29th Annual Statewide Ethics Symposium Event Guide

Join the Ethics Symposium

The program goes live on April 17, 2026, at 9:30 a.m.

Schedule

Speaker biographies

Written materials

Opening Remarks: Speaker biographies

Daniel J. O’Rielly COPRAC Chair Founding Partner, O’Rielly & Roche LLP Daniel J. O’Rielly is a founder and managing partner of the California law firm O’Rielly & Roche LLP. Based in Los Angeles, he is a business and legal ethics lawyer for California law firms. He counsels and advises firms on strategic business issues, including developing and drafting partnership agreements and other firm organizing documents; developing and documenting compensation systems, attorney promotion systems, and succession planning; and developing and executing law firm start-up planning and growth planning. He also counsels and advises California law firms on legal ethics compliance and professional responsibility, in addition to counseling and advising law-related business structures.

José Cisneros Chair, State Bar of California Board of Trustees Treasurer, City and County of San Francisco José Cisneros, appointed in 2019 by Governor Newsom as a public member, currently serves as Chair of the State Bar Board of Trustees. Cisneros is the elected treasurer of the City and County of San Francisco, serving as the City’s banker and chief investment officer, managing all San Francisco tax and revenue collection. In office since 2004, Cisneros has used his experience in the tech and banking industries to enhance and modernize taxpayer systems and successfully manage the City’s portfolio through a major recession and a global pandemic. Cisneros believes that his role of safeguarding the City’s money extends to all San Francisco residents, and he continues to expand his role as a financial educator and advocate for low-income communities through award-winning initiatives such as the Financial Justice Project, Kindergarten to College, and Bank On San Francisco. Cisneros is co-chair of the Cities for Financial Empowerment Coalition and served as vice-chair on the President’s Advisory Council on Financial Capability for Young Americans. Cisneros serves as a State Bar Trustee member of the Board Executive Committee and previously served on the Review Committee of the Commission on Judicial Nominees Evaluation. In 2021, Cisneros chaired the Board’s Committee on Special Discipline Case Audit, which made recommendations to strengthen the discipline system, leading to the State Bar’s launch of the Client Trust Account Protection Program in 2022. Cisneros received his undergraduate degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Sloan School of Management.

Laura Enderton-Speed Executive Director, State Bar of California Laura Enderton-Speed is an accomplished public sector leader with extensive experience in management and leadership, public administration, and policy development. She currently serves as Executive Director of the State Bar, where she oversees the licensing, regulation, and discipline of attorneys, ensuring the ethical and competent practice of law. In this role, she guides organizational strategy, collaborates with diverse stakeholders, and represents the State Bar in legislative, judicial, and public forum. With over two decades of public sector leadership, Enderton-Speed has expertise in management, policy development, budget oversight, and stakeholder engagement. She has launched transformative initiatives, including the Judicial Council’s Project Management Office and CalPERS’s Stakeholder Relations division, and designed leadership programs that have trained emerging leaders. Her career spans roles in legislative advocacy, organizational change, and executive management across state agencies and the judicial branch. Enderton-Speed holds a Juris Doctor from the University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law and a bachelor’s degree in political science from San José State University.

Panel 1: Speaker biographies

Daniel J. O’Rielly, Moderator COPRAC Chair Founding Partner, O’Rielly & Roche LLP Daniel J. O’Rielly is a founder and managing partner of the California law firm O’Rielly & Roche LLP. Based in Los Angeles, he is a business and legal ethics lawyer for California law firms. He counsels and advises firms on strategic business issues, including developing and drafting partnership agreements and other firm organizing documents; developing and documenting compensation systems, attorney promotion systems, and succession planning; and developing and executing law firm start-up planning and growth planning. He also counsels and advises California law firms on legal ethics compliance and professional responsibility, in addition to counseling and advising law-related business structures.

