CAALA members are here for a common cause and we invite our members to lead the way by participating in one of our many committees.

Whether you would like to develop even more programs benefits for our growing membership, help to determine association policies and direction, guide our advocacy efforts through political affairs, or promote wellness, diversity and inclusion among our members, we have opportunities ready for you!

Below is a list of committees you can join to share your personal expertise, learn from others within the industry, and be able to network with local experts.

 

 

The CAALA Advocate Magazine committee is responsible for overseeing the content and direction of the magazine. The committee works together with the publisher, Neubauer & Associates, to ensure that the magazine provides timely, relevant, and informative articles for CAALA members. For more information, contact Committee Chair Jeff Ehrlich (jehrlich@ehrlichfirm.com).

 

Development (currently on hiatus)

Research and develop new avenues of revenue. Committee is to come up with concreate proposals and/or plans for EC consideration to submit to full board consideration. For more information, contact Director of Finance and Operations Bill Smith (bill@caala.org).

 

The CAALA Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Committee strives to promote diversity among the organization's membership and in leadership, and foster alliances among all minority bar associations. The Committee identifies existing programs within other organizations that CAALA could participate or partner in. For more information, contact Committee Chair Griselda Rodriguez (griselda@servinrodriguezlaw.com).

 

The Education Committee coordinates MCLE programs for CAALA, excluding stand-alone conferences such as CAALA Vegas, Trial Skills for the New Lawyer and the Women's Conference. The committee meets regularly to develop new and cutting-edge programs for the membership. For more information, contact Committee Chairs Megan Klein (mek@bhattorneys.com) or Torsten Bassell (torsten@lijblaw.com).

 

The Ethics/Standards/Advertising Committee encourages ethical conduct of organization's membership by providing informal, non-binding ethics opinions and/or proposed changes to the Code of Standards.

 

Equality on the bench is primary to our mission. The purpose of this committee is to empower our members to apply for the State and Federal bench by educating CAALA members about the process of becoming a bench officer, providing resources to those considering or applying for the bench, and make becoming a bench officer accessible for attorneys advocating for people. For more information contact Committee Chair Jeff Westerman (jeff.westerman@zimmreed.com).

 

The CAALA Legal Support Staff Committee identifies and coordinates programs and benefits exclusively for our legal support staff members. For more information contact Committee Chair Tricia Yue (yue@boucher.la).

 

Volunteers are needed to dedicate an hour or two per month to assist in building and enhancing the association through campaigns for recruiting and retaining members. This includes expanding the member benefit program, the mentor program, and more. Committee members will also assess the needs of law students and develop strategies for how CAALA can support their professional growth. They will also act as liaisons between the CAALA community and local law schools, helping to facilitate on-campus programs and events that connect students and members. For more information contact Committee Chairs Tim Loranger (tloranger@wisnerbaum.com) or Karina Lallande (karina@nguyenlawyers.com).

 

The New Lawyers Committee identifies the needs of member attorneys with 0-10 years of experience which represent a diverse and significant portion of CAALA membership. It provides education and networking opportunities to build a strong community among these new lawyers. For more information contact Committee Chairs Daniel DeSantis (ddesantis@wilshirelawfirm.com) or Sonya Ostovar (ostovar@taylorring.com).

 

The purpose of this committee is to plan, organize and conduct CAALA's trial academies. The committee reviews prior academy strengths and weaknesses and makes recommendations for speakers.

 

PTA I is for lawyers with three or more years of practices or lawyers who have tried at least two jury trials to verdict. The series of intensive training will be designed to teach and demonstrate basic trial techniques through preparation and practice. For more information contact Committee Chairs Chris Ardalan (pca@ardalanlaw.com) or Siannah Collado (siannah@sclawco.com).

 

PTA II is the second series of intensive training in advanced trial techniques for plaintiff trial attorneys with more than 5 years of practice or who have tried more than 10 jury trials to verdict. PTA II will focus on advanced trial skills drawing from methods such as Gerry Spence Method, Rules of the Road, Improv for Trial, Trial Lawyers College, Trial School, etc. The advanced program will have smaller groups, learning and practicing the various methods using their own cases. For more information contact Committee Chairs Lourdes deArmas (lourdes.dearmas@gmail.com) or Tom Feher (tom@feherlawfirm.com).

