2021 ELECTION LOS ANGELES COUNTY BAR ASSOCIATION
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2021 ELECTION
LOS ANGELES COUNTY BAR ASSOCIATION
PRESIDENT’S STATEMENT
BRAD PAULEY
In accordance with the Bylaws of the association, will succeed to the presidency on July 1, 2021.
Founded in 1878, the Los Angeles County Bar Association is
one of the nation’s oldest and largest voluntary bar associations.
It is my honor and privilege to serve as its President for 2021-2022.
LACBA’s impact on our community is immense. We partner with
the courts in innumerable ways to improve the administration of
justice. Through our many practice sections, we provide our
thousands of members not only with professional connections and
opportunities for career advancement, but also with continuing
legal education so they can better serve their clients. Through our
committees we do so much, from publishing a highly regarded
magazine, Los Angeles Lawyer, to evaluating candidates for
judicial office and submitting amicus curiae briefs on matters of interest to our members. And
through our four Counsel for Justice legal services projects, we provide free and low-cost legal
services to a multitude of our fellow citizens in need each year.
I assume my duties as President in a time of great change and challenge both for the
broader legal community and for LACBA. I am confident that these challenges will be met and
that LACBA will continue to serve as a cornerstone of our legal community. My confidence stems
from my faith in LACBA’s leadership, who have repeatedly demonstrated the courage to make
necessary decisions for the good of the association. My confidence also stems from LACBA’s
professional staff, who daily demonstrate their devotion and ability. And finally, my confidence
stems from the talent, generosity, and spirit of our members, who run sections and committees,
organize programs, and otherwise devote their time and resources to making LACBA one of
America’s preeminent metropolitan bar associations, with a voice and an impact far beyond Los
Angeles County.
While no change is permanent, change is, and so the LACBA that weathers this era of
transformation and emerges in the third decade of the 21st Century will be different from what has
come before. We will never lose sight of the fact that LACBA’s chief functions are to serve our
members, partner with the courts, serve the broader community, and support the rule of law. Yet
fulfilling these core functions will require us to acknowledge where LACBA must continue to adapt,
and where more needs to be done.
I am gratified, therefore, that LACBA has created a permanent board-level officer position
to enhance diversity, inclusion, and outreach, and that it has likewise recently established a
practice section devoted to increasing diversity in the profession. I am equally pleased by LACBA’s
rapid embrace of virtual programming which, while driven by the pandemic, has allowed us to use
technology to better serve our members throughout our sprawling county. I applaud too the
launch of the My LACBA App and our website’s e-hub, which allows us to partner with our affiliates
and other bar associations on joint programs and matters of common interest.
LACBA’s challenge in the coming years is not to stay relevant. Its long history of service and
the continued pressing needs of our members, the courts, and our diverse community establish
beyond doubt that this storied bar association fulfills a vital role. LACBA’s challenge, rather, is to
continue to convince the busy lawyers of Los Angeles County of the importance of its mission, and
of the immeasurable benefits LACBA membership provides. For this reason, my primary goal as
President will be to enhance LACBA’s membership outreach. In particular, I plan to focus on
reaching young lawyers and law students so that those budding professionals know that LACBA is
their professional home and that LACBA membership is an essential element of any successful law
practice in Los Angeles County. To this end, I also plan to continue to expand LACBA’s mentorship
programs and the already substantial benefits of LACBA membership.
For those attorneys and law students reading this who are not yet LACBA members, my
message is simple: join. You will be glad you did. If you are a member, thank you for your support
and I encourage you to get more involved. Organize a CLE program for your practice section,
seek out a leadership position, join a committee, or volunteer for one of our legal services projects.
We will all be the better for it.
_______________________________________________
Brad Pauley is a partner with Horvitz & Levy LLP in Burbank, where his practice focuses exclusively on civil
appeals.
