Sheppard Mullin

 On October 13, 2008, the Sesnon Fire broke out near the oil fields of Oat Mountain in northern Los Angeles, burning more than 22 square miles before being extinguished. The County of Los Angeles Fire Department (“LAFD”) claimed the fire was caused by a Southern California Gas Company (“SCGC”) electrical line that fell to the ground during high winds. Following the LAFD’s report, plaintiffs filed 18 lawsuits against SCGC and its parent company, Sempra Energy (“Sempra”). Various insurance carriers also filed actions seeking to recover payments made to policyholders as a result of the fire, and the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection Services filed its own action seeking to recover costs spent fighting the fire. Collectively, the claims against SCGC and Sempra sought millions in damages, costs, and fees. Sheppard Mullin strategically settled all of the claims against SCGC and Sempra.

• Our team has successfully defended leading utilities like Sempra Energy, Southern California Gas Company (“SCGC”), and San Diego Gas & Electric Company in complex, multi-plaintiff wildfire litigation. We know the strategies and arguments plaintiffs’ attorneys use to build liability and damages cases, including inverse condemnation liability and smoke damage claims, and we know how to craft successful defense strategies that protect our clients.
• We have had unparalleled success defending insurers like Allstate, Liberty, and State Farm against inflated and fraudulent claims stemming from wildfires. We have a perfect record defending insurers in trial, including a defense verdict for Allstate in a wildfire case named one of the top 10 verdicts in California. We also have obtained hundreds of dismissals and judgments in wildfire cases through innovative and tenacious lawyering. In representing insurers, we have developed effective and novel strategies that can be brought to bear for our other clients.
• We have strong relationships with causation and damages experts experienced in wildfire defense work and are experienced in helping clients retain and manage such experts.
• We work cooperatively with our clients’ insurers throughout litigation and settlement.
• We aggressively defend our clients and have secured terminating sanctions against plaintiffs, as well as favorable outcomes on discovery motions, summary judgment motions, and motions in limine – all of which translate into significant savings for our clients.

"As Sheppard Mullin continues to grow, it is important that we not lose sight of the need to recruit women, attorneys of color and others of diverse backgrounds."
-Guy Halgren, Chairman of the Executive Committee

At Sheppard Mullin, we make every effort to recruit the finest lawyers and nurture their talents. The firm recognizes the importance of diversity and the need to create a workplace of inclusion. We need ¿ and our clients demand ¿ a team of attorneys that is as diverse as our increasingly global client base. Achieving and maintaining diversity is key to great client service ¿ a core value of our firm. What distinguishes good intentions from results is a commitment by senior management to find the best attorneys possible coupled with the sincere belief that people with diverse backgrounds bring valuable attributes to the firm. At Sheppard Mullin, the Executive Committee, Diversity Committee, and the lawyers in each of our offices work hard to ensure that all attorneys who join our firm fit in seamlessly and are encouraged to succeed.

Members of our Diversity Committee include ethnically diverse attorneys and a representative from the firm's Executive Committee. Diversity Committee members have served on the Boards of the Anti-Defamation League, the Black Women Lawyers Foundation (Los Angeles), and the Charles Houston Bar Association (northern California). Women and minority attorneys participate on key committees of the Firm (Executive Committee; Compensation Committee; Diversity Committee; Recruiting Committee; Professional Personnel Committee; Associate Issues Committee). Four of the Firm's nine Office Administrative Partners are women, one of whom is African-American and another is multi-racial.

"Serving on the firm's Diversity Committee is one of the most important things I do. I firmly believe that we must be vigilant in our efforts to recruit talented women attorneys and attorneys of color. Our success in this area has a positive effect our firm's culture, practice and client relationships."
-Joan Story, Member Executive Committee and Diversity Committee

Below is a description of just some of our outreach efforts.

• The firm participates in and financially supports the California Minority Counsel Program and the ABA Minority Counsel Program, as well as several minority bar associations. These groups are dedicated to increasing access for and promoting and retaining minorities in the legal profession.
• The firm actively recruits law students of color, e.g., we participated in the National Black Law Students Association (NBLSA) of the Western Region job fair held at UCLA School of Law.
• Sheppard Mullin contributes to the Minority Corporate Counsel Association; California Women Lawyers; Queen's Bench; Black Women Lawyers Association of Los Angeles; and the National Black Law Students Association, among others.
• We actively participate with other major Los Angeles law firms in the Diversity Directors Roundtable, a group that is committed to promoting diversity in the legal profession and in our firms.
• The firm received the Law Firm Award from the Black Women Lawyers Association of Los Angeles Foundation for its strong commitment to the promotion of community and pro bono activities.
• Multicultural Law magazine named Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP as one of "The 2011 Top 100 Law Firms for Diversity."
• Sheppard Mullin helped underwrite the production of a motion picture project entitled "Soul of Justice: The Life and Times of Thelton Henderson." The film chronicles the life of respected African-American jurist Thelton Henderson, a crusading civil rights litigator and role model.
• The firm signed the Bar Association of San Francisco's "No Glass Ceiling Initiative," BASF's "Minority Goals and Timetables," the New York County Lawyers' Association Diversity Statement, and the Los Angeles County Bar Association's Diversity Statement.

Much of our pro bono work relates to the diversity of the communities in which we practice; sample clients include:

• Constitutional Rights Foundation
• Domestic Violence Project, Los Angeles Bar Association
• Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights
• Task Force for the Women's Resource Fair, City of San Diego
• Tolerance Through Education Program, Beverly Hills Barristers Associations
• Violence Against Women Act Program, Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles

Awareness of diversity enables us to understand the value of differences. At Sheppard Mullin, we are committed to hiring top tier attorneys, without regard to race, ethnicity, gender or sexual orientation.