including individual and class-based employment discrimination, wrongful discharge, and wage and hour litigation, and collective bargaining.

Black Partners At L.A.’s Top Ten Majority Firms
BLACK ATTORNEYS WHO'VE LANDED PARTNERSHIPS IN L.A.'S TOP TEN LAW FIRMS

(Firms are listed in accordance with the most recent Los Angeles Business Journal rankings).

1. O'Melveny & Myers - LLP ERIC RICHARDS
This Harvard cum laude graduate heads up the firms 100 lawyer Transactions department. Practice areas include project finance and infrastructure investment and development. He is also well-versed in investment management and fund matters, corporate joint ventures and divestitures; transactions involving transportation infrastructure (including airports, ports, rail, and surface transportation projects), the energy sector and public-private partnerships.

2. Latham & Watkins - JOHN B. SHERRELL
Presently acting as lead real estate counsel for a major public utility company, practice areas for this Yale graduate include real estate law, with special emphasis on real estate development and finance involving numerous industrial, office, residential and retail developments, including oil refineries. Finance transactions have included residential subdivisions, office, in-dustrial, shopping center, hotel and health care facilities.

3. Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher - MARCELLUS MCRAE
Listed among the top " 20 Under 40 " California lawyers by the Daily Journal in 2003, and selected in January 2004, as one of California's "Superlawyers" by Law & Politics Magazine, practice areas include defense of individuals and corporations in cases involving allegations of: financial fraud, public corruption, health care fraud, wrongful death, criminal antitrust violations, and a broad range of employment and labor matters .

4. Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith - JAY B. LAKE
With 17 years of experience in civil litigation, practice areas for this experienced trial attorney and arbitrator include toxic tort, medical negligence, premises liability, school negligence and wrongful termination/discrimination, construction litigation, environmental law, professional liability, governmental liability and elder abuse.

5. Quinn Emanuel Urquhart Oliver & Hedges - DUANE LYONS
Practice Areas for this former assistant U.S. attorney who received a personal commendation from the U.S. Attorney General for his prosecution of the Los Angeles police officers involved in the Rodney King beating, include banking and financial institution litigation; employment; media and Internet litigation; and white collar criminal litigation. In 2000, Lyons received the Attorney General's John Marshall Award, the highest award given attorneys within the Justice Department, for his role as lead prosecutor in Operation Casablanca, the largest money laundering case in U.S. history.

6. Sheppard Mullin - DIANNE BAQUET SMITH
This Berkeley grad and employment law veteran has extensive experience representing management in litigation of wrongful discharge, discrimination, and other types of employment cases through jury trial. She has handled a broad range of administrative matters regarding business practices, including employment discrimination charges with state and federal agencies in California, Oregon and Washington, and represented clients in proceedings before the National Labor Relations Board, OSHA and California Department of Industrial Relations. Sheppard Mullin - TRACY KENNEDY An experienced trial attorney, Kennedy has tried to verdict in state and federal court employment matters such as age, race, sex and disability discrimination, sexual and racial harassment, retaliation, and wrongful termination, also providing preventive counseling to clients concerning personnel and employment matters.

7. Paul Hastings - DENNIS S. ELLIS, Partner
Concentrating his practice in consumer class actions, unfair competition, business torts, products liability defense, environmental law, and breach of contract actions, this Howard University Law School was the lead attorney in a case that resulted in a judgement in excess of $2.8 billion— believed to be the largest judgment obtained by a Chinese firm in a U.S. court.

8. Irell & Manella LLP HENRY SHIELDS JR.
Named “Entertainment Lawyer of the year” by the Century City Bar Associatio, Shields client base has included the likes of NBC (for whom he currently serves as lead counsel in now pending actions), CBS, and the National Enquirer, while he has made the Hollywood Reporter’s list of the "Top 100 Power Lawyers Outside Counsel". He specializes in civil jury trials in state and federal courts, representing defendants and plaintiffs in a wide variety of complex commercial disputes .

9. Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP
No black lawyers were listed for the Los Angeles offices of this national law firm.

