Dana Point Civil Rights Lawyers

Chisholm P. Wight Joined the United States Marine Corps after he graduated from EL Camino High School in Oceanside, California. Chisholm served eight years honorably with 3rd Battalion 5th Marines, and 3rd Low Altitude Air Defense on Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California. Some of Staff Sergeant Wight’s personal awards include the Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal, Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal and Combat Action Ribbon. Mr. Wight went back to school and worked in the construction field following his military service. He received...

C. Tracy Kayser is an associate attorney who is experienced in civil defense litigation. Ms. Kayser joined Fernandez and Lauby LLP as an associate attorney in 2007. She completed her undergraduate degree from California State University at Pomona. Before attending law school, Ms. Kayser was a real estate agent selling single family residential commercial real estate. She received her Juris Doctorate degree from Southwestern University School of Law in 2001. Since being admitted to the bar, Ms Kayser has defended a wide variety of cases in personal injury, products/premises liability, construction defect, general business law, civil rights cases and has...

After years of practice at one of the world’s largest law firms, the California Court of Appeal, Orange County District Attorney’s Office, and the United States Department of Justice, Mr. Zandi joined with his mentor, friend, and one of California’s leading trial lawyers, Shawn Steel, to form Steel Zandi, APLC. Mr. Zandi is nationally recognized as one of the leading experts in Qui Tam and state and federal whistleblower litigation and policy. While serving as an assistant United States attorney with the United States Department of Justice, Mr. Zandi led the DOJ’s Affirmative Civil Enforcement Task Force (ACE). As director of...

Mr. Carroll was born and raised in the South Bay. He attended law school at Arizona State University. Thereafter, Mr. Carroll obtained an advanced law degree in trial advocacy from Temple University. Temple University Beasley School of Law has been ranked by U.S. News and World Report among the top three trial advocacy programs in the country for more than twenty years. Before starting his own law firm in Hermosa Beach, California, Mr. Carroll served as an extern for a superior court family law judge and he also worked as an attorney for one of the premier boutique family...

My broad experience allows me to understand and empathize with the needs and concerns of parties going through the many different family law issues of Divorce, such as Child Custody, Child and Spousal Support, Domestic Violence, property valuation and division. I know that settlement of disputed issues is less stressful and less expensive, and should always be attempted, however when cooperation and civility is not possible, my years of litigation experience, can achieve results which in turn, can lead to the voluntary resolution of disputes.
Family Law disputes are often based on anger, fear, resentment and betrayal, but I...

My firm, Vanaman German LLP, focuses exclusively on special education, disability discrimination, and cases involving the injury or abuse of students with disabilities. We specialize in special education litigation from IEP representation through due process hearings and into federal court. Our areas of expertise include: Special Education We offer the full range of special education representation, from IEP advocacy to due process to federal court litigation. Our attorneys combine their deep knowledge of the substance and procedure of special education law with an understanding of education, assessment, and how school district's function, to ensure that our clients are provided...

Jonathon Kaplan is one of the state’s top trial lawyers, having tried dozens of significant cases involving civil rights, employment claims, wage and overtime matters, discrimination, harassment, hostile work environment, FEHA, Equal Pay Act, personal injury, product liability, consumer claims, fraud claims and business disputes. He has obtained an overwhelming number of highly successful verdicts for his clients. Jon has served as appellate counsel on many cases, resulting in published California opinions and establishing law in his areas of practice. Based on his winning track record, opposing lawyers know Jon and his law firm, Kaplan Weiss LLP, are ready, willing...

Spolin Law P.C.’s founder, Aaron Spolin, is a former prosecutor and award-winning criminal appeals attorney. He has achieved successful outcomes on hundreds of criminal cases, including numerous dismissals of major felony cases; non-criminal resolutions to complex fraud and insurance fraud defense cases; successful appellate outcomes from various appellate courts; and multiple not-guilty jury verdicts at trial. Innocent Spolin Law clients wrongfully accused of murder and other serious crimes are now free because of his work. Aaron is the recipient of various awards for his advocacy, including the American College of Trial Lawyer’s Medal for Excellence in Oral Advocacy as well as...