THE ELECTIONS THE NOMINATING COMMITTEE
The Nominating Committee nominated one candidate The 14-member Nominating Committee consisted of
for each of the offices of president-elect, senior vice three elective officers: President Tamila C. Jensen,
president, vice president, and vice president of diversity, President-Elect Brad Pauley, and Immediate Past
inclusion & outreach. The committee nominated three President Ronald F. Brot; two members designated by
candidates for the three available at-large trustee, the Barristers/Young Attorneys Section President: Justin
trustee by section membership, and trustee by affiliated M. Gordon, Nicholas Nathan Spear; three members
bar association membership positions. One additional selected by lot from those elected by the membership
nomination was received by petition for the elective to at-large trustee positions during the prior four years:
office of President-Elect. Candidates were invited to Katherine J. Blair, Theresa Leets, Diana K. Rodgers; three
submit ballot statements: 500 words or less for officer members selected by lot from those elected by the
positions and 350 words or less for trustee positions. membership to trustee by section membership positions
during the prior four years: Julia L. Birkel, Marc L. Sallus,
William L. Winslow; and three members selected by lot
from those elected by the membership to trustee by
affiliate bar associations membership positions during
the prior four years: Hon. Sam E. Lucas, Merete E.
Rietveld, Felix Thomas Woo. Participation on the
Nominating Committee does not constitute an
endorsement by any member of the Committee of any
particular candidate.
THE CANDIDATES
PRESIDENT-ELECT
• JO-ANN W. GRACE
• ANN I. PARK
NO OTHER NOMINATIONS WERE RECEIVED FOR OTHER ELECTIVE OFFICE OR TRUSTEE POSITIONS.
THE FOLLOWING OFFICERS AND TRUSTEES ARE DEEMED UNANIMOUSLY ELECTED.
SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT
• KRISTIN ADRIAN
VICE PRESIDENT
• SARVENAZ BAHAR
VICE PRESIDENT OF DIVERSITY, INCLUSION & OUTREACH
• CHRISTINE C. GOODMAN
THREE TRUSTEES AT-LARGE
• E. CARLOS DOMINGUEZ
• MARK T. HIRAIDE
• JEFFREY B. MARGULIES
THREE TRUSTEES BY SECTION MEMBERSHIP
• ERIC A. ALTOON
Real Property Section
• JANA G. GARROTTO
Trusts and Estates Section
• BENJAMIN G. SHATZ
Appellate Courts Section
THREE TRUSTEES BY AFFILIATED BAR ASSOCIATION MEMBERSHIP
• JASON R. PARNELL
John M. Langston Bar Association
• CAROLINE C. VINCENT
Women Lawyers Association of Los Angeles
• SAUNDRA K. WOOTTON
Mexican American Bar Association
CANDIDATE STATEMENTS FOLLOW ON THE NEXT PAGES. THEY APPEAR IN THE SAME ORDER AS ON THE
BALLOT. ALL BIOGRAPHICAL DATA AND CANDIDATE STATEMENTS HAVE BEEN SUBMITTED BY THE
CANDIDATES. THE POSITIONS OF THE CANDIDATES ARE THEIRS ALONE, AND THEIR VIEWS ARE NOT
NECESSARILY ENDORSED BY THE LOS ANGELES COUNTY BAR ASSOCIATION.
PRESIDENT-ELECT: TO BE ELECTED FOR A ONE-YEAR TERM. SUCCEEDS TO THE PRESIDENCY ON JULY 1, 2022
AND IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENCY ON JULY 2, 2023, FOR TWO ADDITIONAL ONE-YEAR TERMS.
JO-ANN W. GRACE
Jo-Ann W. Grace designated the following 25 supporters to appear
with her statement:
Hon. Suzanne Bruguera, Wilkie Cheong, Hon. Isabel Cohen, Hon.
Steve Cooley, Hon. Lawrence W. Crispo, Lea D’Agostino, John F.
Denove, Thomas Dover, Brant Dveirin, Douglas Fee, Hon. Arnold Gold,
Gary S. Greene, Diane Karpman, Donna E. Kirkner, Robert M. Kern,
Richard A. Lewis, Theresa Macellaro, John P. McNicholas, Lloyd W.
Pellman, Hon. Robert H. Philibosian, Luis J. Rodriguez, Alice A. Salvo,
Velma-Adah Sands, Selma Moidel Smith, Ed Summers.
Things were bad. Really bad. In 2015, LACBA was on a course
destined to lead to its demise—and that’s no exaggeration.
