Awards & Recognitions

Colantuono, Highsmith & Whatley is proud of its accomplished team of lawyers.
Here is a partial list of the many accomplishments of our team members:

  • 2023 Outstanding CALAFCO Associate Member
  • 2023 AVVO Top Rated Lawyer
  • 2023 Best Lawyers in America – Municipal Law
  • 2023 America’s Most Honored Lawyers
  • 2023 Northern California Super Lawyer
  • California Lawyer of the Year (2020) for two of the firm’s attorneys
  • Ronald M. George Public Lawyer of the Year
  • Trustee, California State Bar
  • President, City Attorneys Department, League of California Cities
  • Top 25 Municipal Lawyers in California, Daily Journal Newspaper
  • Armenian Bar Association’s “20 Under 40 Rising Stars” (2022)
  • Daily Journal’s 2020 Top 40 Under 40
  • Daily Journal’s 2021 Top 40 Under 40
  • The Best Lawyers in America — Municipal Law (2022)
  • Super Lawyer “Rising Stars” (2016)
  • Super Lawyer Rating by AVVO (2015)
  • Super Lawyer, Southern California in Municipal Law (2004–2005)
  • Super Lawyer, Northern California in Municipal Law (2006–2020)
  • Best Law Firms, U.S. News & World Report and Best Lawyers, Eleventh Edition (2021)
  • California’s Top Ranked Law Firms by ALM
  • Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Rating — AV
  • Executive Committee Member, Legal Advocacy Committee, League of California Cities
  • Chair, Municipal Law Handbook Committee, League of California Cities
  • Regional Vice President, International Municipal Law Association (IMLA)
  • State Chair, International Municipal Law Association (IMLA)
  • William Thornton Award for Mentoring, International Municipal Law Association (IMLA)
  • Fellow, International Municipal Law Association (IMLA)
  • Law Clerk, Circuit Judge James R. Browning, U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit
  • Adjunct Professor of Law, Boalt Hall School of Law, UC Berkeley
  • Member, Commission on Local Governance for the 21st Century
  • Chairman, Prop. 218 Task Force of the League of California Cities
  • Chairman, Prop. 26 Task Force of the League of California Cities
  • Attorney of the Year, Santa Barbara County Chapter of the California Special Districts Ass’n
  • Best Lawyers, Municipal Law, Northern California 2021
  • Best Lawyers, Ones to Watch, Municipal Law, Northern California 2021
  • Public Health Law & Policy Award of Recognition
  • Recognition, Best Lawyers in America: Municipal Law (2013 —); Lawyer of the Year — Los Angeles (2016)
  • Sacramento Magazine 2016 Top Lawyers
  • Board President and Board Member, Northern California Lawyer Access, Inc.
  • President, Nevada County Bar Association
  • President, Nevada County Law Library Board of Trustees
  • Contributor, Municipal Law Handbook, published by Continuing Education of the Bar
  • Editor and Contributor, League of California Cities Proposition 218 Implementation Guide
  • Contributor, League of California Cities Proposition 26 Implementation Guide
  • Contributor, Western City Magazine
  • Contributor, Public Law Journal
  • Consultant, Practice under the California Environmental Quality Act, Continuing Education of the Bar
  • Recognized as one of California’s Top Law Firms by Martindale-Hubbell, with 4 attorneys receiving the highest rating
  • Member of the California Academy of Appellate Lawyers, a prestigious organization of fewer than 100 of the most respected appellate advocates in California
  • Associate Member of the Year (2015) presented by the California Association of Local Agency Formation Commissions (LAFCo)
  • Ad Hoc Public Law Specialization Certification Committee of the League of California Cities
  • International Advisory Experts 2021