Margaret M. Grignon into Appellate Lawyer Hall of Fame
The Committee on Appellate Courts of the Litigation Section of the California Lawyers Association is pleased to recognize Margaret M. Grignon as the recipient of the 2024 Appellate Lawyer Hall of Fame award. The award will be presented at a special reception on April 25 at 5:30 p.m. at the California Lawyers Association’s Litigation and Appellate Summit being held in Long Beach on April 25-26.
This prestigious award, first given in 2018, is among the few devoted to recognition of appellate practice. The award honors attorneys who have excelled as appellate lawyers and whose careers exemplify the highest of values and professional attainment. Margaret joins prior inductees Ellis Horvitz, Jon Eisenberg, Dennis Riordan, Wendy Lascher, Hal Cohen, and Richard Benes in the Appellate Lawyer Hall of Fame. The award is presented once annually, with nominations carried over to subsequent years given the stellar qualifications of recent nominees.
Margaret has been a trailblazer over the course of a highly distinguished career as an appellate lawyer and judge. After graduating first in her class from Loyola Law School, she practiced tax law in San Diego and then in Antelope Valley. Just seven years into practice, she was appointed to the Municipal Court in Lancaster. Margaret eventually was elevated to the Los Angeles Superior Court and then to the California Court of Appeal, Second District, Division Five. During her 14 years on the appellate bench, she authored over 2,200 opinions, more than 150 of which were published. She also took an active role in shaping appellate procedure through her work on the Judicial Council’s Rules Committee and Appellate Advisory Committee. In 2005, Margaret left the bench and joined Reed Smith LLP, leading its Los Angeles appellate team. In 2015, she established The Grignon Law Firm with her daughter, Anne, focusing on appellate law and trial consultation. She is widely sought-out as an arbitrator/mediator, and a frequent speaker on appellate practice.
Margaret is a member and Past President of the California Academy of Appellate Lawyers and a fellow and former Board Member of the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers. Since 2016, she has been listed in Best Lawyers in America, Appellate Practice, and has been recognized in Top Women Lawyers in the Los Angeles Daily Journal. She has also generously donated her time to pro bono causes, pushed for increased diversity and inclusion in the bench and bar, and mentored many appellate lawyers throughout her career.
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