How Big Law Earned Some Its Q4 California Lobbying Dollars
A snapshot of some of the money and clients of the nation's biggest law firms lobbying in California.
February 01, 2019 at 07:07 PM
4 minute read
The California lobbying filings for the fourth quarter of 2018 finally came in this week, and they show Big Law representing some big-name clients in the closing days of the 2017-2018 legislative session.
The largest revenue-generating advocacy firms in Sacramento remain regional practices staffed with former gubernatorial aides and veteran legislative staffers. The nation's biggest law firms were still active, however, in state debates ranging from water allocation to greenhouse gas regulations.
We sifted through the paperwork, and here's a snapshot of what we found.
>> Arnold & Porter reported $200,414 in receipts for the final quarter of 2018. Senior attorney and policy adviser Anthony Samson, a former aide to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, and San Francisco-based partner Trenton Norris were the firm's registered lobbyists. Arnold & Porter's 11 clients included BP America Inc., the California Chamber of Commerce and Procter & Gamble.
>> Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman said it received $159,708 to lobby for five companies: AT&T Inc., Chevron Corp., Bay Area Rapid Transit, the Institute of Scrap Recycling Companies and the Western States Petroleum Association. San Francisco-based partner Margaret Rosegay was the firm's sole registered lobbyist for the fourth quarter.
>> Paul Hastings represented Covanta Energy Group Inc., Crockett Cogeneration, L'Oreal USA Inc., SA Recycling and Tesla Motors Inc. The firm's three registered lobbyists, all based in San Francisco, were partner Gordon Hart, senior counsel Robert Hoffman and partner Peter Weiner. The fourth-quarter payments totaled $98,703, with much of the revenue coming from L'Oreal.
>> Greenberg Traurig advocated for 18 companies, including State Farm Motor Automobile Insurance Co. and the Walt Disney Co. The State Farm advocacy focused on consumer data privacy. Greenberg Traurig's six registered lobbyists in the fourth quarter were senior director Maria Garcia; partners Bill Gausewitz, Jeffrey Leacox, Tim Swickard and Gene Livingston; and former senior government affairs director Thomas Sheehy. The firm received $389,820 for the three-month period.
>> Covington & Burling took in $70,320 representing two clients in Sacramento: energy generator Calpine Corp. and the Personal Care Products Council. The three lobbyists were Washington-based partners Wade Ackerman and Jessica O'Connell, and Kevin Poloncarz in San Francisco. The firm was active in legislation that banned the sale of animal-tested products and a bill expanding California's use of renewable energy sources.
>> Hogan Lovells partner Scott Reisch, based in the firm's Denver office, represented North Carolina data analytics company Inmar Inc. The firm received $9,792 for the quarter.
>> Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck remained one of the highest-grossing Big Law firms lobbying in Sacramento with 16 clients and receipts of $468,496 reported for the fourth quarter. The firm's three registered lobbyists were partner Rosanna Carvacho, senior policy adviser Teresa Cooke and policy assistant Gianna Setoudeh. Brownstein Hyatt represented a number of water companies and local government agencies, including Alameda County and Cadiz Inc.
>> Alston & Bird's filings show that Los Angeles-based planning director Kathleen Hill advocated for A-Gas Americas last year. The firm was paid $7,676 to work on legislation codifying a ban on certain ozone-depleting substances and to lobby the California Air Resources Board.
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Michael G. Bongiorno, Andrew Scott Dulberg and Elizabeth E. Driscoll from Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr have stepped in to represent Symbotic Inc., an A.I.-enabled technology platform that focuses on increasing supply chain efficiency, and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The case, filed Oct. 2 in Massachusetts District Court by the Brown Law Firm on behalf of Stephen Austen, accuses certain officers and directors of misleading investors in regard to Symbotic's potential for margin growth by failing to disclose that the company was not equipped to timely deploy its systems or manage expenses through project delays. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton, is 1:24-cv-12522, Austen v. Cohen et al.
Who Got The Work
Edmund Polubinski and Marie Killmond of Davis Polk & Wardwell have entered appearances for data platform software development company MongoDB and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The action, filed Oct. 7 in New York Southern District Court by the Brown Law Firm, accuses the company's directors and/or officers of falsely expressing confidence in the company’s restructuring of its sales incentive plan and downplaying the severity of decreases in its upfront commitments. The case is 1:24-cv-07594, Roy v. Ittycheria et al.
Who Got The Work
Amy O. Bruchs and Kurt F. Ellison of Michael Best & Friedrich have entered appearances for Epic Systems Corp. in a pending employment discrimination lawsuit. The suit was filed Sept. 7 in Wisconsin Western District Court by Levine Eisberner LLC and Siri & Glimstad on behalf of a project manager who claims that he was wrongfully terminated after applying for a religious exemption to the defendant's COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The case, assigned to U.S. Magistrate Judge Anita Marie Boor, is 3:24-cv-00630, Secker, Nathan v. Epic Systems Corporation.
Who Got The Work
David X. Sullivan, Thomas J. Finn and Gregory A. Hall from McCarter & English have entered appearances for Sunrun Installation Services in a pending civil rights lawsuit. The complaint was filed Sept. 4 in Connecticut District Court by attorney Robert M. Berke on behalf of former employee George Edward Steins, who was arrested and charged with employing an unregistered home improvement salesperson. The complaint alleges that had Sunrun informed the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection that the plaintiff's employment had ended in 2017 and that he no longer held Sunrun's home improvement contractor license, he would not have been hit with charges, which were dismissed in May 2024. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer, is 3:24-cv-01423, Steins v. Sunrun, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Greenberg Traurig shareholder Joshua L. Raskin has entered an appearance for boohoo.com UK Ltd. in a pending patent infringement lawsuit. The suit, filed Sept. 3 in Texas Eastern District Court by Rozier Hardt McDonough on behalf of Alto Dynamics, asserts five patents related to an online shopping platform. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap, is 2:24-cv-00719, Alto Dynamics, LLC v. boohoo.com UK Limited.
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