10. Sidley Austin LLP - DEBRA POLE
Named to the National Law Journal’s List of Top 50 Women Litigators (2001) and the L.A. Daily Journal Settlements and Verdicts’ List of 30 Top Women Lawyers, Pole is a seasoned trial attorney with experience in multidistrict litigation, class actions and products liability litigation. She acted as National Coordinating Counsel for defendants in the high profile silicone breast implant litigation and the diet drug litigation and is a sought after speaker.

The Protectors

ERROL GORDON - FAMILY LAW THE LAW OFFICES OF ERROL JAY GORDON, ESQ
In 1980, Errol Joy Gordon became the only black attorney to be certified a family law specialist in the state of California. For the next 20-plus years-before another black was certified- Gordon would become the go-to attorney for many black lawyers on any variety of legal matters involving family law. It is a distinction that is reflected in his Martindale-Hubbell rating of “AV”, a designation afforded individual attorneys who practice with the highest of legal ability and ethical standards from the internationally renowned law directory. “People are going through difficult times in divorces," says Gordon, who once tried a case with the late Johnnie Cochran. "It is really the worst times of their lives and if I can be there and I can help [clients] and get them through, that is very satisfying and rewarding.” Following a divorce or dissolution, Gordon says the first place people should go is to a lawyer. “Pay a minimal consultation fee to check into your rights and responsibilities,” Gordon advises. “The tragedy is when people turn their backs on their responsibilities and don't take care of their business.” “Other [lawyers] charge around $650 [per hour],” Gordon says. “I don't try to knock [clients] dead. I try to knock my opponents dead.” Gordon originally worked in civil litigation, but left his government job to go into practice with Carl Jones, the first alternate public defender of Los Angeles. But after two years, Gordon decided to reenter civil law - with a specific focus on family law. Gordon has not exclusively dealt with family law cases. He has tried as many as 12 murder trials and “every kind of felony you can imagine.” The difference between family law and criminal law? Gordon says family law leads to a transition for the parties involved. “Nobody is going to jail or getting the gas chamber,” Gordon says.

SANDRA JONES ANDERSON ATTORNEY AT LAW
Married with children and attending night school, this former social worker still managed to pass the bar on her very first effort. What was driving her was her passion to help those many see as vulnerablebe it trust or probate issues, social security, guardianships for children or mistreatment in nursing homes for the elderly. "One of the things about probate is that you never get paid until you finish the work, but it does make you feel good, when you can help people who seen to many as vulnerable. Previously with Los Angeles County, Anderson was elected in 1989 to serve on the Los Angeles County Employees Retirement Association Board of Investments. This is my second career so I'm not as driven to make a lot of money, but you make up for it in the satisfaction of helping people.

CAPRICE COLLINS COLLINS LAW GROUP
To an audience of 60 packed in a room for her yearly seminar, Caprice Collins poses a question “If you have inherited 100 thousand dollars or more raise your hand” and every year she gets the same response of “1 or 2” hands. Collins then follows up with another question “how many of you expect that you're going to leave more than a 100 thousand dollars worth of value to your heirs?” and as always the “entire room raises their hands”. The Inglewood probate lawyer holds these free seminars on living trusts, asset protection and business planning to teach the African American community the importance of preserving their wealth and protecting their monies after they die. “All of us are just one car accident away from being unable to make our own decisions,” says Collins. The Harvard law graduate was once a litigation lawyer representing companies like Bank of America and Wells Fargo until she realized she wanted to be a “protector” of people's wealth instead of a “collector” for big companies. “During that period of time I always had individual clients who were handling other kind of business type transactions and they would come to me and say 'you know I've got to get this in order. I'm scared. What if something were to happen to me? My wife doesn't have any authority with my business.'” Collins, who sits on a number of boards including the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, the National Association of Women Business Owners- Los Angels and is the 1st African American woman to be let into the academy's organization for probate law, actively helps her clients allocate where their funds will go when they die. “We work real hard to get something and then let it be lost in the process of transpiring to the next generation,” states Collins. “We don't transfer it efficiently; we don't make decisions about our own health and about our own welfare; we allow our wealth to be lost.” In fact, Collins states that African Americans have oftentimes been termed by the court the “probate people” because of the frequent cases of African Americans failing to plan and ending up in court. “We are disproportionately represented [in court] not because we have more assets or greater liabilities than others but because we just haven't planned."

