An Official Publication of
The Marin County Bar Association
Editor: Robert Rosborough
Marin Bar Association
Events
Wed | Jul 26 | 11:45-1:30P
General | Members Lunch
Get Right with the LucasFilm Legal Force: Entertainment, Intellectual Property and Employment Law
What is it like to practice law “a long time ago, in a galaxy far far away?” Our guest Rhonda Hjort, Deputy Chief Counsel at Lucasfilm, will discuss what it's like to work in the General Counsel’s office of Marin’s most famous business. Rhonda Hjort’s key position with each Lucasfilm entity has demanded a rigorous global trotting schedule to protect Lucasfilm and its creative projects. Entertainment, employment, intellectual property are all handled through the Lucasfilm legal department, directly and sometimes in cooperation with outside counsel. Rhonda will also discuss the recent marriage between Lucasfilm and Disney.

This event is a unique opportunity to get a look inside the Lucas empire. The program will offer content for all practicing lawyers, regardless of your interest or area of practice. Please join us and bring your colleagues for an insightful program on strategic responses to some of Lucasfilm's legal challenges - protecting against hackers, foreign and domestic extortion, and a class action lawsuit claiming illegal wage fixing. Learn what Rhonda expects from her outside counsel.

Questions? Email us.
Buffet Lunch
1.0 CLE | General
Location: Fenix
Early Bird Members:$45
Early Bird Non-Members: $55
Members:$50
Non-Members: $60
Sat | Feb 11 | 6-10:30P
General | 2017 Annual MCBA Installation Gala
and Scholarship Fundraiser
Online registration closed.
Please call the MCBA office 415-499-1314.

Join us to usher in the Lunar New Year as we induct our 2017 MCBA Officers and Board members, and raise funds for the MCBA Legal Scholarship. The Honorable Terrence R. Boren (Ret.) will administer the Oath of Office.

