I graduated cum laude from the University of Pittsburgh where I earned a Bachelor of Philosophy degree in Film Studies with a certificate in Russian and East European Studies.  During my undergraduate studies, I also attained the university’s highest undergraduate merit scholarship as well as its higher undergraduate research fellowship — the Chancellor’s Scholarship and Chancellor’s Fellowship.  In 1998, I was accepted by Southwestern University’s SCALE program, the first ABA-accredited two year year law school program.  During my graduate studies, I attained the university’s highest merit scholarship, the Wildman Scholarship. I received my Juris Doctor in May 2000 and became a member of the California State Bar later that year. Most of my thirteen years of civil litigation have been as defense counsel for California employers where my philosophy is simple: “assess your legal risks and identify your options for managing those risks.”