Briana Cummings

Ms. Cummings brings her experience as a law firm founder—and in counseling and advising firms as outside general counsel and litigation counsel—to our law firm drafting and advisory practices and State Bar discipline defense practice.

An Experienced Law Firm Founder

With over 10 years of experience advising companies and firms—including representing firms, tech startups, and individuals in business transactions, litigation, and appeals—Ms. Cummings counsels and advises California law firms on law firm formation and planning, law firm partner departure law, California State Bar defense (including admissions, investigations, and discipline), and serves as outside general counsel to California law firms.
Ms. Cummings founded her own law practice and has successfully managed it for more than 10 years. Based in our Los Angeles office, she brings this practical experience—starting and successfully running a law firm and maintaining a busy practice, as well as her legal experience counseling and advising her firm clients—to her work in our law firm advisory practice.
Ms. Cummings is a member of the firm’s drafting team, which plans, develops, and drafts law firm partnership agreements, professional corporation documents, shareholder agreements, and law firm registration documents, including:

• Limited Liability Partnership agreements
• Professional Corporation articles of incorporation, bylaws, and shareholder agreements
• Law firm registration documents  
  • California Secretary of State
  • State Bar of California

As a member of our drafting team, Ms. Cummings also develops and documents law firm compensation systems, attorney promotion systems, and retirement systems, as well as law firm start-up planning and growth planning. She also handles drafting and development for law-related business transactions and is an experienced mediator.

Our Drafting Team

Our drafting team draws on the firm’s extensive experience developing and documenting law firm governance documents and registration documents. Because we handle many drafting and updating projects for law firms each year, we have a unique perspective on what works and what doesn’t. While each firm is different—and we design our drafts specifically for each firm—this experience means we have practical experience in what to recommend for each client’s particular law firm situations.

Our tailored drafting and development process—designed to capture the firm’s governance intent, advise and implement best practices, and document agreements in clear, concise, understandable language—guides our law firm clients through what could otherwise be the daunting task of planning and developing the right agreement for their firm’s present and future.

A Commitment to Service

Throughout her career, Ms. Cummings has also been dedicated to legal work helping non-profits, social purpose companies, and minority- and women-owned businesses, including volunteering legal services at Open Door Legal in San Francisco, Children’s Law Center of Massachusetts, Northeast Legal Aid, the Women’s Bar Foundation Family Law Project, and the Federation for Children with Special Needs. She has also represented battered women through the Journey to Safety program at Jewish Family and Children’s Services.