Somach Simmons & Dunn | Attorneys at Law

Yosef Negose joined Somach Simmons & Dunn with over a decade of experience in the U.S. Department of Justice where he litigated significant, complex cases as a member of the Environment and Natural Resources Division and Indian Resources Section (now known as the Tribal Resources Section). His docket included disputes with thousands of adverse parties competing to draw water from shared resources. He personally drafted and argued motions, examined witnesses and negotiated settlements, using his leadership and advocacy skills to solve large-scale water disputes throughout the American West.

Yosef made significant contributions in many notable cases during his tenure with the U.S. Department of Justice. Among his accomplishments were: securing a pre-answer stay and dismissal of all claims against the United States in Poarch Band of Creek Indians v. Moore (Southern District of Alabama), securing many favorable judgments and first-chairing groundwater modeling disputes for a case in Maricopa County Superior Court in Arizona, and representing the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs in Department of Ecology v. James Acquavella et al, in Yakima County Superior Court in Washington.

Prior to his decade with the U.S. Department of Justice he worked as an Extern for the Office of the General Counsel for the Regents of the University of California, was an Extern for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Northern District of California, was a law clerk for the American Civil Liberties Union in Anchorage, Alaska, and worked for a summer at Best, Best & Krieger LLP in Riverside, CA.

The son of an Ethiopian immigrant and Jamaican immigrant, Yosef was raised as a first-generation American ingrained with a sense of gratitude for the opportunities afforded his family and excited about the many avenues for success–something he has imparted in his own young family. He’s an avid fan of the restaurant scene in Sacramento, including local favorites Allora and Q1227.