Barnes & Thornburg’s Los Angeles Office Celebrates 10 Years

Barnes & Thornburg loves L.A. The full-service law firm is celebrating the 10-year anniversary of its Los Angeles office, which began with six attorneys and has grown to more than 70. This includes a high-profile Entertainment, Media and Sports practice, as well as experienced attorneys involved in a range of complex litigation, intellectual property, corporate finance and venture capital, and labor and employment matters. 

Located in the heart of Century City – at 2029 Century Park East – the firm’s Los Angeles office represents some of the most recognizable artists, brands and companies in the entertainment industry, be they in film, live events, sports, music, technology, television, advertising, or videogames. 

“In 2011, we opened our doors in Los Angeles with the aim of bringing clients the efficient, results-oriented value proposition that’s proven so successful for Barnes & Thornburg in the Midwest,” said David Allen, managing partner of the Los Angeles office. “At the same time, we sought to be a destination for high-caliber talent looking to align themselves with sophisticated national practices and high-value work, with a collaborative and supportive firm culture.

“I’m pleased to say that despite the challenges of this past decade – be it launching in the remnants of the Great Recession of 2008 or navigating a global pandemic – we are fortunate to have emerged stronger than ever. We’re excited to carry this momentum into the next 10 years and well beyond.”

The attorneys also practice in high-stakes litigation and appeals, employment matters, labor relations, corporate finance and venture capital, and patent, copyright and trademark matters. In 2013, the team moved from a small Century City office to the current expansive space, giving way to a boom in personnel growth.

“Our core culture hasn’t changed since day one,” said Melanie Mawema, office administrator in Los Angeles. “The attorneys and staff that opened our office had deep relationships with one another and a clear vision of the kind of legal practice and workplace we wanted to nurture and grow. That vision has stayed with us today and has allowed us to add to our team very intentionally, with a clear focus on bringing on individuals based on trust and cultural fit.” 

In addition to its client work, the firm is deeply committed to the local communities in which Barnes & Thornburg attorneys live and work. Attorneys and support staff regularly provide philanthropic, volunteer, and pro bono support to a range of arts organizations and other nonprofits, including the City of Hope, Feeding America, the UC Berkley Foundation, the Los Angeles Philharmonic Association, and Junior Blind of America, among others. 

The office also closely works with the Social Justice Learning Institute, a recipient of a $50,000 grant from the Barnes & Thornburg Racial and Social Justice Foundation, which was launched in 2020.

In recent years, the office also has worked with the Expanding Horizons Institute and Verbum Dei High School in South Central LA and hired first-generation college-bound students for a six-to-eight-week internship, where attorneys and staff help them learn skills to prepare them for college and civic life. 

With more than 700 attorneys and other legal professionals, Barnes & Thornburg is one of the largest law firms in the country. The firm serves clients worldwide from offices in Atlanta, California, Chicago, Delaware, Indiana, Michigan, Minneapolis, New York, Ohio, Raleigh, Salt Lake City, Texas and Washington, D.C. For more information, visit us online at www.btlaw.com or on Twitter @BTLawNews.