Message from the Chair of the New Lawyer Division
Dear Members,
It is a privilege to serve as Chair of the SDCBA’s New Lawyer Division along with Vice Chair Stephanie Pengilley and Members at Large Sara Gold, Heather Daiza, Elijah Gaglio, and Hannah Theophil.
We are excited to kick off the year with a new For the Record edition. Based on our poll from last year on lawyer-targeted scams, we bring you an investigative report written by attorney Stephanie Germani.
In this month’s Tips from the Bench column, San Diego Superior Court Presiding Judge Michael Smyth and Assistant Presiding Judge Maureen Hallahan provide updates on the Court and share their vision for the year to come. Our first NLD Member Spotlight of this year features Jocelyn Russo, a fifth-year attorney practicing family law at Antonyan Miranda.
Law students can benefit from recent graduate Nicole Tanaka’s column on adapting to the changing circumstances of law school education during the pandemic. Anyone new to San Diego should be sure to read Boston transplant Hannah Theophil’s advice on how to integrate into a new legal community.
The SDCBA has near endless resources to help jump start your legal career. The NLD will host several programs this year, including volunteer opportunities, CLEs, and networking events.
The NLD extends a big congratulations to all the new bar admittees. The SDCBA and NLD’s upcoming Law Student and Newly Admitted Attorney Reception will likely happen sometime in late February. NLD is also set to welcome Judge Bacal as part of our next Court Practice Series in March.
To all the law student members, I hope you enjoyed our recent Pro Tips for Law Students event. We’d appreciate any feedback.
Anyone, including law students, who wants to be more involved with NLD is encouraged to apply to join a subdivision: Community Outreach, For the Record, Legal Education, Marketing, or Social Events. NLD will also have two open Member at Large positions starting next year.
Please reach out to me if you have any questions, suggestions, concerns, or want to chat over coffee sometime. Stay safe.
Sincerely,
Jake Zindulka