Brendan is a shareholder who spearheads the Firm’s Appeals and Writs group and is a member of the Firm’s litigation, Labor & Employment, Trust, Probate, and Elder Abuse Litigation groups.
He is an Appellate Law Specialist certified by the State Bar of California Board of Legal Specialization.
In Litigation, Brendan has worked on class actions and managed entire cases, including conducting witness interviews, preparing and responding to written discovery, arguing related motions, taking and defending scores of depositions, prevailing on numerous anti-SLAPP and dispositive motions, mediating many cases, and second-chairing trials to successful verdicts. At the appellate stage, he has handled both briefing and oral argument before all appellate courts, from the California Court of Appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.
At Brendan’s behest, appellate panels have reversed lower court decisions in various cases (including five that resulted in published opinions) and upheld rulings issued by lower tribunals. The U.S. Supreme Court granted Brendan’s petition for a writ of certiorari that led to the high court hearing and resolving (in favor of Brendan’s client) the famous “Pledge of Allegiance” case in Elk Grove Unified School District v. Newdow, 540 U.S. 945 (2003).
Brendan has experience in all aspects of civil writs and appeals, from filing the notice of appeal and designating the record to prepare briefs and making or opposing petitions for further review. As a judicial clerk for both state and federal appellate courts, he has literally reviewed and analyzed hundreds of appellate and amicus briefs. As a practitioner, he has handled over seventy different cases as lead appellate counsel.
Before joining Weintraub Tobin in 2010, Brendan worked for a large nationwide firm focused on labor and employment litigation. While there, Brendan worked on wage-and-hour and meal-and-rest-period class actions and collective actions, as well as single-plaintiff and multiple-plaintiff cases alleging wrongful termination, discrimination, harassment, retaliation, defamation, infliction of emotional distress, and denial of leave entitlements and/or disability accommodations.
Since joining Weintraub Tobin, Brendan has handled numerous appeals in various practice areas, including Family Law, Trusts and Probate Litigation, Employment Law, ERISA litigation, Anti-SLAPP Litigation, Commercial Litigation, Civil-Rights Law, and Personal-Injury Litigation.
Brendan has delivered numerous public presentations to lawyers, executives, managers, and supervisors on appellate law and best employment practices. He is admitted to the State Bar of California and practices before all courts in California. He is also admitted to practice U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and the U.S. Supreme Court. Before law school, Brendan worked as a newspaper reporter for The Sacramento Daily Recorder and correspondent for other Daily Journal publications. While in law school, he worked as a law clerk at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Hawaii. After law school, he served as a judicial clerk to the Hon. John M. Gerrard, then Associate Justice of the Nebraska Supreme Court, and later as a judicial clerk to the Hon. Connie M. Callahan, Circuit Judge for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
Brendan received his Bachelor of Arts degree, cum laude, from the California State University at Sacramento and his Juris Doctor degree (with honors) from the University of California at Davis, where he was a law-review writer. He also attended the University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law, where his academic ranking won him admission to the Roger J. Traynor Honor Society. Brendan is a past member of the Anthony M. Kennedy American Inn of Court and past President of the Sacramento County Bar Association’s Appellate Section.
Published Opinions
Sacramento County Bar Association Appellate Practice Section
Media Relations Officer and Board Member (2012-present)
Sacramento County Bar Association, Appellate Practice Section
President (2009-2012, 2020-present)
Sacramento County Bar Association, Appellate Practice Section
Member (2007-2009)
Anthony M. Kennedy American Inn of Court
Member (2005-2008)
Center for Youth Citizenship’s High School Moot Court Competitions
Coach and Judge (2004-2009)
Meritas, Sacramento
Member
Awards
Best Lawyers in America®, 2024-25 (Litigation Labor and Employment)
Sactown Magazine’s Top Lawyers List, 2015-2018, 2021 – 2024 – Appellate
Northern California Super Lawyers, Appellate Law, 2013-2024
Sacramento Business Journal’s, Best of the Bar, 2018
J.D., with honors, University of California, Davis, King Hall School of Law, 1998
B.A., cum laude, California State University, Sacramento, 1992
On January 12, 2022, attorneys Lizbeth V. West, James Kachmar, Meagan D. Bainbridge, Brendan Begley, and Ryan Abernethy presented part two of a webinar discussing important legal developments from 2021 and reviewing a number of new laws and case law developments impacting employers in 2022. Employment Law Update (Part 2)…
The regulations regarding California’s Mandatory Sexual Harassment Prevention Training for non-supervisors and supervisors require that employers having five or more employees provide at least two hours of classroom or interactive training and at least one hour of classroom or interactive training and education to nonsupervisory employees within six months of…
Summary of Program Our Labor & Employment Group presents our annual Employment Law Update where they discuss important legal developments from 2020 and review a number of new employment laws and relevant court cases impacting employers in 2021 Program Highlights – Part 1 of 2 This part will focus on:…
Weintraub Tobin’s 2021 Labor and Employment Virtual Seminar and Training schedule is now available. Click here for a copy of the schedule. If you have any questions on any of our seminars or would like to inquire on private, custom-tailored training, please contact: Ramona Carrillo (916) 558-6046.