Happy Hour | Buffet Dinner
Music and Dancing with DJ Gump
Wear your dancing shoes!
Gala Dinner
1.0 CLE | General
Location: Peacock Gap Clubhouse
Members: $150
Non-Members: $150
News
EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION
A New Editor for a New Year
By Rob Rosborough
Happy New Year and welcome to the first 2017 Marin Lawyer issue. I am the new editor and I would like to thank our outgoing editor, Carline Joachim, for all of her work to keep the magazine interesting and relevant and for overseeing our transition to the new online format. I would like to hear from you about issues and events of interest to our members.  More >
President's Message
Happy New Year!
By Dorothy Chou Proudfoot
I am honored to embark upon my service as the first Asian-American President in the 80-year history of the Marin County Bar Association. This milestone is less about me than it is about a dedication to improving diversity and inclusion that the profession must embrace to maintain excellence. We will celebrate that theme more next month at our Installation Gala and Scholarship Fundraiser at Peacock Gap Clubhouse on February 11.  More >
In Recognition
A Celebration for Retiring Judge Faye D'Opal
By Lawrence A. Strick
Hundreds of colleagues and friends gathered to honor retiring Judge Faye D’Opal on December 1, 2016 at Terrapin Crossroads. Judge D’Opal was elected to the Marin County Superior Court Bench in 2004. She served in virtually every department during her brilliant judicial career. Her retirement from the Bench was yet another milestone in a career committed to public service.  More >
MCBA Members Travel to Standing Rock
By Robert Rosborough
As most of you are no doubt aware, this past fall, protestors gathered near the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation in North Dakota to oppose the proposed Dakota Access pipeline, which has been designed to carry oil out of the prolific Bakken fields in western North Dakota. In November, two MCBA members—Larry Bragman and Ford Greene—travelled to North Dakota to join the protests and consult with the Sioux about legal issues and what might be done to stop the pipeline from being built.  More >
Reconciliation and Forgiveness for Lawyers
By Barbara Monty
When was the last time you thought about forgiveness in connection with a case you’ve handled? More and more lawyers and mediators are finding it relevant to their practices, as I certainly have. I am embarking on a year-long training to be a “forgiveness coach” with forgiveness pioneer Eileen Barker.. Throughout the coming year, I’d like to share with you occasional insights into forgiveness and how different facets of it might be useful to us as lawyers and mediators.  More >
Ten Things You Should Know About Accessory Dwelling Units (In-Law Apartments)
By By Rachel F. Ginis, Executive Director, Lilypad Homes
With the high cost of housing, “in-law apartments” can significantly expand housing availability and advance other social goods such as allowing seniors to age in place. Getting local approval for these units has often been difficult and last year, the state legislature took steps to eliminate several barriers to approval.  More >
Call for Volunteers
All Rise! Mock Trial is now in session: January 28 and February 4
By Dorothy Chou Proudfoot
The High School Mock Trial season is in full swing. In just a few short weeks, nine teams will vie for the County title, and the honor of representing Marin in the State Championships in March, with an eye toward the National Competition in May. This year, the charges are human trafficking and false imprisonment: did the restaurant owner force the immigrant worker into modern-day slavery or was the owner just trying to help the worker stay in the country legally?  More >
NONPROFIT SPOTLIGHT
This is ALMA
By Michael Estrada, Vasquez, Estrada & Conway LLP and
Catalina Lozano, U.C. Hastings College of the Law
The Association of Latino Marin Attorneys (ALMA) is a non-profit, unincorporated association of lawyers living or working in Marin County. The In Spanish, the word “alma” means “soul.” In Aztec symbolic art, the soul is represented by the butterfly, hence our butterfly glyph logo. ALMA facilitates pro bono services to the needy Latino community, mentor Latino law students attending Bay Area law schools, and support the cultural values, economic interests and social dignity of the Latino community in Marin.  More >
Movers & Shakers
ATTORNEY BRIAN WASHINGTON TO HEAD UP MARIN COUNTY COUNSEL’S OFFICE
A senior lawyer for Alameda County, Brian Washington, has been selected as the next head of the Marin County Counsel’s Office.. He will succeed Steven Woodside who is leaving at the end of his four-year term and is expected to take office January 9, 2017.
Read More >
DAMON CONNOLLY APPOINTED TO METROPOLITAN TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION
Damon Connolly, Marin County Supervisor District One and MCBA Board Member, has been appointed as Marin County’s representative to the Metropolitan Transportation Commission. Connolly said that one of his main tasks as a commissioner will be to advocate for Marin’s unique set of needs and approaches to local planning.
Read more >
Notices
Volunteer two hours for Lawyers in the Library
Looking for a outreach project with significant impact? Donate a couple of afternoon hours on a 2nd or 4th Thursday of the month providing 20 minute legal consultations to help patrons with issues in family law, civil matters, landlord tenant issues or bankruptcy. Contact Mee Mee Wong to apply.
More Info >
Annual State Bar fee statements online
Payment deadline March 1.
No paper fee statements will be mailed this year. The statements for both active and inactive attorneys are now available online. The online billing system makes it easier than ever for individual attorneys and agencies to help make the justice system available to everyone, with agencies able to make firm-level donations as part of the billing process for the first time.
More Info >
CA State Bar MCLE Reporting Deadline Extended
MCLE Group 3 (N-Z)
MCLE compliance deadline for the period that will end 1/31/2017 has been pushed back to 3/1/2017 for the purposes of reporting. It doesn't extend the time in which you can get your MCLE into February, but you can take longer to click that you've done your hours.
More Info >
Calendar
Tue | Jan 10 | 12-1:30P
Labor and Employment Law | Section Meeting
Data Privacy and Security for Lawyers
Diana Maier
1.0 CLE | General
Tue | Jan 10 | 12-1:30P
Real Property | Section Meeting
Lunch Mixer
Lunch
Tue | Jan 17 | 12-1:30P
Family Law | Section Meeting
A View from the Bench
Hon. Verna A. Adams
Hon. Mark A. Talamantes
1.0 CLE | General
Wed | Jan 18 | 12-1:30P
Alternative Dispute Resolution | Section Meeting
Forgiveness: What Every Mediator and Litigator Needs to Know
Hon. Roy Chernus
Barbara Monty
Eileen Barker
1.0 CLE | General
Wed | Jan 18 | 12-1:30P
Estate Planning, Trust and Probate | Section Meeting
Advanced Issues in Trust Administration
David Gaw
James Watson
1.0 CLE | General
Thu | Feb 02 | 12-1:30P
Estate Planning, Trust and Probate | Mentor Meeting
Advanced Issues in Trust Administration
James Watson | Partner at Gaw Van Male
1.0 CLE | General
Tue | Feb 14 | 12-1:30P
Labor and Employment Law | Section Meeting
2017 Changes in Employment Laws
Jeffrey Polsky
1.0 CLE | General
New Members
Roxana Araujo
araujo_roxana93@yahoo.com
415 342 3994
Affiiliate Student

