Awards & Rankings 08.17.23
Best Lawyers Recognizes 193 Pillsbury Lawyers in Latest Guide
Among the honorees are 8 Lawyers of the Year and 55 Ones to Watch
Source: The Best Lawyers Guides
Some attorneys are excellent wordsmiths. Others are well-connected rain makers. And a few attorneys are brilliant strategists possessed of boundless energy and tireless perseverance. It is exceptionally rare to find all of these attributes in one individual. With Jim, we have found just that.
James Rishwain, an accomplished Pillsbury partner, has served as a preeminent legal adviser to global market leaders, Fortune 100 companies, real estate companies, professional service firms, family offices and corporate boards.
Jim served more than a decade as Pillsbury’s Chair and CEO. Before becoming Firm Chair and CEO, he spent a decade as Pillsbury's Global Head of Real Estate. Jim presently serves as the Global Real Estate and Construction Industry Leader, with real estate and construction as core elements of the firm’s strategic focus.
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Jim is a leading advocate and actively engaged at the highest levels in helping the City of Los Angeles attract and carry out the largest sporting events played in the world and is serving as the chair of the Organizing Committee for the 2023 College Football Playoff National Championship Game. He also spearheaded the creation of ChampionLA, an initiative of the Los Angeles Sports & Entertainment Commission (LASEC), whose mission is to host and create community impact surrounding the world’s top sports and entertainment events in Los Angeles. Today, Jim serves as a member of LASEC’s board and executive committee, and remains a committed supporter of ChampionLA.
Jim is a leading advocate and actively engaged at the highest level in helping the nation’s 300,000 abused and neglected children and is chair elect and on the board of National CASA as well as serving as chair of the Governance Committee.
Jim offers strategic counsel to global developers, investors, lenders and property owners who set the pace in their industries. Leveraging his deep knowledge of capital markets and real estate, he advises on investments and acquisitions, development, finance, joint ventures, leasing, exchanges, multifamily tax-exempt bond transactions, syndications and REITs. His real estate transaction work has earned him distinction as the California Lawyer of the Year and a Deal of the Year award.
Jim further advises clients on COVID-19 related issues and on many CARES Act matters.
Jim also serves on numerous board of directors of for profit, civic and charitable organizations. Jim advises organizations on their strategic growth and development plans. Finally, Jim is active in many organizations in the City of Los Angeles, including those with respect to sports and entertainment, schools, parks and homeowners associations, and energy and infrastructure.
Jim is an active proponent of diversity in the legal profession and holds a CEO Diversity Leadership Award from Diversity Best Practices. He is a member of The Advisory Council on Women Business Collaborative and in each of his years as firm chair, Pillsbury was named as a Working Mother Best Company, and was among the Top 10 best companies in the United States.
He received his bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Los Angeles and his J.D., cum laude, from Pepperdine University School of Law, where he graduated with high distinction and top ten in his class.
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Honors & Awards
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Education
J.D., Pepperdine University School of Law
cum laude, Moot Court Honor Board; Note and Comment Editor, Pepperdine Law Review
B.A., University of California, Los Angeles
with honors
Admissions
California
Courts
U.S. Supreme Court