On June 17, 2020, employment attorneys Brendan Begley and Shauna Correia recorded this webinar discussing the different kinds of employment-related lawsuits that business owners may face as businesses reopen and employees return to work, including disability claims, wrongful termination claims, leave claims, and discrimination claims. They provided examples of personnel…
Summary of Program Join the attorneys from Weintraub Tobin’s Labor and Employment Group as they discuss legal developments from 2019 and review a number of new laws facing employers in 2020. Program Highlights New Federal and State Legislation and Court Cases Changes to the Law Governing Classification of Independent Contractors…
Due to high demand, we have scheduled this second session to accommodate additional attendees. Summary of Program Join the attorneys from Weintraub Tobin’s Labor and Employment Group as they discuss legal developments from 2019 and review a number of new laws facing employers in 2020. Program Highlights New Federal and…
Summary of Program Join the attorneys from Weintraub Tobin’s Labor and Employment Group as they discuss legal developments from 2019 and review a number of new laws facing employers in 2020. Program Highlights New Federal and State Legislation and Court Cases Changes to the Law Governing Classification of Independent Contractors…
Mandatory AB 1825 Sexual Harassment Prevention Training The regulations regarding California’s Mandatory Sexual Harassment Prevention Training for supervisors require that certain employers provide training to their supervisors every two years. The Labor and Employment Group at Weintraub Tobin is offering a two hour in-person training session that will comply with…
Brendan Begley will be speaking at The Rutter Group and the California Judges Association’s Employment Litigation 2019: Facing Workplace Realities in Divisive Times on Saturday, February 23, 2019 at Hilton Los Angeles/Universal City. Highlights include Sexual Harassment and Retaliation, Wage and Hour, PAGA, New California Rules of Professional Conduct (eff.…
Join the attorneys from Weintraub Tobin’s Labor and Employment Group as they discuss important legal developments from 2018 and review a number of new laws facing employers in 2019. Program Highlights:• New Federal and State Legislation and Court Cases• Developments in Harassment, Discrimination and Retaliation Law• Leaves of Absence and…
Join the attorneys from Weintraub Tobin’s Labor and Employment Group as they discuss important legal developments from 2018 and review a number of new laws facing employers in 2019. Program Highlights:• New Federal and State Legislation and Court Cases• Developments in Harassment, Discrimination and Retaliation Law• Leaves of Absence…
Summary of Program Unfortunately, both single-plaintiff and class-action wage and hour lawsuits continue to plague California employers. Often employers are sued because of technical violations that occur simply because the employer is unaware of its legal obligations. In addition, the ever increasing number of claims filed with the Department of…
Weintraub Tobin is honored to announce that 34 of its attorneys have been selected to the inaugural Sactown Magazine Top Lawyers 2024 list. Attorneys from Weintraub Tobin are recognized in over a dozen practice areas on this year’s list, including Real Estate, Employment & Labor, Business Litigation, and Estate Planning…
This article was first published in Bloomberg Law, reprinted by permission Anti-SLAPP motions help studios knock down idea theft claims Creatives’ protection ‘hanging by the thinnest of threads’ Hollywood giants accused of stealing ideas from writers often play a powerful free speech card to freeze lawsuits in a way attorneys…
Weintraub Tobin is pleased to announce that 41 of its attorneys have been recognized in the 2025 editions of The Best Lawyers in America® and Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in America. 32 Weintraub attorneys are included in the 2025 edition of The Best Lawyers in America, of which six…
Weintraub Tobin is pleased to announce that 45 of the Firm’s attorneys have been recognized on the 2024 Northern California Super Lawyers® and Rising Star lists. These lists, selected annually on a state-by-state basis, recognize outstanding attorneys who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement in…
On September 26, 2023, Weintraub shareholders Brendan Begley and Audrey Millemann scored an appellate victory in a published decision from the California Court of Appeal concerning the tracing of community property and separate property in a family law matter, In Re Marriage of Simonis. Brendan is an Appellate Law Specialist…