Mr. Hermansen focuses his law practice on state and federal criminal trials, appeals, and habeas corpus. He's been a Board Certified Criminal Law Specialist by the California State Bar Board of Legal Specialization since 2009, and he's been recognized as a Super Lawyer in criminal law in San Diego every year from 2008 to the present. In addition to representing criminal defendants at state and federal felony jury trials, he frequently argues before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and the California Court of Appeal. He's also argued before the United States Supreme Court, the California Supreme Court, and en...

Haeggquist & Eck partner and trial attorney Amber Eck is a tenacious advocate for employees, consumers and shareholders, and has been for the past 26 years. Amber has taken cases to trial in both state and federal court as lead trial attorney, and has recovered millions of dollars for her clients in settlements, including multiple six- and seven-figure settlements. Amber doesn’t shy away from high-profile defendants — a fact well-illustrated by her role as co-lead counsel in the well-publicized class action against President Donald Trump and Trump University, which settled for $25 million. For her work in the case,...

Yitz Weiss is an Employment Law attorney with over a decade of experience in litigating a variety of employment law cases, including unpaid wage and overtime claims, discrimination, harassment, FEHA, Unequal Pay Act, wrongful termination, and sexual assault cases. Yitz counsels clients on pre-litigation employment disputes and represents them from the inception of a lawsuit all the way through trial and even on appeal. Yitz routinely serves as counsel in mediations, binding arbitrations and in major trials. Upon graduating with a Bachelors degree in Economics from Yeshiva University and obtaining a Degree of Rabbinic Ordination, Yitz Weiss then entered Southwestern University...

Afshin Mozaffari is the founder and principal of Mozaffari Law. Mr. Mozaffari's practice focuses on employee rights litigation, including discrimination, harassment, retaliation, disability accommodation, and wrongful termination. Prior to the founding of Mozaffari Law, Mr. Mozaffari represented numerous corporations, schools, and non-profits in employment law, business litigation, and class action cases. He recently left the defense side to follow his long-held passion for representing the rights of employees and other individuals. Mr. Mozaffari graduated Magna Cum Laude from Whittier Law School, where he served as Articles Editor on Whittier Law Review. During law school, he worked as a Judicial Extern to the...

Alreen Haeggquist is on a mission to stand up with individuals to enrich their lives and inspire change by dismantling fear and shame and empowering those who have faced discrimination, retaliation, sexual harassment, and sexual assault to stand up and demand accountability. Today, the overwhelming majority of Alreen’s clients are women who have suffered egregious wrongs at the hands of their employers. No defendant is too large or powerful for her to tackle: she has recently represented plaintiffs in employment claims against such major corporations as Trader Joe’s, Sharp Healthcare, Wyndham, Kaiser Permanente, and the Grand Del Mar. ...

Dwight Ritter is a trial attorney at Ritter & Associates in San Diego, California. He holds degrees from Indiana University Law School and the London School of Economics. He is also licensed in California, Arizona, Indiana, and the Island of Guam, as an expert on maritime law. Having built his reputation on personal attention to detail, Dwight strives to create a personal relationship with his clients. With a specialization in personal injury, Dwight is prepared to handle cases that involve wrongful death, sexual harassment, auto accidents, and civil rights claims. In addition, he has earned the title of Master Trial...

John Jahrmarkt, Esq. is the owner and managing partner of Jahrmarkt & Associates. John has more than 20 years of experience handling all kinds personal injury claims - from complicated catastrophic injuries to garden variety "soft tissue" pain. John knows how the insurance industry works and the steps their adjusters can take to protect their profits. All of our accident and injury claims are managed by John, experienced in fighting back against any low-ball insurance offers. We have recovered a number of multi-million dollar rewards for our clients, and we have established a reputation for excellence and professionalism...

