The battle that never ends

Newly elected CAALA and CAOC officers will lead us forward against “tort reform”

2025 October

Congrats to Lourdes De Armas

First off, congratulations to CAALA’s newest member of the Executive Committee and its 2031 President, Lourdes De Armas! CAALA really does have an embarrassment of riches in its leaders, past, current, and future. Lourdes adds to that group with her strength, wisdom, and fearless leadership. Welcome to the show, Lourdes; you are fabulous!

Congratulations are also due to our very own Alexis Gamliel and Christa Ramey who both won election as CAOC officers – next year’s Treasurer and Parliamentarian respectively. The futures of CAALA and CAOC are in good hands.

A fight that won’t end

CAALA is going to need our strong and wise leaders because the rule of law and lawyers who represent people are under attack. We must stand together to do what is right in the face of the attacks on the civil justice system. The goal of “tort reform” has never been about helping the victims, those who have been harmed. The goal of these efforts is to prevent those who were harmed from obtaining justice. The tort reformers are trying to prevent people who don’t have money from getting good lawyers. This is nothing new. It is the same as case after case brought to countless courtrooms – corporations putting profits over people.

We, as trial lawyers, are scapegoats. The newspaper articles, the social media posts, the internet rants vilifying trial lawyers as greedy, all are in hopes that the voting public won’t realize the real goal of this ongoing media attack is to prevent us, the consumer attorneys, from obtaining justice for our clients when they’ve been harmed.

CAALA’s mission is “Empowering Attorneys Advocating for People. We believe in justice, protecting the right to trial by jury, excellence in advocacy and education, inclusion, integrity, professionalism, and civility.” These tort reform efforts are anathema to our mission. We must continue to stand strong together and fight for our clients by pushing back on these “tort reforms.” It is an ongoing fight and one that won’t ever end, which is why having courageous leaders is so vital.

Turning of the season

October sees the turning of the calendar once again. The days grow shorter, leaves start to turn, and even in sunny Southern California the weather gives hints of cooling. School is in full swing; even the UC system has started its new year.

I have always treated this time of year as a second chance at my new year goals. As an opportunity to take stock of the year that has been to date and with still enough time on the clock to re-focus on things I had forgotten about. I know that part of that stems from the Jewish High Holidays – Rosh Hashanah the Jewish New Year and Yom Kippur the day of atonement. It is a time to be reflective and introspective. A time to seek forgiveness for past wrongs and commit to doing better in the future. I hope you all take some time over the next week or two to think back on your year and see if there is one more thing you’ve wanted to do since the beginning of the year that you’ve not yet tackled. Or to reflect on an action that hurt or let a friend or family member down – to apologize and commit to being better. Fall is a time for new beginnings and forgiveness. There are still three months left in the year – more than enough time to tackle that project, achieve that goal, heal that relationship.

CAALA’s success year to date

CAALA Vegas once again was a huge success! With more than 4,000 registered attendees, the vibes, energy, love, joy and enthusiasm could be felt all around. Everywhere I turned, I saw people smiling, hugging, talking, having fun and truly engaged and enjoying being part of the best legal conference in the country.

Thank you to everyone who made the event a huge success – to the CAALA staff who made it all look so effortless – checking people in, making sure the event ran smoothly, and putting on the best conference ever. To our Vegas Committee Chairs – Lauren Horwitz, Molly McKibben, Daniel Pierson, and Lakshmi Odedra – who put in countless hours to make sure that the educational sessions and speakers were top notch. And they were. To all our moderators and speakers – far too many to list here – thank you! All in all, it was an amazing weekend filled with great fun and networking. Put next year’s conference on your calendar now, as every year CAALA Vegas gets better and better: September 3-6, 2026 at the Fontainebleau Hotel. See you there!

Plaintiff Trial Academy

This year, CAALA graduated a new class from its famed Plaintiff Trial Academy. To date, more than 450 CAALA members have graduated from our PTA. The more CAALA members who are ready to take their cases to trial, the better. When a CAALA member tries a case it sends a message that we all are willing to go to mattresses. When a CAALA member gets a verdict, it raises all boats. It communicates that our jury system is working – that another person has obtained full and fair justice for their injuries for the wrong that was done to them. If you are looking for the best place to get hands-on practice, to learn from the best trial lawyers in the country, and to be a better lawyer, then keep your eyes out for next year’s PTA.