Weintraub Tobin is pleased to announce that 25 of its attorneys have been recognized in the 2024 edition of The Best Lawyers in America®, and eight attorneys have been named to the 2024 edition of the Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in America. Three attorneys have also named “Lawyer of…
Weintraub Tobin is pleased to announce that 31 of its attorneys have been selected to the 2023 Sacramento Magazine Top Lawyers list. Weintraub’s attorneys are recognized in various categories, including Business/Corporate law, Employment & Labor law, Estate Planning & Probate law, and Real Estate law. The complete roster of Weintraub…
Brendan Begley recently prevailed in the First Appellate District by convincing that court to reject one of its own published opinions in denying a motion to dismiss our clients’ appeal and then to spurn four published decisions from other appellate courts that would have subjected our clients’ appeal to a…
Weintraub Tobin is pleased to announce that 47 of the Firm’s attorneys have been selected to the 2023 Northern California Super Lawyers® and Rising Star lists. These lists, selected annually on a state-by-state basis, recognize outstanding attorneys who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement in…
In a March 31st interview with the Northern California Record, Sarah Downey spoke with Weintraub Shareholder Brendan J. Begley about a recent court decision to uphold Proposition 22. In Castellanos v. State of California, the state’s court of appeals ruled in favor of gig workers, such as Uber and Lyft drivers,…
Weintraub Tobin is pleased to announce that 28 of its attorneys have been selected for inclusion in the Top Lawyers 2022 list from Sacramento Magazine. Ten of the listed Weintraub attorneys are recognized in multiple practice areas. The Top Lawyers list, featured each year by Sacramento Magazine, recognizes prominent attorneys in the…
Weintraub Tobin is pleased to announce that 37 of its attorneys have been recognized on the 2022 Northern California Super Lawyers® and Rising Stars lists. Several Weintraub attorneys also received special recognition on Super Lawyers “Top” lists, including six attorneys named to the Sacramento Top 25 Super Lawyers (Gary L.…
Weintraub Tobin is pleased to announce that 26 of its attorneys have been recognized as 2021 Top Lawyers by Sacramento Magazine, including 8 attorneys recognized in multiple practices. Voting for Top Lawyers was managed by Professional Research Services and was open to all licensed attorneys in Sacramento. Voters were asked…
Weintraub Tobin is pleased to announce that 38 of its attorneys have been included on the 2021 Super Lawyers and Rising Star lists for outstanding attorneys in Northern California. In addition, 4 Weintraub Tobin attorneys received special recognition on Northern California and Sacramento “Top” lists. Weintraub attorneys represent 16 percent…
Weintraub attorney Brendan J. Begley recently convinced the California Court of Appeal that a person who obtains a Domestic-Violence Restraining Order (“DVRO”) against an abusive person can have a trial court renew that order once it is about to expire even if the restrained person’s appeal from the original DVRO…
Sacramento, CA – Weintraub is pleased to announce that 21 Firm attorneys have been recognized as 2020 Top Lawyers by Sacramento Magazine. The full list of 2020 Top Lawyers will be featured in the August, 2020 issue of Sacramento Magazine. Weintraub attorneys honored as 2020 Top Lawyers are: Brendan Begley…
Employment attorney Brendan Begley spoke with Sam Boykin of Sacramento Business Journal about the recent SBJ cover article on “ The Office of the Future.” The in-depth article includes a wide spectrum of voices discussing different aspects of the changing workplace. Brendan addressed some legal concerns that employers may face…
Weintraub Tobin is pleased to announce that 33 Weintraub Tobin attorneys have been included on the 2020 Super Lawyers and Rising Star lists for outstanding attorneys in Northern California. In addition, 5 Weintraub Tobin attorneys received special recognition on Northern California and Sacramento “Top” lists. Weintraub attorneys represent 20 percent of…
Weintraub Tobin is pleased to announce that more than 30 Weintraub Tobin attorneys have been included on the 2019 Super Lawyers and Rising Star lists for outstanding attorneys Northern California. In addition, 6 Weintraub Tobin attorneys received special recognition on Northern California and Sacramento “Top” lists. Attorneys selected to the…
Weintraub is pleased to announce that 24 of the firm’s attorneys have been recognized as 2019 Top Lawyers by Sacramento Magazine. The full list of 2019 Top Lawyers will be featured in the August, 2019 issue of Sacramento Magazine. Weintraub Tobin attorneys honored as 2019 Top Lawyers are: David Adams |…
