San Francisco Associates Get Hands-On Trial Experience in Prosecutor Externship

Nixon Peabody’s San Francisco office has begun participating in a program that allows firm associates to serve for eight weeks as deputy district attorneys in the Marin County District Attorney’s Office. DA offices throughout California are fiscally strapped, and volunteer programs, such as the one in Marin County, fill a critical need for prosecutors while also offering hands-on experience to the associates who volunteer.

San Francisco associate Stephanie Karnavas brought the idea to Nixon Peabody after learning about the Marin County program through a friend at another firm who was participating in the program. She also became the first lawyer from Nixon Peabody to participate. From October through December, Nixon Peabody “seconded” Stephanie to the DA’s office, where she worked full time for eight weeks and received a tremendous amount of valuable courtroom exposure.

After reviewing some training materials and observing a jury selection in her first week, Stephanie was in court every week thereafter, handling her own motions and trials. Stephanie brought four jury cases to trial—all involving defendants accused of driving under the influence (DUI). She received a conviction in three of them and a hung jury on the fourth.

Her other courtroom experience included arguing several motions in limine and opposing a defendant’s motion for a directed verdict. Stephanie also prepped approximately six other cases for trial that either settled or were continued.

Stephanie is now back with her Commercial Litigation group at Nixon Peabody where she, in her third year with the firm, handles a variety of cases, mostly in the area of financial services. She calls her time in the fast-paced DA’s office “a confidence-boosting experience” that has helped her with her presentation and public speaking skills while also exposing her to the mechanics of a trial first-hand. “I gained great substantive experience examining witnesses, conducting voir dire, asserting objections during trial, and arguing jury instructions and a variety of motions that will carry over into my practice here,” she says.

Nixon Peabody continues to participate with the Marin County program, most recently with associate Lynn Fiorentino, who just finished up an eight-week stint of her own. Lynn tried three misdemeanor cases: one petty theft, one driving under the influence, and one credit card fraud. She obtained two guilty verdicts and one hung jury in the same case previously tried by Stephanie. “This intense, challenging program taught me invaluable trial skills, increased my confidence in the courtroom, and taught me how to make effective evidentiary arguments with very little preparation time,” Lynn says.

Associate Matt Richards is currently seconded to the program, and, as of press time, he had already obtained a guilty verdict on both counts in his first trial.

Client Rebuilds Home After Fire Loss Thanks to NP’s Help on Zoning Appeal

Thanks to the work of some of our Rochester lawyers and a summer associate, a pro bono client in Canandaigua, New York, will be able to replace his home that was lost in a fire in 2010.

The client was a man of modest means who worked for the sewer department of a local municipality and had a long history of health problems. Sadly, his life was turned upside down when fire struck his premanufactured home on Mother’s Day 2010, leaving him with little else than the clothes on his back. He was forced to live for a time in a less-than-adequate motel before his sister was able to take him in. Making matters worse, the town denied his application for a building permit to construct his newly purchased premanufactured home in the same spot, explaining that he was not allowed to locate his home in that zoning district any longer.

Without insurance or anywhere to turn, the client contacted Real Estate partner Jared Lusk, since he was familiar with Jared’s zoning work. Jared agreed to help challenge the town’s determination, and he enlisted the help of Real Estate associate Ashley Baker, summer associate Helen Root, and Real Estate partner Tom Greiner.

Despite their best efforts to avoid a hearing, the town and the chair of its Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) ordered a hearing for September 2010. Following compelling arguments at the hearing by Jared, Ashley, and Helen—which were bolstered by Ashley, Helen, and Tom’s tremendous pre-hearing work—the board issued a favorable ruling, allowing the client to build his new home on the lot.

Jared credits the great outcome in this case to “a total team effort.” The client, who purchased a new shirt for the hearing after the loss of his wardrobe in the fire, was thrilled with the result. He expects to close on his new home this spring.

Nixon Peabody Answers Immigration Need with Work on Post-Deportation Human Rights Cases

While looking for new pro bono projects and referral agencies to work with in winter 2009, Boston partner Matthew Lynch saw an article in BC Law Magazine, his alma mater’s alumni publication, about BC Law’s Post-Deportation Human Rights Project (PDHRP)—the first and only project dedicated to representing individuals who have been deported. The program serves an important need as there are thousands of individuals with U.S. citizen and legal permanent resident spouses, children, and other relatives who are deported each year and separated from their families. The article described a clear need for assistance, although it was also clear that there weren’t a lot of law firms available to help.

With the help of senior associate Juan Concepcion, who is a member of BC’s board, Matthew contacted Professor Daniel Kanstroom, who founded and directs the PDHRP, about getting Nixon Peabody involved in the program. That led to another call with Jessica Chicco, the supervising attorney on the project, who was thrilled at NP’s offer to help. She suggested that NP attorneys could assist the program in two ways: on cases, serving as counsel or co-counsel, or by training attorneys and law students.

On November 3, our Boston office hosted the first training session, entitled “After Deportation: Bringing Family Members Back on an Immigrant Visa,” which featured Professor Kanstroom, Ms. Chicco, and several NP lawyers. Approximately 20 people attended the session, which covered the fundamentals of petitioning for a relative who is outside the country, including the most common grounds of inadmissibility facing those who have previously been deported and the “waivers” that may be available to overcome those grounds of inadmissibility.

Already the firm has taken on two cases referred by the PDHRP—one being handled by Patents associate Leena Karttunen Contarino, and another handled by Commercial Litigation associates Ronaldo Rauseo-Ricupero and Bankruptcy associate Lesley Varghese. More cases are expected.

While these cases are a little more challenging and require a little more effort than run-of-the-mill referrals for immigration cases, they are also incredibly interesting and serve a tremendous need.