Charles J. "CJ" Higley

After leading BigLaw teams for years in high stakes and precedent setting cases in U.S. courts and international arbitration tribunals, Mr. Chao in May 2019 launched a boutique enabling him to sit as arbitrator, mediator, and special master, and to handle selected litigation matters. He was a partner for 29 years at a 1,000 lawyer global firm, where he founded and led the international litigation and arbitration practice; and for 6 years, he served as the U.S. head of the international arbitr...

John Golden is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Trusts and Estates. John, who practices law in Redwood Shores, California, has been recognized since 2020. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which John is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

David Cheng is the chair and managing partner of Nixon Peabody’s China and Asia-Pacific practice. He is qualified in both the United States and Hong Kong. He focuses on cross-border transactions, litigations and investigations, advising on issues ranging from acquisitions, capital financing (initial public offering), intellectual property protection and disputes to fraud, FCPA and SEC investigations. He has a client portfolio from all over the world: United States, Middle East, Europe, ...

Stacey Wright is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Environmental Law. Stacey, who practices law in San Francisco, California, has been recognized since 2025. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Stacey is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Tim Miller founded the Silicon Valley office of Valle Makoff after 14 years as a litigation partner in the Northern California offices of the international law firm Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP. Mr. Miller has extensive experience litigating complex cases in federal and state courts. Mr. Miller's practice includes a broad range of business and contract disputes, claims of trade secret misappropriation, claims against officers, directors and trustees asserting breach of fiducia...

John Bartko is a Founder and a Principal of the firm. He represents both plaintiffs and defendants in complex civil, criminal and regulatory matters. He has represented many executives ensnared in complex regulatory investigations and has been involved in significant international discovery and complex investigations requiring foreign court appearances, including conducting examinations in Switzerland and Japan through pioneering requests for civil judicial assistance. He has traveled to Euro...

R. Clark Morrison is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Land Use and Zoning Law, Litigation - Land Use and Zoning, Natural Resources Law and Real Estate Law. R. Clark, who practices law in San Francisco, California, has been recognized since 2007. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which R. Clark is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

William Bernstein has practiced law for more than three decades. Who’s Who Legal called him, “a leader in the plaintiffs’ bar in the fields of complex civil litigation, antitrust , and consumer protection law.” Notable cases Bill has litigated include price-fixing suits against pharmaceutical companies on behalf of retail pharmacies, consumer claims against the world’s largest vitamin manufacturers for crafting a global “vitamins cartel,” charges agai...

Robert Bunzel is a Principal of the firm. He represents both plaintiffs and defendants in civil, criminal and regulatory matters such as venture finance, business and shareholder disputes, environmental and employment law, class actions, data breach and professional malpractice. His practice has involved significant international discovery and foreign court appearances, including examinations in Zurich and Lugano through pioneering requests for civil judicial assistance to Switzerland, as wel...

Garry is a senior class action litigator and strategist at Littler Mendelson, resident in the San Francisco office. He has personally supervised the firm's attorneys on more than 1,000 employment and labor litigation matters and currently defends employers in complex wage and hour, and discrimination class action cases. He also represents clients before the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), in arbitration, mediation, and collective bargaining and offers advice on: Class action avoidance,...