LACBA News

The Los Angeles County Bar Association’s pro bono partner, LACBA Counsel for Justice (CFJ), has been named a 2025 Nonprofit of the Year nominee by the Los Angeles Business Journal. This recognition highlights CFJ’s ongoing commitment to providing critical legal services to Los Angeles’ most vulnerable populations.

LOS ANGELES, March 17, 2025 – The Los Angeles County Bar Association (LACBA) announces its Officer and Board of Trustee nominees for the 2025-2026 bar year with terms commencing July 1, 2025. President-Elect Jeffrey B. Margulies will automatically become LACBA President.

In recent weeks, there have been troubling reports of high-level politicians impugning and threatening to impeach judges whose rulings they do not like and questioning the legitimacy and binding effect of adverse judicial rulings. 

Conflicts are a fact of life for litigators and other attorneys in private practice. The clear lines of which clients are in disputes with which parties are hard to mistake. However, transactional lawyers must also be on the lookout for conflicts of interest between clients—and between clients and former clients—that can crop up unexpectedly.

Serve on a LACBA Committee. It is an opportunity to make a difference in the legal profession and practice of law by addressing issues and challenges facing attorneys every day in Southern California. Plus, build your network and enhance your professional growth! The application deadline is April 16. 

Meet this year's Women’s History Month Honorees—Kristin Adrian, Hon. Lee Edmon, Terri J. Macellaro, and Stacie Neroni. Read the bios of these outstanding LACBA members and follow along on social media this month as we profile each!

Terri Macellaro has been named a Met News’ Person of the Year in the legal community. Macellaro serves as chair of LACBA’s Animal Law Section and is the founder and CEO of Animals Anonymous, a non-profit promoting animal welfare. She was recognized during an awards dinner on February 4.

A foundational concept of the attorney-client relationship is the duty of loyalty or, as stated by the California Supreme Court, the "attorney's duty to protect his client in every possible way, and it is a violation of that duty for him to assume a position adverse or antagonistic to his client without the latter's free and intelligent consent." However, the duty of loyalty has bounds...

LACBA’s 2025 Black History Month Honorees are Henrissa Bassey, Judge Kelvin Filer, Marnishia L. B. Jernigan, Sharron McLawyer, Richard John McNeil, Marcus Nelson, Holly Parker, and Brenda Suttonwills. Read the bios of these outstanding members and follow along on social media this month as we profile each.

LACBA's list of resources for both attorneys and community members impacted by the fires.

Upcoming LACBA events related to the L.A. fires:

• Federal Relief for Wildfire Victims: A Conversation with the Small Business Administration and FEMA, February 7 and February 21, noon 
• Tax Aspects of the 2025 California Wildfires Disaster and Recovery, February 12, 4pm

More events are being developed. Check the LACBA Calendar for the latest schedule.