25 attorneys who bring big business to their firms. (Who's Who Law -- L.A.'s Rainmakers).
Gloria Allred
Founding partner
Allred, Maroko & Goldberg
Specialty: Employment discrimination, sex, race and physical handicap discrimination, sexual harassment, wrongful termination and family law.
Background: Born in Philadelphia, Allred got her B.A. in English from the University of Pennsylvania and a master's degree in English education from New York University... Taught high school in Los Angeles for 6 1/2 years before becoming a lawyer... Received law degree from Loyola University School of Law in Los Angeles... Her daughter, Lisa Bloom, is a lawyer who anchors a daily show on Court TV.
Buzz: Attracts business to her firm because of her high profile on TV and in the movies, as well as her morning radio program on KABC (790 AM)... "I'm a public figure," says Allred, explaining her rainmaking tactics. "Our firm is a civil-rights law firm. People who hear about me know about our cases and feel they can have access to the system just by knowing I am there." ... Groundbreaking cases and barbed tongue often get ample TV coverage... An ardent feminist, she has won numerous cases that have paved the way for women's rights. Won a $4.9 million judgment from Spelling TV on behalf of Hunter Tylo, an actress who left her role on "The Bold and the Beautiful" to take a part on Melrose Place and then have it denied her because she was pregnant... Currently her firm represents a former teacher at Pacific Palisades High School who is suing the Los Angeles Unified School District for allegedly failing to protect her from sexual harassment from her students.
Deborah Belgum
Rand April
Office leader
Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP
Specialty: Real estate
Background: Gained notoriety for negotiating a number of hotel-related deals... Represented Andre Balazs in his purchases of Chateau Marmont and Standard hotels... Also repped Lehman Bros. in sale of Manhattan Beach's Radisson Hotel and San Francisco's Grand Hyatt Union Square... Other clients include Real Estate Investment Trust Apartment Investment and Management Co., which purchased Casden Properties last December, and shopping center developer Westfield America... J.D. from Columbia University in 1975... Worked at New York firms Marshall Bradder Green Allison and Tucker and Gordon Hurwitz before joining Skadden Arps in 1981... Moved west in 1987 to help open Los Angeles office.
