Stris & Maher elected three attorneys in Los Angeles to partnership: Justin Barnes, Victor O'Connell and Radha Pathak. Barnes, a trial and appellate attorney, handles high-stakes patent litigation. O'Connell litigates cases in state and federal court. Pathak handles high-stakes trial and appellate cases.

Walnut Creek-based Michael Krueger and Newport Beach-based Jason Morris were promoted to partnership at Newmeyer & Dillion. Krueger advises companies on complex business negotiations, real estate ventures, mergers and acquisitions, bank finance and private equity transactions. Morris focuses his practice on labor and employment law and business litigation.

Chitra M. Kalyanaraman, an attorney in Maynard Cooper & Gale's intellectual property practice group, is now a partner with the firm. She prosecutes patents in the computer, electrical and mechanical arts and provides advise on IP strategy. Kalyanaraman works in Maynard Cooper's San Francisco office.

Buchalter brought on Faith K. Bruins and Thomas J. Speiss III as shareholders. Bruins joins the firm's San Francisco office, where she will focus her practice on real estate and real estate finance. Speiss joins in Los Angeles in the intellectual property practice group. Before joining Buchalter, Bruins was a partner at Holland & Knight. Speiss was a shareholder at Stradling Yocca Carlson & Rauth.

Private dispute resolution services provider Judicate West added Richard Huver as a neutral in its San Diego office. Huver began acting as a mediator in 2016 and has experience as a litigator handling business disputes, insurance bad faith, personal injury, wrongful death, elder abuse, wrongful termination and professional liability.

Real estate lawyer Michael A. Seiden was promoted to partner at Pircher, Nichols & Meeks. Seiden is based in Los Angeles and focuses his practice on acquisitions, dispositions and lender-side and borrower-side financings across a range of asset types.

The white-collar criminal defense practice of Steptoe & Johnson LLP grew with the addition of partner Ashwin J. Ram in Los Angeles. Ram was previously an assistant U.S. attorney in the U.S. Attorney's Office major frauds section. In his new role, Ram will focus his practice on government investigations and prosecutions and complex civil litigation and regulatory matters.

Former Jeffer Mangels Butler & Mitchell attorneys Louise Ann Fernandez and An Nguyen Ruda joined Bartko, Zankel, Bunzel & Miller as co-chairs of the labor and employment practice group. While at Jeffer Mangels, Fernandez founded and led the labor and employment group. She litigates high-profile cases on behalf of corporations, hospitals and celebrities. Ruda assists her clients with advice, counseling, collective bargaining and litigation, and she has experience serving as chief negotiator on labor contracts.

Crowell & Moring added to its state attorneys general enforcement and investigations practice with the hiring of Clayton S. Friedman and Michael Yaghi. Both attorneys join Crowell & Moring's Orange County office from Sidley Austin. Friedman will lead the state attorneys general enforcement and investigations practice, and both he and Yaghi will also work in the firm's advertising and media group.