Eleanor K. Mercado, Panelist COPRAC Vice-Chair Associate General Counsel, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati PC Eleanor Mercado is associate general counsel to Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, where she advises the firm and its lawyers on a broad range of matters, including client intake, conflicts, claims, ethics and professional responsibility, insurance, and law firm governance. Prior to joining Wilson Sonsini, Mercado was associate general counsel at a large international law firm, where she advised on an array of risk management issues and oversaw various functions, including information security and third-party risk management. Before that role, she was a member of the securities litigation and enforcement practice, where she focused on representing public companies, officers and directors, and investment advisors in government investigations and civil litigation. Mercado is the vice-chair of the Committee on Professional Responsibility and Conduct (COPRAC). Her work on COPRAC includes developing and issuing advisory ethics opinions and studying and recommending changes to the Rules of Professional Conduct.

Cassidy E. Chivers, Panelist COPRAC Advisor Shareholder, Barron & Newburger PC Cassidy E. Chivers is a shareholder at Barron & Newburger PC. She is the co-leader of the firm’s risk management program, Attorney Risk Management Practice Group, which offers risk management and ethics advice to lawyers and law firms nationwide. She is an advisor to the State Bar of California’s Committee on Professional Responsibility and Conduct. Chivers also serves as outside general counsel for a number of California law firms, ranging from small partnerships to AM Law 50 firms, advising on a wide array of law practice management, ethics, and regulatory issues, including conflicts review protocols, engagement agreements, law firm formation and dissolution, succession planning, and lawyer and staff wellness programs, among other aspects of the business of law that are critical to a law firm’s success and longevity. Chivers also represents lawyers and law firms in legal malpractice and third-party claims, as well as State Bar disciplinary investigations. She is a State Bar certified specialist in the area of legal malpractice law.

Panel 2: Speaker biographies

Raquel Brigham Brown, Moderator COPRAC Member Director-Advisor, Radical Abundant Mindset Raquel Brigham Brown is a public member of the Committee on Professional Responsibility and Conduct, appointed by the Trustees of the State Bar of California. She serves on the AI & Cryptocurrency subcommittees, and she contributed to one of the first national guidelines on the use of AI in the legal profession by a state bar. Throughout her career, Brown has been at the forefront of AI/machine learning, ethics, and privacy governance. She is a distinguished advisor, director, and speaker, developing her unique skill set and global experience as a founder, chief operating officer, and advisor working in Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Americas. She is a key member of board and CEO teams, and she has served as an independent and private company director, chair secretary, and executive committee member. Brown is qualified to serve on AI/cyber/crypto, audit, comp/HR, ESG, and nom/gov committees.

Allison Madwatkins, Moderator COPRAC Member Associate Attorney, Broaden Law APC dba CPA & Law Offices Allison Madwatkins is an attorney licensed in California and New York, practicing wills, trusts, and estates in San Diego at Broaden Law APC. She is also an adjunct professor at Thomas Jefferson School of Law, where she teaches contracts and professional responsibility. She currently serves on the Committee on Professional Responsibility and Conduct, including as part of the AI Working Group.

Drew Amerson, Panelist Director, LexLab, UC Law San Francisco Drew Amerson is the director of LexLab at UC Law San Francisco. He has been at UC Law San Francisco since 2015. Before joining LexLab, he was a visiting assistant professor, teaching courses in intellectual property and entrepreneurship. He also managed the Startup Legal Garage. Amerson is committed to improving access to justice through legal technology. He established LexLab’s internationally acclaimed Justice Technology Accelerator program, and he teaches “Justice Tech: Building a Startup,” “Legal Operations for Lawyers,” “In-House Counsel Toolkit: Skills & Strategies,” and the “Building AI-Enabled Lawyers” bootcamp. He also designed and administers UC Law San Francisco’s Law & Artificial Intelligence Certificate professional development program. His early career included years at Sidley Austin and Taylor & Company, and he clerked in the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota. A pioneer in legal innovation, Amerson founded a start-up in 2011 that created an online community to connect law firms and companies with highly skilled freelance attorneys. He is also an advisor to the Justice Technology Association. Amerson is a graduate of Columbia Law School and has a BA in philosophy from Carleton College.