SACRAMENTO, California – August 24, 2018 – Weintraub Tobin Chediak Coleman Grodin Law Corporation congratulates its seventeen attorneys who have been included in Sacramento Business Journal’s Best of the Bar 2018. Brendan J. BegleyGary L. BradusKay U. BrooksDale C. CampbellChristopher ChediakJanet Z. ChediakJim ClarkeEdward J. Corey, Jr.Kelly E. DankbarMark E.…
SACRAMENTO, California – July 19, 2018 – Weintraub Tobin Law Corporation congratulates its 24 attorneys who have been included in Sacramento Magazine’s 2018 Top Lawyer List. David Adams | Business/Corporate, Securities & Corporate FinanceBrendan Begley | AppellateGary L. Bradus | Banking & Financial Service, Business/Corporate, Mergers & Acquisitions, Securities &…
Super Lawyers has released its Northern California, Southern California and San Diego lists of outstanding attorneys for 2018, on which 37 Weintraub Tobin attorneys have been included. Five Weintraub Tobin attorneys received special recognition as a Top 25 Sacramento Super Lawyer. Weintraub Tobin attorneys named to the 2018 Southern California…
Weintraub Tobin’s Labor & Employment Law Blog has been recognized in PerformYard’s “Top 10 HR Blogs for Practical Advice in 2018”. The L&E blog “provides an incredible service for HR professionals, with regular updates and insights on changes to employment law.” Congratulations to all our wonderful attorneys for providing fresh interesting…
Tuesday, January 9, 2018 | Sacramento, CA (Session 1)Wednesday, January 10, 2018 | Sacramento, CA (Session 2)Wednesday, January 10, 2018 | San Francisco, CA Additional information and details for each session will be available December 8, 2017. Please note that the Sacramento seminars will be limited to 50-in person attendees. To reserve your space at one of…
SACRAMENTO, California – July 26, 2017 – Weintraub Tobin Law Corporation congratulates its 21 attorneys who have been included in Sacramento Magazine’s 2017 Top Lawyer List. Brendan Begley | AppellateGary L. Bradus | Banking & Financial Service, Business/CorporateKay U. Brooks | Estate Planning & ProbateDale C. Campbell | Business Litigation,…
Super Lawyers has released its Northern California, Southern California, and San Diego lists of outstanding attorneys for 2017, on which 36 Weintraub Tobin attorneys have been included. Six Weintraub Tobin attorneys received special recognition as a Top 25 Sacramento Super Lawyer. Weintraub Tobin attorneys named to the 2017 Southern California…
Weintraub Tobin’s own Brendan Begley was recently quoted in a news article about an appellate court’s ruling that hugs and kisses in the workplace may create a sexually hostile environment. The article, titled “Sheriff discovers that work-hugs can lead to litigation“ by Laura Halleman, was published on Legal NewsLine. To read the full article,…
SACRAMENTO, California – July 25, 2016 – Weintraub Tobin Law Corporation congratulates its 18 attorneys who have been included in Sacramento magazine’s 2016 Top Lawyer List. David C. Adams | Business/Corporate, Mergers & AcquisitionsBrendan Begley | AppellateTaylor W.Bentley | Securities & Corporate FinanceGary L. Bradus | Banking & Financial Service, Business/CorporateKay U.…
Super Lawyers has released its Northern California, Southern California, and San Diego lists of outstanding attorneys for 2016, on which 33 Weintraub Tobin attorneys have been included. Three Weintraub Tobin attorneys received special honors in their respective regions. Weintraub Tobin attorneys named to the 2016 Southern California and San Diego Super…
Weintraub Tobin’s 2016 Labor and Employment Seminar and Training schedule is now available. Click here for a copy of the schedule. If you have any questions on any of our seminars or would like to inquire on private, custom-tailored training, please contact: Ramona Carrillo400 Capitol Mall, 11th Floor Sacramento, CA…
SACRAMENTO, California – August 7, 2015 – Weintraub Tobin Chediak Coleman Grodin Law Corporation congratulates its 20 attorneys who have been included in Sacramento magazine’s Top Lawyer List 2015. David C. Adams | Securities & Corporate FinanceBrendan Begley | AppellateTaylor Bentley | Securities & Corporate FinanceGary L. Bradus | Banking &…
Super Lawyers has released its Northern California, Southern California, and San Diego lists of outstanding attorneys for 2015, on which 37 Weintraub Tobin attorneys have been included. Eight Weintraub Tobin attorneys received special honors in their respective regions. Weintraub Tobin attorneys named to the 2015 Southern California and San Diego…
For a third year in a row, Weintraub Tobin is working to raise funds for cardiovascular diseases and stroke by partaking in the American Heart Association Heart Walk on Saturday, September 21 at William Land Park. Our attorneys and staff work hard during the summer months to gear up for…
