California attorney helped take on the tall order of reshaping law firm
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Attorney Spotlight
California attorney helped take on the tall order of reshaping law firm
By Brian Cox
Attorney Courtney Hylton was only 19 when she sat beside her father, Mike, as he boldly testified before the National Institute of Health in 1994 about his experience with hemophilia and contaminated blood products. At one point, he handed her his prepared testimony to continue reading as he proceeded to infuse himself with the blood-clotting protein Factor VIII as the Congressional committee gaped.
“People freaked out,” recalls Hylton.
It was a seminal moment in her life. Through witnessing her father’s formidable, life-long battle with hemophilia, a genetic bleeding disorder in which the blood does not clot properly, a spirit of advocacy became an essential aspect of Hylton’s character.
“This is where I get my die-on-the-hill attitude,” she says. “It really shaped who I am. Believe in what you believe in and stand up for it and fight your way through it.”
In spite of contracting HIV – the retrovirus that causes AIDS — from contaminated blood product in the early 1980s and enduring compounding health issues and numerous operations to fuse deteriorating joints, her father, whom doctors had not expected to live beyond the age of 20, dedicated himself to fighting for improved care for hemophiliacs. It seems likely he saw a similar fighting nature in his stubborn oldest child.
“Even from a young age, my dad always said, ‘you’re going to be a lawyer’,” says Hylton. “Who knows, if his life had been different maybe he would have been a lawyer.”
Courtney Hylton
Hylton herself, however, initially had no intention of studying law after graduating from the University of California, Santa Barbara in 1997 with a degree in Law and Society with an emphasis in Criminal Justice. She was thinking of going into law enforcement or public service, perhaps even the FBI. So, she traveled east to Washington D.C., where she interned for six months as an investigator for the Public Defender’s Office.
“I was knocking on doors in Southeast D.C. asking people if they saw the murder in the alley behind their house last week,” says Hylton. “I would tell my parents stories and they held their breath until I checked-in every night.”
She loved the investigation work, but also enjoyed working closely with the lawyers and soon realized that as a litigator she would be able to do both.
“I knew if I went into law, I wanted to be a trial attorney,” she says. “I did not want to sit in an office, not getting out, not interacting with people.”
Courtney Hylton with her husband, Dan, and their two children, Ryan and Caidlyn, at Zion National Park.
She returned to California to attend the University of San Francisco School of Law, graduating in 2001. Though her father didn’t live to see her graduate, dying of complications from HIV during her first year of law school, it was clear his prediction on his daughter’s calling would be realized.
In law school Hylton entertained the idea of becoming a district attorney, but after graduating she joined a firm that specialized in construction defect work. She quickly determined it was not an area of law to which she wanted to dedicate her career.
When she came across an ad for a position in public entity defense with Lynberg & Watkins, her interest was piqued. She tells the story of sticking the envelope with her resume and cover letter in the visor of her car for a week before finally deciding to drop it in the mailbox. She received a call to interview, which she did the following day and her future boss and mentor, Ric Ottaiano, offered her a job on the spot. She’s been with the firm ever since.
“I think it was something that was meant to be,” she says.
For the last 20 years she has specialized in representing public entities – specifically school districts -- in tort and employment matters. She represents dozens of school districts on a wide range of litigation issues, from the complex to the routine.
“I don’t even know how many cases I’ve handled where a kid has gotten hit by an errant baseball on the baseball field,” she says with a laugh.
Her work for schools on employment cases involving harassment, discrimination and wrongful termination branched out over time to include private companies. Now her time is spent representing both private and public employers. She regularly presents to employers regarding sexual harassment prevention, administration of leaves of absence, the accommodation process and how to avoid employment liability claims.
Hylton and her husband, Dan have been married 19 years and have two children, Caidlyn, 17, and Ryan, 14. Hylton says she’s proud of having gotten married and having two kids all while building her own book of business at the firm and becoming an equity partner. She recognizes the hard work it’s taken. She recalls weekends when she brought her children into the office because there was trial work to be done.
“I have a much different perspective on my expectations of people and the work-life balance,” says Hylton. “I’m in the unique position of being a woman, having kids, having succeeded in my profession … I feel I have a good idea of what the balance needs to be.”
She acknowledges that litigation is predominately a male field. She is often only one of a handful, or even the only, woman in the courtroom gallery waiting for their matters to be heard. Although she has seen the gender gap narrow slightly over the years, it has not been dramatic by any means.
“You have to love this to stick with it,” she says.
At 6 feet tall, Hylton presents a striking presence in the courtroom.
“I don’t shy away from using my height to my advantage, often even wearing 3-inch heels because I think it commands some authority,” says Hylton, whose two younger brothers are both over 6’ 4”.
Founded in 1971, Lynberg & Watkins has offices in Los Angeles and Orange and consists of 40 attorneys. The firm’s core practice is in civil litigation and insurance coverage, representing public entities, insurance companies and their insureds, private corporations and individuals on a national, regional and local level.
Courtney Hylton with her mother, Sharon, and her daughter, Caidlyn, on a trip to Kenya in 2020.
Three years ago, Hylton became the firm’s chief financial officer and this year took over as the board president. Her ascendancy into a leadership role at the firm came after a significant shake up in the firm’s hierarchy about seven years ago, when the curtain was drawn back on the business’ inner workings, revealing some fault lines.
At that point her mentor took over as CFO. Ottaiano was open with Hylton about what was going on at all levels of the firm, and she became increasingly involved in firm management. He began preparing her to move into the position when he retired.
“We re-examined how we did everything,” says Hylton. “The firm went through some trying times, and we came out on the other side of it a lot stronger for it.”
The firm traditionally had a three-member board, but as part of the firm’s reorganization the board was expanded to five, which allowed for younger lawyers to become active in leadership.
“That was the pathway to bringing in the next generation,” says Hylton.
Hylton says there were many ideas for improvement that weren’t receiving adequate attention “because everybody just did the same old thing.” The firm lacked the energy and the perspective to change. Bringing in fresh eyes and considering new ideas was critical to correcting the firm’s course.
Courtney Hylton with her children, Ryan and Caidlyn, on a trip to Glacier National Park.
“We’re very collaborative both in the practice of law but also in the running of the firm,” she says of Lynberg & Watkins’ renovated culture.
Growing the firm had not been a priority in the past, Hylton says. Joining Primerus is an example of the firm’s commitment to taking a new direction.
“Our firm had never done formal marketing,” she says. “We had a lot of legacy clients and we stuck with those.”
But when a new attorney, Trevor Resurreccion, joined the firm, he stressed the importance of marketing and encouraged the firm to become a Primerus member, which it did in 2019. Hylton and Resurreccion went to their first Primerus convocation in Florida that year and the experience proved immediately valuable.
“It’s been a great networking platform,” says Hylton. “It’s taught us a lot about how to market, which was never anything that we did. Now we’re looking at broadening our practice areas and expanding on the things we do well.”