California Lateral Market Report
November 2026
How California attorneys moved in the last 12 months, from public licensing records and firm websites. Updated as new records arrive; a new edition each month.
194moves detected (12 mo)
126new this month
182firm-to-firm laterals
4left firms for in-house or government
-1net for private firms
Los AngelesOrange CountySan DiegoSF Bay AreaSacramentoInland EmpireCentral ValleyCentral Coast & Ventura
By practice area
| Practice | Moves | Joins | Exits | Net | Signal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Litigation (general civil) | 71 | 67 | 70 | -3 | Balanced |
| Personal injury & med-mal | 58 | 57 | 58 | -1 | Balanced |
| Corporate, M&A & finance | 47 | 45 | 47 | -2 | Balanced |
| Real estate & land use | 42 | 41 | 42 | -1 | Balanced |
| Insurance & insurance defense | 29 | 28 | 29 | -1 | Balanced |
| Family law | 25 | 24 | 24 | 0 | Balanced |
| Government & regulatory | 23 | 21 | 23 | -2 | Balanced |
| Trusts, estates & elder | 21 | 20 | 21 | -1 | Balanced |
| Employment & labor | 20 | 18 | 20 | -2 | Balanced |
| IP, tech & media | 9 | 8 | 9 | -1 | Balanced |
| Workers' compensation | 8 | 7 | 8 | -1 | Balanced |
| Criminal & white collar | 7 | 7 | 6 | +1 | Balanced |
| Tax | 5 | 4 | 5 | -1 | Balanced |
| ADR / mediation | 5 | 5 | 5 | 0 | Balanced |
| Immigration | 4 | 4 | 4 | 0 | Balanced |
| Bankruptcy & creditor | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | Balanced |
By experience band
| Years since admission | Moves | Joins | Exits | Net | Signal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0–2 yrs | 8 | 8 | 8 | 0 | Balanced |
| 3–4 yrs | 16 | 15 | 16 | -1 | Balanced |
| 5–8 yrs | 25 | 25 | 24 | +1 | Balanced |
| 9–14 yrs | 35 | 33 | 33 | 0 | Balanced |
| 15+ yrs | 110 | 106 | 107 | -1 | Balanced |
By metro
| Metro | Moves | Joins | Exits | Net | Signal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles | 93 | 69 | 70 | -1 | Balanced |
| Orange County | 42 | 28 | 26 | +2 | Balanced |
| San Diego | 29 | 18 | 25 | -7 | Net loss |
| SF Bay Area | 67 | 52 | 48 | +4 | Balanced |
| Sacramento | 12 | 7 | 8 | -1 | Balanced |
| Inland Empire | 4 | 3 | 3 | 0 | Balanced |
| Central Valley | 7 | 6 | 4 | +2 | Net gain |
| Central Coast & Ventura | 3 | 3 | 3 | 0 | Balanced |
By firm size
| Firm size | Moves | Joins | Exits | Net | Signal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1–9 attorneys | 104 | 61 | 58 | +3 | Balanced |
| 10–49 | 103 | 51 | 70 | -19 | Net loss |
| 50–199 | 37 | 22 | 21 | +1 | Balanced |
| 200+ | 19 | 16 | 5 | +11 | Growing fast |
Firms gaining the most
| Firm | Joins | Exits | Net |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani | 8 | 1 | +7 |
| Womble Bond Dickinson | 2 | 0 | +2 |
| Goldberg Segalla LLP | 2 | 0 | +2 |
| Stinson LLP | 2 | 0 | +2 |
| The Dominguez Firm | 2 | 0 | +2 |
| Summers Levine Lipsic & Hersh, LLP | 2 | 0 | +2 |
| Cooley LLP | 2 | 1 | +1 |
Firms losing the most
| Firm | Joins | Exits | Net |
|---|---|---|---|
| Silicon Legal Strategy | 0 | 3 | -3 |
| Tyson & Mendes LLP | 0 | 3 | -3 |
| The Law Offices of Arash Khorsandi | 0 | 3 | -3 |
| Prestige Legal Solutions | 0 | 2 | -2 |
| Harris Ginsberg LLP | 0 | 2 | -2 |
| Weiner Law | 0 | 2 | -2 |
| Nossaman LLP | 0 | 2 | -2 |
| Bibiyan Law Group | 0 | 2 | -2 |
| Abramson Labor Group | 0 | 2 | -2 |
About this data
- Experience is inferred from years since California bar admission, not from titles.
- A move is counted when public licensing records or a firm's own website show an attorney at a new employer. Licensing records update when attorneys file address changes, so moves can surface weeks or months after they happen; each move is dated when it was detected.
- Joins and exits count moves into and out of private law firms. A move between two firms counts as one exit and one join; moves to or from in-house and government roles change the net.
- Practice areas are self-reported on licensing records; an attorney who lists several practices counts under each.
- Figures cover the trailing 12 months and are refreshed as new records arrive. Small counts are noisy; tags need at least 3 moves.
Aggregate figures only; no individual attorney is named.