The Daily Journal has included John Keker and Bob Van Nest in its inaugural list of Distinguished Counsel, which honors 17 California attorneys who have appeared on the publication’s Top 100 Lawyers list for 15 years or longer. The Daily Journal also named partners Elliot Peters and Ben Berkowitz to its 2025 list of Top 100 Lawyers.
The Daily Journal distinction showcases Keker and Van Nest’s influence in having built a litigation powerhouse that has shaped precedent, trained generations of trial attorneys, and handled some of the nation’s most closely watched cases.
Keker's influence extends beyond the courtroom. The firm he co-founded has launched more than 300 legal careers, with alumni now serving as judges, government officials, and corporate leaders. His public stances, including a widely discussed op-ed opposing President Trump’s executive orders targeting law firms, reflect a lifelong commitment to fearless advocacy rooted in his service as a Marine infantry officer in Vietnam and his clerkship for Chief Justice Earl Warren. “You can’t win them all,” Keker advises younger lawyers. “But you can’t be fearful of trial. You’ve got to put yourself out there.”
Van Nest, who joined the firm in the early 1980s and added his name in 1994, has built his reputation as the go-to trial lawyer for technology companies. In one of his most consequential cases, Oracle v. Google copyright case, he still thinks about his decision to allow a lawyer to serve on the jury. The risk was high, and the lawyer became foreperson, but the jury found in Google’s favor. That verdict, later overturned on appeal, helped pave the way for the Supreme Court’s 2021 decision validating Google’s use of Java APIs, a landmark ruling for software development.
In 2024 and 2025, Van Nest handled four trials and secured a victory for Google in EcoFactor v. Google, the first such rehearing on patent damages in 30 years. He continues to defend technology clients in cases that will define the future, including leading OpenAI’s defense in consolidated copyright lawsuits brought by publishers and authors challenging generative AI.
Keker and Van Nest’s recognition among the Daily Journal’s Distinguished Counsel underscores their individual accomplishments, and their lasting impact on California’s legal landscape.
Read John Keker’s Distinguished Counsel profile here.
Read Bob Van Nest’s Distinguished Counsel profile here.