Downtown law firm Manning & Kass, Ellrod, Ramirez, Trester this year broke into the Inland Empire market via merger.
The mid-sized firm acquired the former Smith Law Group and its Riverside-based team in January. The deal adds nine attorneys and their support staff to the operation. That group, led by Smith Law founder Doug Smith, will bolster Manning Kass’ governmental entity liability team.
“Doug has built an amazing team, and his culture of empowerment and respect are at the core – a core set of principles that drives us,” Dennis Kass, managing partner of Manning Kass, said in a statement. “Adding new people like Doug and his team is important to our continued growth, while keeping our amazing firm culture.”
Smith, a onetime judge advocate for the United States Marine Corps, worked as a litigator in Los Angeles County until 2003, when he founded Smith Law. He said the pairing was a natural fit for his legal team, not least because of a plethora of shared clients.
“Our clients are very happy that Smith Law has found a national law firm that shares our same values and commitment to client excellence,” Smith said.
Throughout the years, Smith said he has also maintained a professional relationship with Eugene Ramirez, a Manning Kass name partner who co-leads the governmental entity liability team.
“His team represents some of the same public entities that we represent,” Ramirez said in a statement. “Our clients will benefit from the merging of teams.”