Robert Ashley
Gaw Van Male LLP
rashley@gawvanmale.com

Tarisha Bal
Marin County Counsel's Office
tbal@marincounty.org
415 473 6117

James Bloom
Schneider Wallace Cottrell Konecky Wotkyns LLP
jabloom99@gmail.com
415 421 7100

Daniel Bush
Law Finance Group LLP
dbush@lawfinance.com
415 446 2300

Jeremy Castro
jeremy.castro101@gmail.com
Affiiliate Student

John Cuerva
Allingham & Cuerva
john@allinghamcuerva.com
415 508 4500

Joseph D'andre
joeyandre07@hotmail.com
415 838 6456
Affiiliate Student

Sara Dudley
sarafdudley@gmail.com
415 307 4931
Affiiliate Non Attorney

Caroline Fawley
Carolinefawley@gmail.com

Kerry Gerchow
Marin County Counsel's Office
kgerchow@marincounty.org

Aaron Gothelf
Judicate West
aaron@judicatewest.com
415 266 1242

Julie Insisoulath
Brayton Purcell LLP
jinsisoulath@braytonlaw.com
415 798 3279

Brigit Kavanagh
Kavanagh Rhomberg, LLP
bkavanagh@krnonprofitlaw.com
415 377 4416

Marie-Noelle Le Pennec - Cash
BigRock Financial
marie-noelle@bigrockfinancial.com
888 840 3502
Affiiliate Non Attorney

David Levin
levin5037@gmail.com
415 383 9777

Anthony Nelson
California Civil Rights Law Group
anthony@civilrightsca.com
415 453 4740

Wynne O'Brien Persons
Office of Disability Adjudication and Review
Wynne.OBrien-Persons@ssa.gov
866 814 3559

Aruti Patel
Marin County Counsel's Office
apatel@marincounty.org
415 473 6116

Deborah Premo
debbie@dpremolaw.com
415 924 8986

Kim Schwarcz
kim@schwarczfiduciary.com
415 924 1711
Affiiliate Non Attorney

Victoria Shaw
vlshaw@comcast.net
415 272 6441
Affiiliate Student

Kathleen Siemont
Wright and Falls
lawoffices@wrightandfalls.com
707 552 2298

Ajit Singh
Law Finance Group LLP
asingh@lawfinance.com
415 446 2310

Keith Stoneking
kcscpa@comcast.net
415 332 3064
Affiiliate Non Attorney

Stephany Tone
Marin County District Attorney's Office
stone@marincounty.org
415 473 6788
Affiliate Legal Personnel

David Wolfe
Flynn Riley Bailey & Pasek LLP
dwolfe@flynnriley.com

Alan Zimmerman
Law Finance Group LLP
azimmerman@lawfinance.com
415 446 2300

Office Space, Employment Opportunities, Services and More...
MCBA encourages submission of articles that may interest the legal community. The editor reserves the right to publish, decline to publish, edit, or otherwise modify any submission. Editorial material should be sent to Marin County Bar Association by email.