 

The CAALA Political & Legislative Affairs Committee consists of members who volunteer to build relationships with legislators. The committee works in collaboration with CAOC liaison Mark Wirth to determine which legislation our members would like to propose and pursue, based on the criteria of CAOC and AAJ. The aim is to better represent our clients and safeguard the rights of consumers. We will coordinate CAALA resources to aid in supporting pro-consumer and civil justice legislation, as well as opposing legislation that seeks to implement tort reform or serves any other anti-civil justice purpose. For more information contact Committee Chairs Laura Sedrish (lsedrish@jacobyandmeyers.com) or Carolin Shining (carolin@shininglawfirm.com).

 

The CAALA Vegas Conference Planning Committee's mission is to ensure the success of the annual conference by planning, organizing, and collaborating with volunteer teams, leadership and staff. The committee evaluates the strengths and weaknesses of past conferences and provides recommendations for educational tracks, speakers, and enhancing the attendee experience. For more information contact Committee Chairs Shannon Ward (shannon@aaronsward.com) or Robert Ounjian (ounjian@gmail.com).

 

The CAALA Wellness Committee strives to address the member's wellness and health; especially, mental health, to help them achieve and maintain personal and professional well-being. For more information contact Committee Chair Stuart Fraenkel (stuart@nflawfirm.com).

 

The Women in Law Committee provides support, resources, and a forum for the sharing of ideas and concerns that affect women in the legal industry. Our goal is to empower women to become active participants and leaders in CAALA. For more information contact Committee Chairs Molly McKibben (mmckibben@gbw.law) or Holly Boyer (hboyer@ecbappeal.com).

 

 

The committees below are by invitation only. If you would like to join one of them, please email the person listed.

 

Per the CAALA Investment Policy, review the CAALA investment portfolio and report to the Executive Committee any issues or concerns. Work with CAALA's Financial Advisor to review past and current investment portfolio and performance history. For more information contact Committee Chair Dan Kramer (dkramer@kramerlaw.com).

 

The List Serve Committee monitors and reinforces the primary purpose of the List Serves to confidentially exchange important information and advice with each other relating to trial tactics, strategy, and other attorney work-product information. For more information contact Committee Chair Tal Rubin (tal@talrubinlaw.com).

 

 

COMMITTEE / TASK FORCE	CHAIR	VICE CHAIR	EC LIASON	STAFF LIASON
Advocate	Jeff Ehrlich	Martin Aarons		Executive Director
Development (on hiatus)
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion	Griselda Rodriguez	Matt French, Ronnivashti Whitehead Otieno	Treasurer	Membership Manager
Education	Megan Klein, Torsten Bassell	Teresa Johnson, Belinda Theam	First Vice President	Education & Events Manager
Ethics, Standards & Advertising
Finance & Investment	Dan Kramer	Michael Cohen, Jeff Westerman	Treasurer	Director of Finance & Operations
Judicial Pipeline	Jeff Westerman		Second Past President	Membership Manager
Legal Support Staff	Tricia Yue	Assal Badrkhani, David deRubertis	Second Vice President	Education & Events Manager
List Serve	Tal Rubin	David Hoffman, vacant	Secretary	Membership Manager, Executive Director
Membership (sub-Law Student Outreach)	Tim Loranger, Karina Lallande	Ese Omofoma, Joshua Cohen Slatkin, Sahar Malek	Second Vice President	Membership Manager
New Lawyers	Daniel DeSantis, Sonya Ostovar	Brenda Wong, Ricardo Chavez	Treasurer	Education & Events Manager, Membership Manager
Plaintiff Trial Academy I	Chris Ardalan, Siannah Collado	David deRubertis, Dan Kramer	President-elect, Mike Arias - Advisor	Education & Events Manager
Plaintiff Trial Academy II	Lourdes DeArmas, Tom Feher	vacant	President-elect, Mike Arias - Advisor	Education & Events Manager
Political & Legislative Affairs	Laura Sedrish, Carolin Shining	Oscar Gutierrez, Bobby Saadian	President-elect	Executive Director
Vegas Conference	Shannon Ward, Robert Ounjian	Lakshmi Odedra, Daniel Pierson	First Vice President	Education & Events Manager, All staff in some areas
Wellness	Stuart Fraenkel	Alyssa Schabloski Scott Tillett	Secretary	Membership Manager
Women In Law	Molly McKibben, Holly Boyer	Nadine Khedry	Secretary	Education & Events Manager

 

 

COURT COMMITTEE	CHAIR	VICE CHAIR	EC LIASON	STAFF LIASON
Joint Leadership Lunch	President	President-elect
LASC Complex Courts	Second Vice President	Second VP Selects
LACBA Lit Section	First Vice President	First VP Selects