We’re on the upswing, we’re revitalizing. I am proud of my role
in the reform movement which, in 2016’s first contested election
in 25 years, put into office officers and trustees who placed our organization back on track. I want
to continue the progress, not retrogress, not go off on side excursions.
Looking back at 2015: LACBA was giving away about $1 million a year to charitable
projects, though it was losing roughly that sum each year, draining its reserves. And its finances
were kept secret from members. The Senior Lawyers Section demanded a copy of the current
financials; it was told that it failed to establish a necessity for receipt of such information.
This was a departure from procedures in earlier times, under wiser leadership. John Taylor in
his president's column in the May 1979 edition of Los Angeles Lawyer wrote: “All members of the
Association, and not just the officers and trustees, clearly are entitled to know the sources and
amounts of the Association’s income and how the Association’s funds are being used.”
In 2015, members could not even procure a copy of the current bylaws.
Presidents of that era, basking in the prestige of their titles, left the running of our
organization to the then- CEO who made momentous misjudgments and did not show up for work
until 4 p.m., with staff members lined up to consult with her.
LACBA’s sections—its backbone—were being regimented. They were not permitted to stage
a program without staff approval, and often had to cancel planned events because there was no
word from “LACBA Central”—as it came to be dubbed—saying “yes” or “no” in time to proceed.
A proposal came before the Board of Trustees, of which I was a member, to strip sections of
any semblance of autonomy. I alerted section leaders. In short, leaders of sections appeared to
speak against the proposal; they included Brad Pauley and Ronald Brot; the proposal was put over
for two months but never again surfaced; the getting-together of section leaders resulted in
formation of the Council of Sections. I was the only trustee who was a member of that group when
it staged its 2016 “take-over,” via the election—and was a key player.
As the result of the efforts, Michael Meyer became 2017-18 president, succeeded by Brian
Kabateck. They and their two successors support my candidacy, as does the Council of Sections,
as well as Taylor, past LACBA (and State Bar) President Patrick Kelly, and persons who were highly
active in the reform movement, including past President Harry Hathaway and Nowland Hong.
I have been vice president of LACBA (when Ron was president), chair of the LACBA
delegation to the Conference of California Bar Associations, vice president of the State Bar,
president of the Italian American Lawyers Association, chair of the Breakfast Club, among other
past activities, and am presently chair of LACBA’s Senior Lawyers Section.
The job the reform movement set out to do is not completed. I hope to work, as president-
elect, with Brad Pauley, who will be 2021-22 president, and our able executive director, Stan Bissey,
and others in boosting our sagging membership by making LACBA, once again, an organization in
which participation is essential for lawyers. I want to join in efforts to provide members with
meaningful programs, useful benefits and resources, and help enhance the public’s image of
lawyers—and not divert attention from the core purposes of the organization.
I want our association to play a major role in reserving to lawyers those tasks for which
they—not computers or laypersons—are best suited. And I want to keep LACBA solvent through
fiscal restraint.
ANN I. PARK
Ann I. Park designated the following 25 supporters to appear with
her statement:
John Brinsley, Patricia Phillips, Hon. Margaret Morrow, Richard
Chernick, Hon. Laurie Zelon, Rex Heinke, Gretchen Nelson, Alan
Steinbrecher, Eric Webber, Patricia Daehnke, Phil Lam, Jeff
Westerman, Philip Cook, Hon. Howard Halm, Rasha Shields, Gary
Farwell, Samuel Ingham, Marisa Hernandez-Stern, Aimee
Contreras-Camua, Roxanne M. Wilson, Jeff Daar, Celene Chan
Andrews, Kendra Thomas, Leana Tiang, Elizabeth Uribe.
A Seasoned Leader with the Experience, Dedication, and
Vision Needed for LACBA’s Future.
I am honored to be the Los Angeles County Bar Association
Nominating Committee’s candidate for President-Elect
in 2021-2022. Currently, I am LACBA’s Senior Vice President, and serve on its Executive Committee,
its Finance Committee, and the Counsel for Justice’s Board and Executive Committee. I also serve
as Vice Chair of the Racial and Social Justice Task Force and as Vice Chair of the Diversity in the
Profession Committee. I previously served on the Board of Trustees in 2001-2003, 2007-2011, and
2018-2020.
