Lang, Richert and Patch celebrate half century of law

Source: The Business Journal
Written by Ben Keller

Fifty years have gone by since one of Fresno’s oldest law firms formed out of a few young attorneys looking to make their mark in the area. Now with 17 attorneys and some 30 in supporting staff, Lang, Richert and Patch handles the affairs of multi-million-dollar clients even outside of the Valley and state in situations involving bankruptcy, debtor-creditor relationship, estate planning, agriculture, construction, banking and commercial finance, medical malpractice and employment law, to name just a few specialties. The firm’s connection with the local community has remained strong, however, as attorneys can often be seen participating in charitable events around Fresno or giving their time to pro bono clients challenged by expensive legal needs. “With attorneys rates and fees being charged now across the board, there’s a lot of people that can’t afford legal services and we’re able to go to these forums and settings and provide these services and help the community,” said Managing Partner Matthew Quall. The attitude of community support was a founding focus for the firm soon after Frank Lang, a new attorney two years out of the UC Berkeley School of Law, met up with Phil Fullerton, who was swamped with a practice he inherited. The two made a good fit with Lang working on bankruptcies and creditors’ rights while Fullerton represented mostly truckers and contractors. A third founding partner, the late William Richert, was an expert in family law. The firm later dropped family law and grew along with the local business community that now makes up a majority of its clientele. “When we stared there were some 200 to 250 lawyers in Fresno County and now it’s close to 2,000,” said Lang, a native of Modesto. “There’s been a lot of growth in the local area and the business community that supports the population.” Fullerton retired early, replaced by UC Davis School of Law grad Robert Patch in 1972, who has since obtained sizable verdicts as the firm’s lead trial lawyer in cases dealing with product liability, wrongful death, personal injury and medical malpractice in both the state and federal courts. A host of other astute attorneys have put the firm on the map since then, including Douglas Noll, a well-known mediator and peacemaker, and Val Saldana, the first and only Hispanic president of the Fresno County Bar Association. The firm also moved several times as its numbers expanded, starting out from three buildings in downtown Fresno and settling in the Fig Garden Financial Center around 20 years ago. From there, many of Lang, Richert and Patch’s attorneys have had a hand in defending large corporate clients when faced with cases in the San Joaquin Valley. In July 2002, for instance, the firm gained national recognition when it negotiated a large settlement for a family whose wrongful death lawsuit was the first in the nation to go to trial against both Ford Motor Co. and Bridgestone/Firestone Inc. More often, however, Lang, Richert and Patch is on the side of large companies. Besides one of its biggest fortes backing agriculture clients, the last few years have seen a spike in bankruptcies and solvency cases due to recessionary struggles, although that’s dying down a little as the economy improves. “We were maybe the busiest bankruptcy court in the nation and now the judges are resting once in a while,” Lang said. ”We’re heavy into collection work right now for major debt collectors.” Employer/employee issues have come at the forefront in recent years as well. With its expertise in the area, the firm helped to establish and continues speaking at the monthly workers’ rights clinics put on by Central California Legal Services (CCLS) to provide legal information to low-wage workers in various aspects of employment law. Other educational seminars over the years have had attorneys speaking to groups and classes on issues like bankruptcy, commercial litigation and pro bono work, many at the San Joaquin College of Law in Clovis or for the Fresno County Bar Association. Serving as an example of helping those in need, Lang, Richert and Patch was the first law firm to sign on with CCLS’ Central Valley Pro Bono Challenge in 2010 to encourage attorneys in the area to provide free legal service to disadvantaged individuals and families. Since that time, the firm has dedicated more than 700 hours and approximately $165,000 in pro bono legal services to the underserved. “We’ve always been supportive of our attorneys’ time and hours in pro bono efforts but in this instance it was a very structured effort,” said Quall, who joined the firm 15 years ago. “The minimum is 10 hours each and most of our attorneys far exceed that.” Another way Lang, Richert and Patch shows support for the Fresno community is through regular community service projects that benefit local causes and nonprofits. In the last three years, the firm has backed such events like the Lawyers Have Heart Run to support the American Heart Association. In May, members of the firm’s family and the general community came together to assist in the building of a dog park at Animal Compassion Team of California's Fresno location. Staff will be hosting a night of dinner and games at Community Medical Center’s Terry’s House in December to raise funds for the facility that houses families and loved ones of hospital patients. Quall said the firm is looking to contribute even more with plans to assign attorneys and staff to a new community service project every quarter. Every year, the firm also gives out $1,000 towards payment of law school tuition from the Frank H. Lang Merit Scholarship. Although Lang is now retired, he still occupies an office at the firm to guide attorneys in cases and provide direction for the business. But with the firm’s achievements and accolades, Lang said the practice he started looks to be in good shape for another 50 years. Among the awards include OneJustice’s “Opening Doors to Justice” award, Central California Legal Services, Inc.’s “Champions of Justice” award, the Legal Services Corporation Award for Extraordinary Commitment to Providing Equal Access to Justice and the Fresno County Bar Association’s Pro Bono Law Firm of the Year award. In July, half of the firm’s attorneys were selected as Super Lawyers or Rising Stars by Super Lawyers Magazine based on peer recognition and professional achievement in more than 70 practice areas. “We hire really good lawyers,” said Lang, who has served on such groups as the Fresno Art Museum, the Fresno Dance Repertory Association, the Fresno Philharmonic Association and Encourage Tomorrow. “Any person we hired we expect to be capable of becoming an owner in the business.” Lang, Richert and Patch will be celebrating their first 50 years with a reception on Oct. 17 for clients, lawmakers, pro bono partners and friends and family at its office at the fourth floor of the Fig Garden Financial Center, 5200 N. Palm Ave.

URL to original article: http://thebusinessjournal.com/news/legal/9383-lang-richet-and-patch-celebrate-half-century-of-law

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