Overview
Glaser Weil Fink Howard Jordan & Shapiro LLP is not a law firm that treats litigation as one service among many. The Century City firm defines itself as a collection of trial lawyers: attorneys who try cases and win them, including against firms many times their size. That self-definition, anchored in a practice that spans intellectual property, entertainment, real estate, and corporate law from its 10250 Constellation Boulevard headquarters, is the framing through which the firm presents its identity to clients and the market.
The firm has four U.S. office locations, with its Century City headquarters anchoring a practice that reaches Fortune 500 companies, major entertainment studios, real estate investors and developers, financial institutions, and high-profile entertainers and public figures. The litigation department alone counts more than 60 attorneys, representing more than half of the firm’s total attorney count. The firm’s website is https://www.glaserweil.com/.
The firm carries Chambers USA recognition for California Real Estate, Land Use and Zoning for both 2024 and 2025. It placed 62 attorneys on 2026 Best Lawyers lists, with 41 recognized as The Best Lawyers in America and 21 as Ones to Watch. In 2024, it was featured in the inaugural U.S. News and World Report Best Companies to Work For: Law Firms list.
Practice Areas
Intellectual Property: The firm’s IP practice covers worldwide development, acquisition, protection, enforcement, branding, and licensing. This includes patents, trademarks, trade dress, and copyrighted works. The industries served span telecommunications, automotive, aerospace, computer hardware and software, electronics, semiconductors, specialty chemicals, footwear and apparel, food and beverage, life sciences and pharmaceutical companies, new media, internet technologies, medical devices, toys and entertainment, online games and applications. The breadth of industry coverage reflects the IP group’s depth of technical and legal expertise.
Real Estate: The firm advises on real estate assets, policy, and investment strategy. It negotiates, documents, structures, and restructures acquisitions, sales, finance, leasing, property management, and development contracts for commercial, retail, office, industrial, residential, and mixed-use properties. Chambers USA has recognized the practice for California Real Estate, Land Use and Zoning in consecutive years.
Litigation: The firm’s litigation department encompasses more than half its total attorney count. The emphasis is on trial lawyers who win, not on paper lawyers who negotiate without litigating. The firm’s track record against larger firms is a point of emphasis in how it describes its litigation practice.
Entertainment Law: The firm represents major studios and entertainment talent in high-value disputes and transactions. Entertainment law is a defining element of Century City legal practice, and Glaser Weil’s location and client base reflect this.
Corporate Law: The firm provides corporate counsel, M&A support, and securities law representation for publicly and privately held companies across industries.
Tax: Tax law is among the firm’s listed practice areas, integrated with its corporate and real estate practices.
Employment: Employment law representation for corporate clients and other parties.
Construction: Construction law and disputes, which connect naturally to the firm’s real estate and litigation practices.
Banking and Financial Services: Representation for financial institutions and banking clients.
Environment and Energy: Environmental regulatory and compliance work alongside energy law.
Trusts and Estates: Estate planning and probate matters.
Land Use: Land use law and entitlement work, reflected in the firm’s Chambers USA recognition.
Investigations, Compliance and Strategic Response: Internal investigations and regulatory compliance work for corporate clients.
Attorney Profiles
Patricia L. Glaser (Head of Litigation Department)
Patricia Glaser leads the litigation department at Glaser Weil and is described as topping the short list of trial attorneys in the nation sought after for high-stakes litigation. She serves as general legal counsel to publicly and privately held companies and represents Fortune 500 companies, major entertainment studios, real estate investors and developers, financial institutions, and high-profile entertainers and public figures. Her practice spans entertainment, intellectual property, real estate, banking, and securities disputes.
Firm Scale
The litigation department at Glaser Weil comprises more than 60 attorneys. Across the full firm, 62 attorneys appear on 2026 Best Lawyers lists. Nine attorneys joined the partnership in December 2025. The firm is a member of Meritas, the international law firm network, which provides clients with coordinated access to law firms in other jurisdictions worldwide.
Location and Service Area
The firm’s headquarters is at 10250 Constellation Boulevard, 19th Floor, Los Angeles, CA 90067, in Century City, one of Los Angeles’s premium business districts. Four U.S. office locations operate in total. The firm serves clients nationally and internationally, and its membership in the Meritas network facilitates cross-border matters.
Client Focus
The firm’s client base includes Fortune 500 companies, major entertainment studios, real estate investors and developers, financial institutions, and high-profile entertainers and public figures. It also serves publicly and privately held companies of all sizes. The common thread among clients is the complexity and stakes of their legal matters rather than a shared industry.
One characteristic the firm emphasizes is its internal culture: attorneys who have worked together for much of their careers, creating a close-knit collaborative environment that the firm describes as rare among practices of its size. This continuity is reflected in the 25-year client relationships the firm maintains across its various practice groups.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does it mean that the firm is recognized by Chambers USA?
Chambers USA is an independent legal directory that ranks law firms and individual attorneys based on research that includes client interviews and peer reviews. Rankings are based on technical ability, professional conduct, client service, commercial awareness, and other factors. Chambers has recognized Glaser Weil for California Real Estate, Land Use and Zoning in both 2024 and 2025. This recognition reflects independent third-party evaluation of the practice’s performance in this specific area.
What distinguishes a trial lawyer from other types of attorneys?
Many attorneys practice law without ever trying a case before a judge or jury. Trial lawyers are attorneys who regularly handle cases that proceed to trial and who have developed the specific skills required to present evidence, examine witnesses, and argue before a fact-finder. Glaser Weil emphasizes its identity as a firm of trial lawyers, not paper lawyers, and points to its track record against larger firms as evidence of its litigation capability.
What is the Meritas network and what does membership mean for clients?
Meritas is a global alliance of independent law firms that have been vetted for quality standards. Membership allows Glaser Weil to refer matters requiring representation in other jurisdictions to qualified Meritas member firms and to receive referrals for California matters from those firms. For clients with multi-jurisdictional legal needs, this network connection provides access to coordinated legal support across locations.
Does the firm work with clients outside California?
Yes. While the firm’s offices are based in California, its clients include national and international companies with matters across jurisdictions. The entertainment, financial services, and intellectual property practices in particular extend well beyond California.
What is the firm’s position on the 2026 Best Lawyers lists?
The firm placed 62 attorneys on the 2026 Best Lawyers lists, with 41 recognized as The Best Lawyers in America and 21 recognized as Ones to Watch in America. Best Lawyers recognition is based on peer nominations and evaluations and represents a long-running form of independent attorney recognition in the United States.
Closing
Glaser Weil Fink Howard Jordan & Shapiro LLP occupies a specific position in the Los Angeles legal market: a firm whose identity is built around trial litigation capacity, entertainment and IP expertise, and a close-knit attorney culture that produces long-term client relationships. With 60-plus litigation attorneys, Chambers USA recognition, and a client roster that includes Fortune 500 companies and major studios, the firm operates at the complex, high-stakes end of California legal practice. Its Century City headquarters is at 10250 Constellation Boulevard, 19th Floor, Los Angeles, CA 90067, and the firm’s website is https://www.glaserweil.com/.