I have been active in the Association for nearly 30 years, including on the Los Angeles
Lawyer Editorial Board (1998-2001), the Judicial Appointments Committee (1999-2001), and the
Diversity in the Profession Committee (2002-present). Since 2007, I have organized LACBA’s High
School Mentoring Program, bringing lawyers and judges into local high schools to mentor students
to enter college and the legal field. I have organized many successful events for LACBA, including
the Diversity and Inclusion Conference in September 2019, which raised almost $40,000 for LACBA.
I also lead the committee organizing LACBA’s June 24, 2021 Installation Event, featuring Senator
Alex Padilla as Keynote Speaker.
I am a Partner in the national law firm Foley & Mansfield, PLLP, concentrating on the defense
of mass tort and complex toxic tort cases. I have been active in the legal community since
graduating from UCLA Law School in 1987, after earning my A.B. at Harvard University. I served on
the Christopher Commission (1991), proposing LAPD reforms in the wake of the Rodney King
incident, and on the Webster Commission (1992), investigating the LAPD’s response to the 1992 Civil
Unrest. I served on the California State Bar’s Judicial Nominees Evaluation Commission (2006-2008)
and Council on Access and Fairness (2009-2012). In 1996-1997, I was President of the Korean
American Bar Association of Southern California.
As noted by my list of endorsements, I am supported by many former Presidents of the
Association, including the Honorable Margaret Morrow (1988), Patricia Phillips (1984), John Brinsley
(1979), the Honorable Laurie Zelon (1995), and Alan Steinbrecher (2010). I am also endorsed by
former California Supreme Court Justice Carlos Moreno, and the President and CEO of the Los
Angeles Urban League, Michael Lawson.
I am proud of LACBA’s 140-year history, and excited about our future. Every day, we
provide legal services to the underserved through our Counsel for Justice programs, provide
networking and educational opportunities through our Sections and Committees, serve our
community through our outreach and mentorship programs, and support our courts. I believe we
must look forward, not backward, to build a bar association that is relevant and essential to 21st
Century attorneys.
As President-Elect of the Association, I plan to focus on these goals:
(1) Increasing our membership;
(2) Improving the financial stability and security of the Association and the Counsel for
Justice
(3) Improving Section financial autonomy and security;
(4) Increasing member satisfaction and engagement;
(5) Increasing communication, coordination, and cooperation with affiliate and affinity
bars;
(6) Improving the Association’s social media presence and outreach; and
(7) Supporting our courts.
Membership in LACBA should be an indispensable part of practicing law in Southern
California. I will bring innovation, dedication, and boundless energy in achieving these goals. If
elected, I will be a tireless advocate for, and a faithful servant of, this Association and its members.
Thanks so much for your support. Take care and be well, Ann
THE FOLLOWING OFFICERS AND TRUSTEES ARE DEEMED UNANIMOUSLY ELECTED.
NO VOTE IS REQUIRED. CANDIDATE STATEMENTS WERE OPTIONAL.
SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT: ELECTED FOR A ONE-YEAR TERM
KRISTIN ADRIAN
I have a long history of involvement with and service to
LACBA – going back approximately 25 years. For the 2020-2021
Bar year, I served as Vice President, for the 2019-2020 Bar year, I
served as Assistant Vice President, and I have been a member of
the Board of Trustees since being elected in 2017. As Senior Vice
President for the 2021-2022 Bar year, I am committed to invest the
time needed to continue to serve the needs of LACBA. Recent
activities related to LACBA include:
• Chair of the Finance Committee and Treasurer for both
LACBA and CFJ
• Member of Audit Committee of LACBA, attending and
participating its meetings and joint meetings with the
Finance Committee
• Member of the Board of Directors for LACBA’s Counsel for
Justice since 2018, assisting with its fund raising
• Member of Business Law Section and the Privacy and
Cybersecurity Sections
I have served at the General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer for Los Angeles based
American Realty Advisors, LLC, a registered investment advisor managing in excess of $10 billion of
commercial real estate, since 2006. I am responsible for overseeing the firm’s Legal, Compliance
and Human Resources functions. I oversee a wide variety of outside counsel who assist in real
estate and fund matters, litigation, and human resource matters; addresses compliance with the
Investment Advisers Act of 1940; responds to regulatory requests; and ensures compliance with the
firm’s policies and procedures and the laws.
