Steve Cochran

Steve Cochran litigates high-stakes business disputes. He has extensive experience in cases involving claims for theft of ideas or other intellectual property, defamation, wrongful termination, sexual harassment/discrimination, breach of fiduciary duty, fraud and breach of contract. Mr. Cochran also represents financial institutions in commercial real-estate lawsuits to enforce extensions of credit and defend against allegations of lender liability. His trials include: a judgment for a bank in a commercial real estate dispute; a judgment for a studio in a discrimination case brought by a federal agency; a verdict in favor of an entertainer suing for defamation; a judgment in favor of a studio sued for breach of contract and fraud; and a jury verdict after a six-month trial in favor of an entertainer sued for wrongful termination, sexual harassment/discrimination and other claims.

Mr. Cochran defends companies and individuals facing prosecution in state or federal court. He does criminal defense work involving accusations such as mail fraud, money laundering, federal election fraud, improper disposal of regulated material, tax evasion and customs violations. Recently, Mr. Cochran successfully defended an attorney accused of serious spousal abuse.

Mr. Cochran earned his Bachelor of Arts from the University of California at Santa Cruz in 1979 and his Juris Doctor from the University of California Berkeley School of Law in 1982. He served as law clerk to the Honorable William P. Gray, Senior United States District Judge, Central District of California, and as extern clerk to the Honorable Cecil F. Poole, United States Circuit Judge, Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Mr. Cochran joined Katten as a partner in 1991.

Mr. Cochran is listed in The Best Lawyers in America in the field of Criminal Defense (2003–2004) and in the field of White-Collar Criminal Defense (2007–2012). He also has been recognized as a Southern California Super Lawyer for litigation in the field of intellectual property in 2004 and 2005, for arts and entertainment from 2006 to 2008 and for business litigation in 2010 and 2011.

Mr. Cochran is a member of the Advisory Board to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. He also served on the Executive Committee to the Ninth Circuit Judicial Conference. Mr. Cochran is on the Attorney Admission Fund Committee and Federal Pro Bono Civil Rights Panel for the Central District of California. He also is an appointee of the mayor to the Los Angeles South Valley Area Planning Commission.