ABTL Report - Fall 2026 Edition - Flipbook - Page 2
ABTL - Los Angeles
Fall 2026
was incredibly smart, kind, supportive and extremely effective for his client; an
embodiment of ABTL values. I considered him a friend and looked forward to
seeing him at ABTL events, which he always attended, health permitting. ABTL is
As this
昀椀nal message
youwill
as your
ABTL President,
where we would reconnect. Dick
wasis amy
wonderful
mantoand
be missed,
and his
I 昀椀nd myself re昀氀ecting on the people who made the job worth
memory serves as an example
how our
ABTL
together.
doing.ofFrom
昀椀rstbrings
Board us
meeting
through our Joint Board
Retreat and every program in between, what has stayed with
I have spent nearly a third
mydiverse
professional
career on the
board
ABTL,
me isofhow
our membership
is and
howofgenerously
the
members
of
both
bench
and
bar
have
given
their
dedicated to its mission. I have cherished all this time, the friendships ittime
hasto
ABTL.
I
am
grateful
to
everyone
who
took
time
out
of
created and the professional opportunities it has presented. I invite all of you their
to
busy schedules to contribute to this organization—whether by
do the same.
serving as a speaker, planning an event, writing an article, or
simply taking the afternoon or evening off to attend. I have
had the pleasure of getting to know so many of you this year,
Amy Lucas
and I have been struck by how many different roads lead to this
profession. No one took the precise route I did, and no two of you took the same one as
each other. That we nevertheless all ended up here together, in the same organization and
in service of the same work and ideals, is remarkable. Thank you for making this year such
a privilege.
Following our February program that highlighted LA28’s work planning the 2028
Hospital
emergency
rooms When
were atCivility
capacity,
昀椀lledDown:
with theProtecting
sick and dying.
York
Olympics
and our
April program
Breaks
Judges New
and The
Rule of Law, in June, we gathered for our Annual Members-Only Judicial Mixer, and it
was once again a highlight of the year. There is no substitute for the kinds of conversations
that happen when attorneys and judges can step out of the courtroom and talk candidly,
withoutstreets
a morning
calendar
to getcrowded
throughno
or longer,
a rulingempty
to fretofover.
Watchingcabs,
the courtyard
of New
York were
pedestrians,
and Ubers.
昀椀ll up, listening to our members tell old stories, and seeing them introduce one another and
strike up new friendships was a reminder that those conversations are the entire point of
this organization.
In September, we hosted Lights, Camera, Actions: Running Litigation for Net昀氀ix, a
昀椀reside chat with Wade Gentz, Senior Director and Head of Litigation for the U.S. and
Canada at Net昀氀ix, and Mindy LeMoine, Director of Litigation at Net昀氀ix. Wade and Mindy
walked us through how a litigation department scales alongside a company that has gone
from a quirky startup to a major studio producing content on nearly every continent. They
were engaging, candid, and genuinely useful, and I am grateful to both of them for sharing
thing
the pandemic
had
brought
us. Even inthe
themore
panicsoofinthe
昀椀rst few
when
the
their time,
insights,
and war
stories
so freely—all
a room
thatweeks,
included
both
lawyers who may one day sue them and judges who may one day hear those cases.
Our 52nd Annual Seminar took place October 8–11 at the Park Hyatt Aviara in Carlsbad,
California. The Annual Seminar remains the best opportunity we have all year to gather as
a statewide community, learn from one another, and spend unhurried time with colleagues
from across the state. My thanks to the entire Planning Committee for the extraordinary
work behind this program. I’m happy to have seen so many of you there.
Looking forward, we’re thrilled to host the November 5 dinner at the Omni Los Angeles
Hotel on The Business of Barbie: Protecting, Promoting and Monetizing IP in Today’s
Entertainment
Mattel
VPor
and
Legal
Jonathan
Anschell
2022 is Landscape.
when we will,
one Executive
hopes 昀椀nally
at Chief
least for
theOf昀椀cer
foreseeable
future,
see one
will join us for a discussion of Mattel’s experiences in the IP entertainment landscape.
I want to close with a note of gratitude to our members of the judiciary. A number of
esteemed judges have retired from the bench in the past year or so—you all know who you
are—and these departures are a 昀椀tting occasion to say what too rarely gets said out loud.
To every member of the judiciary, current and former, who dedicates their days—and often
their nights and weekends—to ensuring the parties before them are fairly heard: Thank
you. Your work is frequently invisible, almost never easy, and inevitably half of your
audience thinks you are wrong. That you do it impartially and faithfully anyway, without
fanfare, matters more than we say often enough. I am equally grateful to the judiciary for
its continued insistence on bringing civility in our profession into sharper focus. This is
not just a matter of manners. Civility is about how we choose to show up, and showing up
with courtesy and respect leads to the best outcomes for clients, colleagues, and opponents
alike: It is what allows disputes to be resolved on the merits rather than consumed by
needless con昀氀icts that drain everyone’s resources. That requires a profession willing to
hold itself to the highest standards of civility—and a bench willing to expect it of us.
It has been an honor to serve as your President. Thank you for your support of ABTL,
and I look forward to seeing all of you soon.
