Best Lawyers in California, United States for Appellate Practice
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Cities
Michael R. Williams is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Appellate Practice and Commercial Litigation. Michael R., who practices law in San Clemente, California, has been recognized since 2023. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Michael R. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Jesse Gessin is trial counsel for businesses and individuals. He is the rare attorney who successfully tries both civil and criminal cases. For example, his multimillion-dollar jury verdict was recognized as the highest California verdict in several categories for that year. He entered the case only a few months before trial. In 2022, hired less than ten days before trial, Jesse achieved a complete defense verdict for a successor trustee against multimillion-dollar claims of wrongful investme...
The Daily Journal describes Anna-Rose Mathieson as “one of the West Coast’s leading appellate litigators.” She’s been named one of the Top Women Attorneys in California three times, is certified as an appellate specialist by the Board of Legal Specialization of the State Bar of California, and taught appellate writing at Stanford Law School. She served as a law clerk to Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the U.S. Supreme Court. Anna-Rose draws from her broad experience to ...
Thomas “Tom” H. Bienert, Jr. is a highly experienced trial attorney who handles the spectrum of litigation matters. After spending ten years as a federal prosecutor and two years at a national law firm, Tom founded Bienert Katzman Littrell Williams LLP (BKLW) in 2000 and steadily grew the firm to its current size through the addition of other trial attorneys. Since starting the firm, he has obtained many multi-million dollar verdicts for plaintiffs in civil cases, multiple zero-su...
Claudia Ribet is one of only four attorneys in California recognized by the State Bar as a certified specialist in both appellate law and family law. This dual qualification gives Claudia deep insight into effective presentation of complex arguments in high-stakes family law appeals. She wins most of the California family law appeals she litigates. Some of Claudia’s published family law appellate victories are listed below, and Claudia has served as counsel in many more unpublished fami...
Benjamin G. Shatz is a partner in the firm’s Trial Practice Group , focusing on appellate advocacy and complex litigation matters. Benjamin represents clients in high-stakes appeals, writ proceedings, and discretionary review matters in state and federal courts across the country. His appellate experience spans a broad range of industries and legal issues, including complex commercial disputes, entertainment and copyright matters, employment litigation, real estate and land use, banking...
Jessica Weisel has more than 20 years of experience handling must-win civil appeals, writs, and trial court motions for businesses and individuals. She has litigated in nearly every federal circuit Court of Appeals and has extensive experience in the California Supreme Court and California Court of Appeal. Jessica’s substantive appellate experience covers a vast range of subjects. She recently obtained reversals of a $19 million wrongful termination judgment in an employment suit, a $27...
William E. Thomson is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Appellate Practice. William E., who practices law in Los Angeles, California, has been recognized since 2023. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which William E. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Barry Landsberg is a health industry litigation partner, who has made landmark law for hospitals, nursing homes, and other healthcare providers and insurers. Barry has also won several first-impression cases for hospitals before the California Supreme Court and the California Court of Appeal. Barry handles cases and appeals of complex business and health regulatory litigation disputes arising under the Unfair Competition Law, the anti-kickback statutes, the False Claims Act, and RICO, as well...
Judy is a partner of the Firm and one of California’s most effective appellate practitioners. First certified as a specialist in appellate law more than 25 years ago, and with B&S since 2015, Judy has focused her career solely on appellate practice for three decades, both in private practice at major law firms and in the appellate courts. Having served as a law clerk at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and spent more than 11 years as a senior judicial attorney at the ...
Kelly Woodruff is a seasoned appellate advocate, having represented clients and amici curiae in dozens of significant writs and appeals in the state and federal appellate courts in her 25 years of practice. Over the course of her career, Kelly has gained experience with appellate matters in nearly all subject areas related to business and civil litigation, including intellectual property, breach of contract, torts, probate, and trust matters. Recently, Kelly preserved a multi-million-dollar i...
Greg Pimstone leads the firm’s healthcare litigation practice. He is one of the country’s leading healthcare litigators, having been recognized on multiple occasions by the Daily Journal as one of the top 100 attorneys in the state of California. Greg has been lead counsel in numerous high-profile cases that produced landmark decisions transforming the legal landscape in the healthcare field. Greg is a trial and appellate litigator for California’s largest healthcare entitie...
Our Methodology
Recognition by Best Lawyers is based entirely on peer review. Our methodology is designed to capture, as accurately as possible, the consensus opinion of leading lawyers about the professional abilities of their colleagues within the same geographical area and legal practice area.
The Process
Best Lawyers employs a sophisticated, conscientious, rational, and transparent survey process designed to elicit meaningful and substantive evaluations of the quality of legal services. Our belief has always been that the quality of a peer review survey is directly related to the quality of the voters.