Samantha J. Chang, Panelist Founder & Principal Attorney, Chang Law Group Samantha J. Chang is founder and principal attorney of Chang Law Group, a Los Angeles–based boutique law firm. Her practice centers on civil litigation and investigative matters in federal and state courts, where she leads cases from early-stage strategy through trial and appeal. Alongside her litigation work, she serves as fractional in-house counsel to technology companies, advising on legal and compliance issues tied to business operations and emerging technologies. Before founding her firm, Chang was a litigation and trial associate at Latham & Watkins, where she represented clients in complex commercial disputes and white-collar investigations, particularly within the media, entertainment, and technology sectors. She also served as a law clerk to the Honorable Jinsook Ohta, United States District Court for the Southern District of California. Chang earned her BS from Stanford University and her JD from Georgetown Law.

Holly Hancock-Goode, Panelist Judge, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Holly Hancock-Goode was elected to the office of the Los Angeles County Superior Court in 2022 after 17 years as a deputy public defender. She served first in the Criminal Division in misdemeanor trials. Currently, Judge Hancock-Goode sits in a restraining order court, where both civil and domestic violence petitions are heard. She received her JD from Southwestern Law School and her BA in rhetoric from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.

Panel 3: Speaker biographies

Kerri C. Riley, Moderator COPRAC Member Global Head of Conflicts, Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP Kerri C. Riley serves as the global head of conflicts at Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, where she oversees all aspects of the firm’s new business and conflicts processes. She ensures the firm maintains the highest standards of ethics and compliance in evaluating and resolving potential conflicts of interest, managing new business intake, and facilitating the clearance and onboarding of lateral attorneys. Additionally, Riley serves as a firm-wide resource on issues of professional conduct and adherence to regulatory requirements across various regions. Prior to joining the firm, Riley led the business acceptance department at another international law firm. Before that, she investigated and prosecuted disciplinary and civil matters arising out of attorney ethics and regulation for the State Bar of California. Riley currently serves as a member of the Committee on Professional Responsibility and Conduct, which drafts advisory ethics opinions, advises the State Bar Board of Trustees on professional responsibility, and sponsors educational and outreach programs.

Adam Pearlman, Panelist COPRAC Member Principal, Law Offices of Adam L. Pearlman Adam L. Pearlman is the owner of the Law Offices of Adam L. Pearlman, where he has practiced criminal defense since 2004, handling cases ranging from domestic violence and sexual assault to DUI and serious felonies. Before entering private practice, he served as a senior deputy district attorney in Ventura County and later trained prosecutors nationwide in trial advocacy through the National District Attorneys Association. Pearlman earned his JD with honors from the George Washington University Law School and holds a BS in finance from the University of Southern California. He is an active member of multiple local, state, and national criminal defense and bar associations.

Danielle De Smeth, Panelist Managing Attorney & Partner, Bamieh & De Smeth PLC With a background that is rich in many different legal fields, Danielle De Smeth is a well-rounded, experienced attorney who has represented clients in cases involving personal injury, environmental litigation, and criminal defense. Her versatility in the courtroom is matched by her clear, direct communication style and deep understanding of legal strategy. De Smeth brings both tenacity and practicality to every case, whether she’s going up against a powerful insurance company or advocating for someone facing serious charges. Known for her trial experience and meticulous preparation, she approaches each matter with the goal of achieving the best possible result while ensuring her clients understand every step along the way.

