BG Law Partner Philip Bonoli Ascends to the Bench, Appointed Court Commissioner for the Ventura County Superior Court
Judicial appointment of award-winning litigator underscores BG Law’s reputation for developing the region’s most respected legal talent
Los Angeles, Calif. — June 9, 2026 — BG Law, one of Southern California’s premier business law firms, is proud to announce that Partner Philip J. Bonoli has been appointed to serve as a Court Commissioner for the Ventura County Superior Court. Bonoli concluded his nearly ten-year tenure with the Firm on June 5, 2026, and now takes the bench as a judicial officer serving the Ventura County community. The appointment elevates one of the Firm’s most accomplished litigators to the judiciary and stands as a powerful affirmation of the caliber of attorneys who call BG Law home.
A judicial appointment is among the highest honors in the legal profession, a recognition of legal skill, character, judgment, and integrity. That Bonoli was selected for the bench after nearly a decade as a Partner at BG Law speaks to the standard of excellence the Firm demands and the environment it creates: one where exceptional lawyers do exceptional work, mentor the next generation, and earn the trust of clients, courts, and the community.
“Phil’s appointment to the bench is a milestone moment in our Firm’s history,” said Steve Gubner, Managing Partner of BG Law. “His record speaks for itself. Phil is a trial lawyer who tried case after case to verdict, an appellate advocate who prevailed before the Ninth Circuit and the California Court of Appeal, and a litigator recognized year after year among the very best in California. But what made Phil exceptional at BG Law went beyond his accomplishments in the courtroom. He was a great Managing Partner and an even better mentor; a steady leader who invested in our younger attorneys, strengthened our culture, and made everyone around him better. Those are precisely the qualities that make a great judicial officer, and Ventura County could not have chosen better,” Steve adds.
Bonoli’s credentials made him a natural choice for the bench. At BG Law, he built a powerhouse litigation practice spanning employment matters, including wrongful termination, discrimination, harassment, and retaliation claims, alongside complex commercial disputes, corporate ownership litigation, and the defense of multiple wage-and-hour class actions. A seasoned advocate who has tried many jury trials to verdict, he also authored successful appellate briefs and writs and argued before the California Court of Appeal and the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. He is admitted to practice before all four U.S. District Courts in California, the Ninth Circuit, and the United States Supreme Court.
Notably, the federal judiciary had already entrusted Bonoli with helping shape the bench itself: he served as a member of the Merit Selection Panel for the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, the body that evaluates candidates for federal magistrate judgeships, and as an alternate Ninth Circuit Lawyer Representative. Few attorneys are asked to help select judges; fewer still go on to become one.
While at BG Law, Bonoli was named to the Los Angeles Business Journal’s “Top 100 Lawyers” (2026, 2022), the Los Angeles and San Francisco Daily Journal’s “Top Labor & Employment Lawyers” (2025, 2024), and the Los Angeles Business Journal’s “Leaders of Influence: Labor & Employment Attorneys” (2025, 2024). He has been selected to “Best Lawyers in America” every year since 2023 and to Southern California “Super Lawyers” every year since 2014. His commentary on emerging employment law issues has appeared in Forbes and The Hollywood Reporter.
“I would not be taking the bench without BG Law,” said Bonoli. “For nearly ten years, this Firm gave me everything a lawyer needs to grow: challenging, high-stakes cases, the trust to lead them, and colleagues who pushed me to be better every single day. Steve built a culture where excellence and integrity are simply how we do business, and that culture prepared me for this role more than anything else in my career. My judgment, temperament, and respect for every party in a dispute were sharpened at BG. I am profoundly grateful to Steve and to every one of my colleagues, and I will carry the standards of this Firm with me to the Ventura County Superior Court,” Phil concludes.
Bonoli earned his J.D. from Chicago-Kent College of Law, Illinois Institute of Technology (1995), and his B.A. in Philosophy from the University of Southern California (1992).
BG Law congratulates Commissioner Bonoli on this extraordinary and well-deserved achievement.
About BG Law
BG Law LLP is a business law firm with offices in Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and Denver. Built on the principle that Your Counsel Matters®, the Firm delivers proven results through a wealth of knowledge and experience and a powerful network of business and legal professionals. Many of BG Law’s attorneys are former bankers, accountants, and business owners who leverage their business backgrounds and creative insight to formulate each client’s best course of action. The Firm’s practices span litigation, bankruptcy and restructuring, labor and employment, business transactions, real estate, and intellectual property, with deep experience in the fashion and apparel, finance, entertainment, and government and municipalities industries. BG Law has been recognized by U.S. News & World Report as a “Best Law Firm.”