Selecting An Attorney

Generally speaking, the sooner you hire a lawyer, the better. Many cases require prompt action. Also, acting quickly also serves to preserve important evidence that may otherwise disappear. However, finding the "right lawyer" can be difficult. Referrals—either from another attorney or someone the attorney represented—can be the best way to find a lawyer with the experience you require. Or one can contact the Langston Bar Association (www.langstonbar.org), the oldest bar association in the state serving the African American legal community. You might also want to check the library for a national listing of attorneys published by Martindale-Hubbell, considered one of the best all-around sources of information. And at that all important first consultation—which in most cases is free (don’t expect too much time), here are some questions you need to ask:

1. What kinds of cases do you handle? Ask how many cases like yours she or he has both tried, won, lost or settled. Having a lawyer who has handled hundreds of cases like yours means he will more than likely know all the angles. Do not be afraid to ask for a copy of a trial brief, settlement conference, or pre-trial statement that was filed with the court so better acquaint yourself with the quality of the attorney's work.

2. How often can I expect to be updated? Remember, the most common complaint of clients is that the attorney stops communicating. Will they be available in an emergency? Do you have a home or cell phone number in the event of an emergency? Can followup meetings or phonecalls be scheduled at agreed upon times.

3. What does your retainer cover? Get a written estimate from the attorney, and once hired, make sure you have a signed retainer agreement outlining the terms of your agreement—what it does and does not cover. By law, fee agreements must be in writing when the lawyer expects the fees and costs to total $1,000 or more. If the lawyer has a pre-printed fee agreement and you don’t like any part of the agreement, ask the lawyer to make revisions or to draw up an agreement better suited to your case. Remember, the agreement should list the services the lawyer will perform and how the costs (the other expenses of your case) will be handled and billed. And if the lawyer is going to add interest or other charges to unpaid amounts. You might also want to ask what, if anything, can be done to reduce fees or costs?

4. Who is going to do the work? Find out if the lawyer will handle your case personally and if the lawyer intends to have another member of the law firm handle any part of the case, you might want to talk to the second lawyer as well.

5. When can you get started? If the lawyer is busy handling another big case and cannot devote the attention necessary for yours in a timely manner, you may want to look elsewhere.

6. Do you have expert witnesses available may testify on my behalf? If an attorney doesn't know any expert witnesses, it's likely that he have not gone to a jury trial on many (or any) DUI cases.

7. Will you visit me in jail? Your attorney should be more than happy to see you in jail. That’s part of treating you with respect and letting you know that he’s made your matter a priority.

8. What is expected of you? In many cases, you will play a key role in your case, so you might as well know upfront what the lawyer will expect from you.

9. What course of action will he take? Be wary of an answer that contains lots of assurances but lacks concrete steps and a range of time the tasks would require. Determine what procedures will be followed to make sure all time deadlines will be met in your case.

Note: Remember to check the State Bar’s Web site (www.calbar.ca.gov)to find out if the lawyer has ever been publicly disciplined by the bar. Also try to imagine what kind of impression the attorney would make on them, and how convincingly he or she would present the facts of your case. Finally, if you are not comfortable with the competence of your lawyer, retained or appointed, consult with a second lawyer to have your situation reviewed. It may well turn out that your lawyer is competent - but it is you who could go to prison, not your lawyer, if he or she is not.

And Before You Sign On That Dotted Line.... Entertainment attorney Nyanza Shaw of Shaw Esquire & Associates has these key tips for you.

1. The biggest mistake those entering enter the entertainment industry make is not taking the time to really understand the types of deals that they’re entering into, or being patient and not taken the first deal that comes your way. Many think that their first thing deal is going to be the only deal. They get kind of desperate and will grab whatever’s on the table.

2. Artists should recognize that if someone wants to do business with you—or you really have something going for you— that everything is negotiable. Never just give your rights away.

3. Finally, you should always talk to more than one attorney. You want to feel comfortable with that person knowing that they have your best interests at heart. If they can deliver the things for you and they can protect your rights, then that’s what’s important. Also having a relationship where they believe in you and they have your back so that they can not only get you the best possible deals, but try to help you in all aspects in your career.

