Stephen G. Larson

Stephen Gerard Larson (born 1964) is a former United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Central District of California and a partner in the Los Angeles law firm of Larson O'Brien LLP, which he co-founded in 2016. He consistently ranks among the top litigators in the U.S., and since 2015 has appeared before the Supreme Court of California and the Supreme Court of the United States. In 2012, Larson was named one of the Leading Trial Lawyers in the country by Legal 500 US. As a judge and an attorney, he is known for high-profile cases, including his role since 2011 as lead defense counsel in People v. Biane, what former California Attorney General (and current governor) Jerry Brown once touted as "the biggest corruption scandal in San Bernardino County, if not the state's, history." Larson also secured dismissals of money laundering and conspiracy charges for Angela Aguilar in U.S. v. Noriega, in what was one of the few Foreign Corrupt Practices Act cases to go to trial.In February 2016, Larson was tapped to file a legal brief supporting the U.S. government's efforts to force Apple Inc. to unlock the encrypted iPhone belonging to one of the shooters in the 2015 San Bernardino attack.Larson and former Arent Fox California Managing Partner Robert C. O'Brien opened Larson O'Brien LLP in January 2016. Before founding the firm, Larson was practice leader of Arent Fox's Complex Litigation group.