Michele P. Miller

Since being admitted to the California Bar in 1976, John Hillsman has tried more than 100 maritime personal injury cases to verdict or judgment and has represented seamen, fishermen, divers, pile drivers, dredgermen, marine construction workers, tugboat hands, and cruise ship passengers in state and federal courts all over the country, from Seattle to San Diego and Honolulu to Fort Lauderdale. He has appeared at every level of decision, all the way up to the U.S. Supreme Court, published seve...

Marv Pearlstein represents some of the most successful and active real estate development companies and investment firms in their acquisition, development, construction, financing, management and disposition of real property. He has substantial experience in representing these clients in every major real estate product area, including multifamily, office, commercial, industrial and hospitality. Marv’s work with real estate developers and investors includes entity formation strategy and ...

Mel M. Cole is a lawyer recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area of Employment Law - Management. Mel M. practices law in San Francisco, California Best Lawyers has recognized Mel M. Cole since 2024. The Best Lawyers recognition is based on a peer-review survey of lawyers in the same geographic region and legal practice area. The recognition reflects the professional regard in which Mel M. Cole is held by other lawyers.

Craig Martin's practice includes representing clients in SEC enforcement and DOJ matters, corporate investigations, and private securities litigation. In the last five years, Mr. Martin has conducted more than a dozen internal corporate investigations involving complex accounting and disclosure issues, whistleblower claims, and potential violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA). Mr. Martin serves as personal counsel for executives and directors in SEC and DOJ matters involving a...

Craig M. Peters has been a trial attorney for over two decades. He litigates complex cases involving wrongful death as well as those with catastrophic injuries. Mr. Peters handles a wide range of types of negligence cases, including products liability. Often asked to co-counsel on cases at the time of trial that cover a broad range of disciplines, Mr. Peters has been recognized for his trial skills through invitations to membership in the American Board Of Trial Attorneys (ABOTA), the Interna...

Steve Hankins tries cases involving intellectual property, employment, and other disputes. Steve was hooked on trial advocacy right after college when he worked with a group of busy personal injury trial attorneys. There were many trials, each one requiring empathy, creativity, forensic legwork, and nuanced advocacy. Raised by English teachers and artists, these skills come naturally to Steve. After 25 years of practice, Steve still enjoys more than anything else the careful preparation and f...

Paul P. Spaulding III is a lawyer recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice areas of Environmental Law and Litigation - Environmental. Paul P. practices law in San Francisco, California Best Lawyers has recognized Paul P. Spaulding III since 2021. The Best Lawyers recognition is based on a peer-review survey of lawyers in the same geographic region and legal practice area. The recognition reflects the professional regard in which Paul P. Spaulding III is held by other lawyers.

Adam Alper is a leading member of the intellectual property litigation group in Kirkland’s Bay Area office. Focusing primarily on patent and trade secret disputes, and predominantly representing clients in the semiconductor, telecommunications, computer hardware and pharmaceutical industries, Adam regularly litigates high-stakes competitor cases involving concurrent claims of patent, trade secret and copyright violations. These disputes often involve co-pending actions in US District Co...

Cadio Zirpoli is a lawyer recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice areas of Antitrust Law, Litigation - Antitrust and Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions - Plaintiffs. Cadio practices law in San Francisco, California Best Lawyers has recognized Cadio Zirpoli since 2019. The Best Lawyers recognition is based on a peer-review survey of lawyers in the same geographic region and legal practice area. The recognition reflects the professional regard in which Cadio Zirpoli is held by other lawyers.

C. Jean Ryan is Of Counsel in Buchalter’s San Francisco office and a member of the Tax, Benefits and Estate Planning practice group. Ms. Ryan concentrates her practice on general tax matters, which include tax planning for businesses, as well as tax and estate planning for high net worth individuals. With over four decades of experience, Ms. Ryan has a broad tax practice with many areas of expertise. She counsels her clients on corporate, partnership, individual, real estate, gift and e...