DISMISSALS. ACQUITTALS. CHARGE REDUCTIONS. MILLIONS RECOVERED. Named a Top California Criminal Defense and Civil Rights Attorney, Mr. Sterling is an accomplished trial lawyer with an extensive track record of winning in both federal and state court. In addition to defending his clients in criminal court, Mr. Sterling has also recovered millions of dollars for his clients who have been victimized and unlawfully targeted by law enforcement.

The Law Offices of Justin E. Sterling is a top-rated law firm committed to the exclusive practice of criminal trial defense and civil rights litigation. The firm brings high-end and aggressive representation to...

For nearly 25 years, Sa'id Vakili has represented businesses and individuals in litigation matters involving complex business and contract disputes, business torts, direct and derivative shareholder disputes, intellectual property disputes, and all forms of employment claims. He has also handled a variety of serious injury tort claims including those arising under maritime and aviation law. Mr. Vakili is admitted in California, New York, New Jersey and Washington, D.C. and has handled cases in various other jurisdictions such as Florida, Nevada, Ohio, South Dakota, and Virginia through associations with local law firms in those locations. Mr. Vakili has also served...

Alana Yakovlev is a stellar trial lawyer with a heavy emphasis on criminal defense and civil rights. Rated one of the top trial attorneys in the country, Ms. Yakovlev's advocacy leads to immediate and effective results for her clients.

Philip Shakhnis is a forceful, meticulous and compassionate attorney with over 20 years of experience representing tenants. Philip has represented hundreds of tenants forced to live in slum conditions. Philip has also helped tenants poisoned by carbon monoxide leaks, exposed to mold and whose children have been lead poisoned. Philip is at the forefront of representing tenants wrongfully evicted from properties protected by local rent control laws. Philip focuses his law practice on representing tenants because he strongly believes that every family and every person deserves the right to a safe, decent and healthy home. As part of his experience...

Ms. Janeen Steel has 21 years of advocating on behalf of students with disabilities. She uses a variety of approaches to fight for justice for students. Having a learning disability herself, which was not diagnosed until she was 27 years old, she knows the struggle those with learning disabilities must experience in order to obtain an education. While at UCLA Law School, Ms. Steel founded Learning Rights and obtained an Echoing Green Fellowship in 1999 to start fighting for the rights of students with disabilities living in poverty. In 2005, Learning Rights Law Center was launched as a...

Jessica Pride is San Diego's top sexual assault civil lawyer and a premiere personal injury attorney. She believes in her clients and is dedicated to end sexual violence. Not only will Jessica help regain your power and strength, but fight for the justice you deserve through the civil court. Her passion for the law stems from a lifetime of watching her stepfather, an attorney, and her disdain for bullying. After graduating from the University of California, Irvine, she felt earning a law degree from the University of San Diego School of Law was a natural progression....

Cyrus Mor's Law Office stands as a cornerstone within the Southern California legal landscape, championing the rights of wrongfully terminated employees. With a breadth of experience representing individuals and entities across diverse industries, from small enterprises to corporate giants, Mr. Mor offers comprehensive legal counsel. Deeply involved in the legal sphere, Mr. Mor actively contributes to various esteemed associations, including the California Employment Lawyers Association, the American Law Society, and the Employment Law division of the Orange County Bar Association. Furthermore, he holds membership in the national American Bar Association and the State Bar of California, boasting licensure to practice law...

A Los Angeles-native, Ms. Berjis received her Bachelors of Arts in History, from California State University, Long Beach, and subsequently earned her Juris Doctorate from Trinity Law School. As a law student, Ms. Berjis received the Academic Achievement Award (i.e., the highest grade in her class) in an impressive six (6) courses, which included Civil Procedure II, Remedies, Evidence, Legal Research & Writing II, Criminal Law, and Criminal Procedure. In addition to her academic success, as a law student, Ms. Berjis also was a member of the Trial Advocacy Team. Prior to founding the Law Office...