Amber Bevacqua-Lynott, Panelist Of Counsel, Buchalter LLP Amber Bevacqua-Lynott is of counsel in Buchalter’s Portland, San Diego, and Seattle offices. She is the co-chair of the firm’s Professional Responsibility Practice Group and a member of the Litigation Practice Group. Bevacqua-Lynott provides guidance and legal representation to attorneys, licensed professionals, and other business clients, including firms and in-house legal departments. Her practice centers on legal ethics, risk management, and discipline defense. She acts as outside counsel to clients in a variety of industries, providing advice and counsel on all manner of ethics issues, including conflicts, confidentiality, malpractice, risk management, and fee issues. In addition, Bevacqua-Lynott represents lawyers, students, and other professionals in front of regulatory authorities and bar associations on licensing, admissions, reinstatement, reciprocity, character and fitness, consumer protection, unauthorized practice of law, and disciplinary matters. Bevacqua-Lynott has more than 25 years of legal experience, including extensive civil trial experience. Prior to joining Buchalter, she worked as an assistant disciplinary counsel in the Oregon State Bar’s Disciplinary Counsel’s Office (DCO), where she enforced the Oregon Rules of Professional Conduct through the investigation and prosecution of alleged misconduct. During her time in DCO, Bevacqua-Lynott successfully first chaired several dozen civil trials, and she investigated or prosecuted hundreds of disciplinary matters. During the last six years of her tenure with DCO, she was the chief assistant disciplinary counsel and deputy director of Regulatory Services, and she also acted as chief trial counsel. Bevacqua-Lynott’s years of experience both in defending and prosecuting ethical violations offers her clients a unique insight and expertise on ethics issues and professional obligations.

Panel 4: Speaker biographies

Erin M. Joyce, Moderator COPRAC Member Owner, Erin Joyce Law PC Attorney Erin Joyce has extensive experience in the State Bar of California’s investigations and disciplinary proceedings, plus over 30 years of civil litigation practice. Joyce was admitted in 1990 and practiced for nearly 8 years in an intellectual property boutique before joining the Office of Chief Trial Counsel as a prosecutor for the State Bar from 1997 through 2016. She has over 25 years of experience handling all aspects of discipline cases against attorneys in State Bar Court, from the filing of the complaint through trial and review. She has personally tried dozens of State Bar trials and several appeals. Joyce has a comprehensive understanding of how State Bar investigations and proceedings unfold. Before going into private practice, she served as chief special investigator for the Los Angeles Fire Department, as a prosecutor for the State Bar of California, and as a lawyer for multiple private practices.

Emil J. Ali, Panelist COPRAC Member Partner, McCabe & Ali LLP Emil J. Ali is a partner at McCabe & Ali LLP, where he focuses his practice on helping lawyers understand their obligations under state and federal law. He is a registered patent attorney, and a significant focus of his practice involves advising lawyers and law firms on all aspects of the intersection of IP and ethics matters. His work includes counseling clients on lateral transitions, malpractice avoidance, expert opinion and testimony, and respondent’s defense work before various bars and courts.

Amanda M. Moghaddam, Panelist Claims Attorney, Lawyers’ Mutual Insurance Company Amanda Moghaddam is a California-barred attorney specializing in legal malpractice and professional liability law. She is a claims attorney with Lawyers’ Mutual Insurance Company in Burbank, California. In her current role, she oversees the defense of lawsuits filed against California attorneys, which includes managing outside counsel and making strategic litigation and settlement decisions. She also provides ethics guidance to California attorneys through the Lawyers’ Mutual Insurance Company’s attorney-to-attorney hotline. Moghaddam previously litigated attorney malpractice claims at Nemecek & Cole APC. During her tenure there, she handled an array of matters involving professional responsibility, including litigation of legal malpractice, breach of fiduciary duty, and attorney-client fee dispute matters. Moghaddam is heavily involved in the San Fernando Valley’s legal community. She is the immediate past-president of the San Fernando Valley Bar Association (SFVBA). Moghaddam is also on the board of the Valley Community Legal Foundation, the charitable arm of the SFVBA, which provides local law-related scholarships and education events.