Weintraub Genshlea Chediak Law Corporation and Tobin & Tobin, a professional corporation, jointly announce the merger of their business law and litigation firms. The combined firm will be named Weintraub Genshlea Chediak Tobin & Tobin and will have offices in Sacramento, San Francisco and Los Angeles. With over 60 attorneys,…
Over the last year, Weintraub Genshlea Chediak has tripled the size of its employment law department. In addition to enhancing the services we can provide to our clients, this growth has allowed us to continue presenting our quality seminars and maintaining our Labor and Employment Law Blog. Our results have…
A precedential decision last week by the California Court of Appeal may leave some employers feeling like no good deed goes unpunished. That decision ruled that a jury would have to decide if an employer willfully violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FRCA”) by letting a non-attorney manager communicate with…
A blog we published here on May 28, 2020, correctly noted that California’s workers-compensation laws may immunize employers from most civil lawsuits alleging that employees became infected with the coronavirus on the job. That blog also correctly emphasized that other types of lawsuits may spread from lax pandemic protocols. This week the…
Weintraub Tobin’s 2021 Labor and Employment Virtual Seminar and Training schedule is now available. Click here for a copy of the schedule. If you have any questions on any of our seminars or would like to inquire on private, custom-tailored training, please contact: Ramona Carrillo (916) 558-6046.
A ruling today by an appellate court gives ride-sharing companies Lyft and Uber roughly two more months to treat their drivers in California as independent contractors. That ruling follows a recent decision by a trial court in San Francisco that made national news by concluding that those companies had been…
A blog we published here on May 28, 2020, warned that whistleblower, disability and leave claims against employers may reach a fever pitch as workplaces begin reopening from the COVID-19 shutdown. A recent audit by the U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General (“OIG”) confirms that some of those types…
As workplaces begin reopening in the coming weeks, attorneys are predicting a rash of lawsuits by employees against their employers related to the COVID-19 pandemic. It seems clear that workers-compensation preemption may immunize employers from most civil actions alleging that employees became infected with the virus on the job. However,…
Recent news reports, like this one from the Los Angeles Times, indicate that Congress is hotly debating a proposed law to immunize employers from lawsuits alleging that their workers contracted COVID-19 illness on the job. While business owners in California may suffer headaches or congestion from other types of lawsuits related to…
The State of California filed an appeal last week to challenge a federal court’s order barring California from enforcing a new state law that would curtail workplace arbitration agreements. Unless the State takes some additional action, the lower court’s ban on enforcement of the new law, AB 51, will remain…
A federal court in Sacramento explained last week its rationale for temporarily barring the State of California from enforcing a new law, AB 51, that would curtail employment arbitration agreements. The rationale set forth in that written order of February 7, 2020, strongly suggests (but does not guarantee) that the…
A federal judge in Sacramento has continued an order that temporarily bars the State of California from enforcing a new state law that would curtail employment arbitration agreements. The new law, AB 51, which added section 432.6 to the California Labor Code, would have banned employers from requiring employees to…
In a decision that may lead employers to feel a little less gratified on Thanksgiving Day, a California appellate court determined last week that “even a legitimate company policy, if mistakenly applied,” can lead to liability for disability discrimination in the Golden State. Specifically, the Court of Appeal ruled that…
High times at Florida workplaces may or may not become more prevalent with a new law that allows the medical use of stronger marijuana by a greater number of patients. The legal use of medical marijuana is not completely new there. In 2014, Florida legalized the medical use of low-THC…
As the national controversy continues to swirl around immigration issues, a federal appellate court this week faulted an employer for demanding that an employee provide information to prove “‘legal right to work in the United States … as required by the Immigration Control and Reform Act of 1986.’” The U.S.…
