FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

What is your opinion regarding clients educating themselves on legal issues? 
This is a great idea, and very helpful. I will do it as long as I have a crystal clear, carefully discussed and delineated relationship with the client.

Are you willing to coach clients who want to represent themselves?
As long as I have a clear, carefully discussed and delineated role and relationship with the client.

Why did you decide to be a lawyer?
I had a real interest in understanding something that could be useful to others, and a love of studying constitutional law to understand the basis of our rights. 

What work experience and education helps you be a better lawyer? 
My volunteer work for Santa Clara County Superior Court: from 1999 through to the present: I have served the court by handling property mediations and settlement conferences as well as assisting the court in resolution of highly contentious cases on the eve of trial. Through this experience, and my own active practice, I have been exposed to a wide range of complex family law issues and a great variety of attorneys. There is no better learning experience than serving the court in this way. 

My time at Legal Advocates for Children and Youth, a public interest firm under the auspices of the Law Foundation of Santa Clara County, provided experience in child-related family law issues. Subsequently, my work in a family law firm in downtown San Jose prepared me to open my own practice where I could create my own philosophy and choose my clients.

Why did you decide on your primary area of practice?
I felt that it chose me. In law school, perhaps because I was an older student entering a second career, I seemed to have an aptitude for family law. I received the American Jurisprudence Award for my performance in Dean Areen’s Family Law I course. So I thought, “This must be it.”

What do you like best about your career?
The feeling that I have done something good for a client.

Tell us about your law firm:
I established my firm in Palo Alto in 1996, and my office was initially located on San Antonio Road.  I moved to my current location in Redwood City at 1690 Woodside Road, Suite 114, in 2013; my office is in an area which is easily accessible from Stanford University (which I attended as an undergraduate). My practice has always included clients residing in both Santa Clara County and San Mateo County.  I have also handled cases in Alameda County, Contra Costa County, Marin County, and Santa Cruz County.