2026 PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
2
8502 E. Chapman Avenue, Suite 443
8502 E. Chapman Avenue, Suite 443
Orange, California 92869
(323) 988-3428
Email: abtl@abtl.org • www.abtl.org
OFFICERS
Amy R.
Michael
L.Lucas
Mallow
President
President
Alice
Chen
Smith
Kahn A.
Scolnick
Vice
Vice President
President
Stephanie
Amy R.Yonekura
Lucas
Treasurer
Treasurer
Robyn
C. Crowther
Alice Chen
Smith
Secretary
Secretary
BOARD OF GOVERNORS
Allen
Lanstra
Gregory L.
P. Aenlle-Rocha
Barbee
Hon. Fernando
Eric J.L.
Lorenzini
Courtney
Hague
Andrews
Hon. Elaine
Lu
Jordan
Ludwig
Joseph
J. Boylan
Terry B.M.Bates
Jordan L.
Ludwig
Matthew
Macdonald
Matthew
Brady
Hon. Stanley Blumenfeld, Jr.
Karen Luong
Hon. Alison Mackenzie
Lee S. Brenner
Eric S. Boorstin
Ryan J. Malloy
Sean A. McCormick
Mark D. Campbell
Elizabeth M. Burnside
Neal R. Marder
Jordan M.K.McCrary
Gillian H.
Clow Court
Hon. Michelle
Williams
Anastasia
Mazzella
Brian
R. Neuman
Michael
KaseyC.J.Crowther
Curtis
Robyn
Ariel A.
Hon. David
S. Cunningham,
III Christian
Christian T.F. Nickerson
Nickerson
Julie R.F.
Gerchik
PadraicF.Foran
James
Pearl
Austin(Bo)
C. Norris
Jeffrey
Gersh
Hon. Dolly
M. Gee
Katherine
A.Obi
Petti
Shawn R.
Robert
S. Glassman
Julie R. Gerchik
Bronwyn F. Pollock
Bronwyn F. Pollock
Oliver M. Gold
Jeffrey F. Gersh
Michael J. Reiss
Alexander F. Porter
Russell J. Gould III
Michael Gervais
Hon. Margo A. Rocconi
Timothy
Reynolds
Kelly
R.
Graf
Oliver M. Gold
WhitneyD.
Jones
Roy
Jason D. Russell
Nicholas
M. Gross
David Graeler
Kelly R.
Graf
Justin
H.Salvaty
Sanders
Paul B.
Jeffrey
Gurrola
Amanda
Groves
Eric B.H.Schwartz
Justin
Sanders
Joshua
G.L.Hamilton
Matthew
Gurvitz
Shahrokh Sheik
Shahrokh
Sheik
Stacy W.M.
Harrison
Mary H. Haas
Hon. Sergio C. Tapia II
Alexander M. Smith
Tiaunia N. Henry
Stacy W. Harrison
R. Brian Timmons
Laura D. Smolowe
Hon. Brian M. Hoffstadt
F. Phillip Hosp V
Tammy A. Tsoumas
Boris A.
Treyzon
Hon.
Wesley
L. Hsu
Teresa
Huggins
AnnaMarie
Van Hoesen
Jonathan
D. Uslaner
Teresa
Mark
D.Huggins
Kachner
Belinda
Martinez
Vega
Jack S. Yeh
Sarah
Kelly-Kilgore
J. Wax
Hon.Gary
Hernán
D. Vera
Arwen
R. Johnson
Mark Yohalem
Adil M.Josephs
Khan
David
DanielK.L.Willingham
Warshaw
Halley
Stephanie
Yonekura
Stacey
McKee
Knight
Mark
Yohalem
Alex
M.R.Weingarten
Mark
Kachner
Steven E. Knott
Stephanie Yonekura
Adam B. Weiss
Hon. Curtis A. Kin
Vinay Kohli
Jennifer B. Zargarof
Christine Woodin
Stacey McKee Knight
Bethany W. Kristovich
Hon. Helen E. Zukin
Ryan Landes
JUDICIAL ADVISORY COUNCIL
Hon.Hon.
Fernando
MariaL.A.Aenlle-Rocha
Audero
Hon. Andre Birotte, Jr.
Hon. Stanley Blumenfeld, Jr.
Hon. David J. Cowan
Hon.Hon.
Michelle
Court
BrianWilliams
S. Currey
Hon. Philip S. Gutierrez
Hon. Dolly M. Gee
Hon. Samantha P. Jessner
Hon. William
F. Highberger
Hon. Steve
Kim
Hon.Elwood
Elaine Lu
Hon.
Lui
Hon. Carl H. Moor
Hon. Ricardo R. Ocampo
Hon. Fernando M. Olguin
Hon.
Margo
Hon.
JohnA.
L. Rocconi
Segal
Hon. Karen L. Stevenson
Hon. Sergio C. Tapia, II
Hon. Eric C. Taylor
Helen Zukin
Hon. Hon.
Kim McLane
Wardlaw
RECENT PAST PRESIDENTS
Kahn
A.R.Scolnick
Kevin
Boyle
Michael
Mallow
Manuel L.
F. Cachan
Kevin
R. Leader
Boyle
Susan K.
Manuel
ValerieF.M.Cachán
Goo
Susan K.
Sabrina
H.Leader
Strong
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Linda A. Sampson
