Arthur E. Rothrock
Top rated Estate & Trust Litigation attorney in San Jose, California
Rothrock Legal
Practice areas: Estate & Trust Litigation, Civil Litigation
Licensed in California since: 2016
Education: Santa Clara University School of Law
Rothrock Legal
500 Race StSan Jose, CA 95126 Phone: 408-420-7034 Email: Arthur E. Rothrock Visit website
Arthur Rothrock is a litigator. He founded Rothrock Legal in San Jose to handle the disputes that follow a death in the family: trust and will contests, undue influence and capacity fights, breach of fiduciary duty by trustees and executors, Probate Code section 850 property disputes, and financial elder abuse. He represents beneficiaries who were cut out and trustees who are being accused, so he knows what the other side of the table is thinking.
He prepares every case as if it will be tried, because the cases that settle well are the ones the other side believes you will try.
Here's the thing about litigation bills: most of the money goes to drafting. Pleadings, discovery, motions, the same fifty-page documents rebuilt by hand. Arthur co-founded Legion, an AI litigation platform used by California litigators, to do that drafting in minutes instead of days, and he runs his own cases on it. The hours a family pays for go to strategy, evidence, and the courtroom, not to typing. Rothrock Legal carries the Legion AI Litigator seal: a commitment that AI is used responsibly at every level of a client’s case, with a lawyer in charge of every decision and the savings passed on.
That work made him a regular voice on how lawyers should use AI. He is Vice Chair of the American Bar Association's Artificial Intelligence and Robotics National Institute, hosts The Litigator's Path, a podcast about running a litigation practice, and has spoken on AI for lawyers at Berkeley Law, CEB, and the Santa Clara County, Silicon Valley, and Monterey County bar associations. His article on competence, confidentiality, and client consent when lawyers use AI ran in the May 2026 Contra Costa Lawyer.
Super Lawyers® has named him to its Northern California Rising Stars list every year since 2020, and Best Lawyers® has listed him in Ones to Watch in America for Commercial Litigation and Litigation – Trusts and Estates every edition since 2024.
Arthur earned his J.D. from Santa Clara University School of Law, where he was a senior editor on two of its journals, and his B.A. from Indiana University of Pennsylvania. He is a member of the State Bar of California, the Honorable William A. Ingram American Inn of Court, and the Santa Clara County Bar Association. Before founding Rothrock Legal he litigated at Hopkins & Carley in San Jose.
Outside the office he is an advanced open water scuba diver, a second-degree black belt in Eagle Claw kung fu, and a traveler who has made it to Mongolia, Morocco, and most points between. He also 3D prints things nobody asked for.
First Admitted: 2016, California
Professional Webpage: https://www.rothrocklegal.com/attorneys/arthur-rothrock/
Bar / Professional Activity
- Vice Chair, American Bar Association Artificial Intelligence and Robotics National Institute., 2026
- Alumni Ambassador, Santa Clara University School of Law., 2026
- Member: American Bar Association; Silicon Valley Bar Association; Santa Clara County Bar Association; Bar Association of San Francisco., 2026
- Barrister, Honorable William A. Ingram American Inn of Court., 2026
- Planning Committee Member, American Bar Association Artificial Intelligence and Robotics National Institute., 2025
Educational Background
- J.D., Santa Clara University School of Law. Santa Clara Law Review, Senior Research Editor; Santa Clara High Tech Law Journal, Senior Comments Editor; High Tech Law Certificate, Corporate Specialization, with Honors.
- B.A., History, Indiana University of Pennsylvania.
Scholarly Lectures / Writings
- Article on competence, confidentiality, and client consent when lawyers use AI, in the Contra Costa Lawyer's artificial intelligence issue., Author, AI in Your Practice: Competence, Confidentiality, Client Consent, Contra Costa Lawyer, May 2026, 2026
- Guest lecture on AI in legal practice at Berkeley Law., Guest Speaker, The Future of Law: A.I. Insights for Legal Practice, UC Berkeley School of Law, Berkeley Center for Law & Technology, 2024
- Panel moderator at the ABA Artificial Intelligence and Robotics National Institute in Santa Clara., Moderator, AI Document Generation in Action: Real-World Strategies from Leading Legal Tech Platforms, American Bar Association Artificial Intelligence and Robotics National Institute, 2025
- Technology MCLE program on practical applications and potential pitfalls of AI for lawyers., Speaker, The Lawyer's Survival Guide to the AI Revolution: Practical Applications and Potential Pitfalls, Monterey County Bar Association, 2025
- MCLE webinar on how lawyers can use AI responsibly., Presenter, The Lawyer's Survival Guide to the AI Revolution, Silicon Valley Bar Association, 2025
- One-hour technology MCLE program on how lawyers can use AI responsibly., Presenter, The Lawyer's Survival Guide to the AI Revolution, CEB (Continuing Education of the Bar), 2025
- Program on practical uses of AI for attorneys, presented to the Santa Clara County Bar Association in San Jose., Speaker, Wine & AI: Practical AI for Attorneys, Santa Clara County Bar Association, 2026
Honors
- Litigation - Trusts and Estates, and Commercial Litigation, 2024 to 2027 editions., Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in America, Best Lawyers, 2026
Selections
- Rising Stars: 2020 - 2026