Prior to joining ARA, I was a Senior Vice President, General Counsel for Nestlé USA, where I was
responsible for legal matters associated with its U.S. operations, including those related to
acquisitions and divestitures and oversaw a large legal department. Prior to that, I was a Partner
with the law firm of Bronson, Bronson & McKinnon, where I was responsible for legal advice in the
areas of corporate and securities laws.
Given my many years of success in the corporate and business world I believe my experience
with financial statements and corporate compliance obligations, as well as many years of service
to LACBA, make me uniquely suited to serving LACBA as Senior Vice President - assisting the
President as requested.
VICE PRESIDENT: ELECTED FOR A ONE-YEAR TERM
SARVENAZ BAHAR
VICE PRESIDENT OF DIVERSITY, INCLUSION & OUTREACH: ELECTED FOR A TWO-YEAR TERM
CHRISTINE C. GOODMAN
Professor Goodman joined the Pepperdine faculty in 2001.
She teaches Evidence, Constitutional Law, Trial Practice and
Comparative Anti-Discrimination Law. She has participated in
the Sudreau Global Justice Program in Uganda and India, and
taught in the London Program. Professor Goodman also has
taught courses in Community Outreach/Youth Mentoring,
Criminal Law, Constitutional Law, and Trial Preparation and
Settlement. She serves as an advisor to the Black Law Students'
Association and the American Constitution Society Chapter,
and formerly served as adviser to the Women's Legal
Association, and as a mock trial team coach. Professor
Goodman writes on equal protection topics, including implicit
bias, affirmative action, preferences, diversity and racial
privacy, as well as evidentiary and criminal law issues, such as
the lack of transparency in the death penalty decision-making
process in California and medical privacy. The second edition of her book, California Evidence, in
Aspen's Examples and Explanations series, as well as the Seventh edition of the Mendez, Goodman
and Mainero Evidence textbook are now available.
While at Stanford Law School, Professor Goodman served on the board of directors for the
Annual Women of Color and the Law Conference, worked as a teaching assistant in the political
science department, and was an assistant editor for a new journal on gender issues. After law
school, she worked as an associate at Manatt, Phelps & Phillips (1991-93) and Gipson, Hoffman &
Pancione (1993-1995), engaging in civil litigation in state and federal courts. In 1995, Professor
Goodman began teaching at UCLA, and created and taught a course in lawyering skills for public
interest attorneys.
Professor Goodman served as the 2016-2017 President of California Women Lawyers, and
the 2017-18 President of its Foundation. She now serves as Chair-Elect of the AALS Litigation section,
and as immediate past chair of the Evidence Section. She is also on the board of Schools on
Wheels, a local nonprofit that provides tutors and school supplies for homeless youths, and the
Western Center on Law and Poverty. She has served as an officer of the Black Women Lawyers
Association of Los Angeles, on the Board of Trustees of the Los Angeles County Bar Association and
is now a Co-chair of its Diversity in the Profession Committee. Professor Goodman is a frequent
speaker on the subject of bias.
TRUSTEES AT-LARGE:
THREE (3) MEMBERS ELECTED FOR TWO-YEAR TERMS
E. CARLOS DOMINGUEZ
MARK T. HIRAIDE
Mark is a capital markets attorney known among his
colleagues for his expertise in corporate and securities law. He
offers unique insight and perspective to his clients because of his
experience in private practice representing both public and
private companies in business transactions and courtroom
securities litigation for more than twenty-five years and serving in
senior positions as an attorney with the U.S. Securities and
Exchange Commission and as a Special Assistant United States
Attorney for eight years.
While Mark's clients include other attorneys, his passion is
defending those wrongfully accused, prosecuting those who
violate our securities laws, counseling entrepreneurs raising capital
and protecting them against costly lawsuits. Mark represents start-
ups to middle-market companies, investment bankers, broker-
dealers, investment advisers, executives and board members.