Up and Coming

We’ve profiled some of the best and brightest in L.A.’s legal community, now here’s a look at some of those rising legal stars:

SAMANTHA C. GRANT - Mitchell Silberberg & Knupp LLP
Named on list of "10 Up and Coming African American Lawyers to Watch" in Diversity & the Bar by the Minority Corporate Counsel Association, Samantha Grant successfully represented Warner Bros. Television Production, an independent production company, and several individual writers in a high-profile, wrongful termination and harassment suit brought by a former writer's assistant for the hit TV show "Friends." Lyle v. Warner Brothers Television Production, 38 Cal. 4th 264 (2006). She was also named as as "One to Watch" in the labor and employment field by the Los Angeles Daily Journal and was listed as one of Southern California Super Lawyers Rising Stars two consecutive years (2005 and 2006). Practice areas for this rising legal eagle include the representation of employers in a wide variety of labor and employment matters, including harassment, discrimination, retaliation, breach of contract, fraud, wage and hour, public policy violations, defamation, invasion of privacy, and trade secret/unfair competition.

STEPHEN A. KING
King’s Justice The name alone is an attention grabber, but for 33-year old up and comer Stephen King, a good day's work is about protecting his clients' interest. It is what made him somewhat of a rising star in the L.A. County Public Defender's office before he branched out in 2005 to launch his own firm, Rios & King, specializing in criminal, civil rights and personal injury law. “A lot of people in financial hardship catch the bottom end and being miseducated or misinformed can get you into a lot of trouble.” That's where King says he comes in. “Private attorneys do a little more handholding,” said King, who has handled everything from petty misdemeanors to murder. “You call your clients and keep them up on what they're supposed to do. You have to protect your client's interest even when he doesn't know what's best for them. Some of them don't want to hear that they're on probation. “A lot of my AA clients feel like if they can convince you of something, that they can convince the judge and get off. So they lie. They don't want to accept the truth, regardless of what the evidence says. They think if I can pay a lawyer a lot of money, I can get off.” Credit the huge sense of pride he takes in his work to his philosophy on life. “There are no shortcuts in life,” King said. “When in doubt, refer to rule number one.”

NEDY WILLIAMS WARREN Williams, Yasinski & Jones, LLP
This UCLA Law School graduate, who has has extensive experience litigating harassment, discrimination, breach of contract and wrongful termination claims on behalf of both employers and employees, also serves as president of the Langston Bar Association, the oldest bar association in California serving the African American legal community. Specializing in preventative employment practices, she also advises and counsels individuals and companies on compliance with state and federal laws and creating internal policies and procedures. While at UCLA, she was an editor of the UCLA Law Review and Editor In Chief of the National Black Law Journal.

For The Record

We are all comforted by the idea that, if we were to be wrongfully accused of a criminal act, a panel of our “peers” would serve as the last line of defense in a sometimes renegade criminal justice system. However, very few people, generally speaking, are willing to validate that most precious of rights and actually serve as a juror. When minorities, particularly African-Americans, are factored into this equation the numbers of potential jurors are even smaller.

For as quickly as the mailman deposits those “Official Jury Summons,” into our mailboxes they are promptly disregarded, and “a jury of my peers”, particularly for blacks, is legal fiction.

No sooner than a client asserts their right to a jury trial, they are faced with the sobering reality that a jury of their peers does not guarantee them 12 people of similar race.

“And for as much as we collectively coexist, there are cultural differences that leave us divided, everything from languages (formal and slang) to clothing, gestures and our life experiences. That alone is reason enough for each of us to realize our obligation to serve as jurors, who are asked to, among other things, listen to testimony anddetermine the truth of their version of the facts. This is where those cultural differences come in.

“It is our peers who understand the cultural subtleties that may be the difference between freedom and custody. Because of those special nuances unique to each culture, it is important for each defendant to have a person in the jury room who can interpret and translate the evidence for others on the jury.

“For as long as I can remember, I have heard that the criminal justice system is corrupt. Now that I have an insider’s view of the system, I speak with some authority when I disagree with that viewpoint. I will say emphatically that the system is flawed because everyone is not represented in the jury room, but that flaw does not rest on the shoulders of the justice system but rather on the people who are asked to serve as jurors and refuse. A jury of my peers is only possible if each of us assumes our duty to be a voice for those of our peers who sit on the chair of the accused.

— ALTUS W. HUDSON Kidd & Hudson