Mark was a Branch Chief in the SEC's Division of Enforcement in the SEC's LA Office, an
Attorney-Advisor in the SEC's Division of Corporation Finance in Washington, DC, and was
appointed by the United States Attorneys Office to prosecute a major criminal securities fraud
case.
Mark's published treatises include ThomsonReuters’, "Representing Start-Up Companies," and
"Crowdfunding: Practical Guide to the SEC's Final Rules for Raising Capital."
JEFFREY B. MARGULIES
I am the partner-in-charge of Norton Rose Fulbright’s Los
Angeles office and a long-standing member of LACBA. I have
been a trustee and member of the Finance Committee since
July 2019, currently serve as chair of the audit committee, and
have served on the Membership Task Force. I have been a
member of the Environmental Section’s Executive Committee
since 2006, and served as its chair in 2016-17.
The highest priority for the board has been stabilizing
LACBA’s precarious financial condition, and I’m focused on
ensuring that the bar is on sound footing to provide the Los
Angeles legal community with the benefits and services that it
needs and we are so uniquely positioned to do. While we’ve
made significant progress in the last year, the work is not done,
and this is no time to relax.
While we need to honor and preserve LACBA’s legacy, it is imperative that we address the
community’s perception of the bar’s value proposition that is reflected in the decline in our
membership. We must focus relentlessly on that value proposition if we want to ensure LACBA’s
continued relevance and survival as the preeminent voice of Los Angeles area lawyers.
TRUSTEES BY SECTION MEMBERSHIP:
THREE (3) MEMBERS ELECTED FOR TWO-YEAR TERMS
ERIC A. ALTOON
JANA G. GARROTTO
BENJAMIN G. SHATZ
Benjamin G. Shatz, a certified appellate specialist, co-
chairs the Appellate Practice Group at Manatt Phelps &
Phillips. He has served as a LACBA Trustee-at-large and is a
past chair of LACBA’s SAJEC and Appellate Court
Committees. In 2018 he received LACBA’s Outstanding
Committee Service Award.TRUSTEES BY AFFILIATED BAR ASSOCIATION MEMBERSHIP:
THREE (3) MEMBERS ELECTED FOR TWO-YEAR TERMS
JASON R. PARNELL
CAROLINE C. VINCENT
I believe that bar associations provide unique
opportunities for lawyers to learn, engage, network, lead,
and have rich and fulfilling legal, business and collegial
relationships. I am passionate about leadership, team
building, member engagement, and working to enhance
and sustain great institutions, such as the Los Angeles County
Bar Association. This is why I wish to serve as a trustee of the
LACBA.
My recent experience as Chair, working with leadership
of the reactivated Executive Committee of the Small Firm &
Sole Practitioner Section was a total joy. We had countless
success stories of lawyers stepping up to work together in
marketing, membership, programming, ATILS, and other
projects. Small firms and solos continue to need a strong bar
association, great list serves for referrals and know how, and
leadership opportunities for growth and development
as lawyers. This is why I wish to serve as a trustee of LACBA.
I bring to the table years of corporate law experience, board stewardship, team building,
committee work, mediation and facilitation skills. This includes prior LACBA Executive Committee
experience with the Senior Lawyers and Trust & Estates sections; service on the board of WLALA,
and as Presiding Arbitrator of the Attorney Fee Arbitration Program of the Santa Monica Bar
Association.
“Working Together” would be a good way to describe my mission in life. And having fun
doing it.
I see endless opportunities for enhanced retention and engagement of LACBA members. I
see membership energized, now more than ever. Initiatives such as the networking meetings and
the Lawyer Well-Being Project which I have helped launch, add to our offerings.
While the pandemic has brought challenges, it has created new opportunities. LACBA has
become a home for many virtually now, through this unique transition time during the Covid-19
pandemic.
I believe lawyers thrive when given these opportunities to build on networks through
collegiality, dialogue and deliberative, collaborative leadership. I wish to add to these
opportunities. I look forward to the opportunity to serve the LACBA.
SAUNDRA K. WOOTTONYou can also read
