Archive - Alumni Spotlight
Julie Garland '95
In November 2011, Julie Garland '95 was selected as the Senior Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal Appeals, Writs & Trials section of the California Attorney General’s Office in San Diego. In this capacity, she manages approximately 70 attorneys who handle felony appeals, state and federal habeas corpus writs, capital litigation, and felony trials. Garland joined the Attorney General’s Office as a Deputy Attorney General in 1996, soon after graduating summa cum laude from TJSL. She has gained extensive experience in correctional and criminal law, and has argued several times in the state courts of appeal, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, and the California Supreme Court.
Garland’s career path to the Attorney General’s Office began in her first year at TJSL. “I was fortunate enough to have Justice Patricia Benke and judicial attorney Jack Carney from the Fourth Appellate District as my professors for first year legal writing. At the end of the year, they encouraged me to extern at the Court of Appeal during my second year, which of course I was thrilled to do. And, because both were former attorneys at the Attorney General's office, I became very interested in criminal law and the AG's office in particular. I clerked at the AG’s Office full-time the following summer and half-time for my entire third year. It was a fabulous experience and I just knew that this was where I wanted to have a career.”
She decided to attend law school somewhat on a whim. She had been working as a YMCA Director for several years after obtaining a graduate degree in education. But something more was calling her and she decided to give law school a try. She found TJSL a perfect fit. Garland was awarded a Director's Scholarship, which paid for two-thirds of her tuition, and was able to study alongside other students who were transitioning into law as a second career. Plus, she met her partner Holly during her second year at TJSL. Two children and more than18 years later, they have TJSL to thank for bringing them together!
Kendall Berkey '94
“I am profoundly grateful to the TJSL community for providing me with a well-rounded and comprehensive legal education which not only gave me the necessary foundation and tools to become a respected and capable lawyer but also gave me the knowledge and ability to view matters from a holistic perspective and to understand and accept other views. This education and also the relationships that I have forged as a result of attending and being a part of TJSL have allowed me to grow personally and professionally in a way that I am proud of and deeply appreciate. My giving back to TJSL through financial contributions and time is yet a small token of my tremendous appreciation for TJSL’s significant contributions to my life.” says Kendall.
Kendall DeMatteo Berkey '94 has been practicing specifically in the areas of municipal, public and redevelopment law for over fifteen years and has represented a variety of public agencies such as municipalities, community service districts, redevelopment agencies, and public cemetery districts. During this time, Berkey has advised on all pertinent areas of public law and acquired a wide range of skills through her unique experiences of advising public agencies on transactional matters and governmental processes and representing public agencies in court on various criminal and civil litigation matters. Berkey is senior counsel at the law firm of Kane, Ballmer & Berkman based in San Diego and Los Angeles, and serves as Special Counsel to several of the firm's public agency clients, with a focus of advising on governmental processes and real estate development projects. In addition, Berkey is frequently a program speaker on public law related topics.
Prior to joining Kane, Ballmer & Berkman in 2010, Berkey served as Senior Deputy City Attorney/Senior Deputy General Counsel with the San Diego City Attorney’s Office, where she was the primary legal advisor to the Redevelopment Agency of the City of San Diego and supervised and managed the Redevelopment Unit of the San Diego City Attorney’s Office. In addition, from the beginning of her legal career practicing public law and for a decade thereafter, Berkey was a senior associate attorney with the law firm of Green, de Bortnowsky & Quintanilla, LLP, where she served as Assistant City Attorney, Assistant General Counsel, and City Prosecutor for several of the firm’s public agency clients.
Berkey currently serves as a Board of Trustee of TJSL and a Board of Director of the TJSL Alumni Association. Kendall is a past recipient of the Athena Award in recognition for contributions to the business community and community service and has served as pro bono counsel for CASA for Riverside County, Inc. (which assists children who are dependents of the juvenile court), a past president of the Cathedral City Rotary Club, and a member of the Inns of Court.
Berkey is licensed to practice law in the States of California, Florida and Connecticut, and before the United States District Court, Southern District, and the United States Supreme Court.
Ruben Arizmendi '81
Ruben Arizmendi '81 is a practicing attorney and has been the owner of Arizmendi Law Firm since 1990.
"My experience at TJSL helped me realize that my goal is to help people better their lives by educating and advising them of their legal options, with the hope that their tomorrow is a happier and healthier one as a result of my work. If I can help people resolve their legal issues, and that brings them peace of mind, then I've succeeded. I am very grateful to TJSL for the opportunities, and I show my gratitude by giving back to people I interact with, clients, other professionals and students. By teaching classes at TJSL and community colleges, I hope to inspire the next generation of legal professionals to do great things for people who have needs with which we can help them." says Arizmendi.
The Arizmendi Law Firm commits its partners, associates, and professional staff to effectively and ethically represent the interests of its clients in the areas of business law, corporate representation, bankruptcy and estate planning.
Marc D. Adelman ‘77
“I have always felt the responsibility to give something back to the school. As a former member of the Board of Trustees, Adjunct Professor, member of the TJSL Hall of Fame, and frequent speaker, the long-standing relationship with TJSL motivates my desire to see it succeed and continue in scholastic excellence. The extraordinary accomplishments of alumni and the efforts by current leadership demonstrate the ongoing commitment by all to achieve new milestones.”
Marc D. Adelman ‘77 is a former President of the State Bar of California, the largest legal regulatory agency in the world. He also was elected to serve as President of the San Diego County Bar Association. In addition, he is the principal of his prominent San Diego law firm, where he has gained an excellent reputation over the last 34 years as a skilled, diverse and versatile litigator in the fields of Business, Personal Injury, Insurance, Professional Negligence and Tort litigation. He is certified as a specialist in Legal Malpractice Law by the California Board of Legal Specialization. His clients consist of insurance companies, major corporations, charitable institutions, small businesses and individuals. For the last 18 years he has served as a lecturer and/or Adjunct Professor at the University of San Diego, California Western and Thomas Jefferson law schools. He also serves as an expert witness, consultant and lecturer on the appropriate standards of care for solo and small firm practitioners in Legal Malpractice actions.
He served as a Judge Pro Tem for the Municipal Courts, presiding over Criminal Preliminary Hearings, Traffic and Civil matters. The Court of Appeal, Fourth District affirmed his rulings in Wickware v. Tanner (1997) 53 Cal. App. 4th.
Adelman was named Legal Professional of the Year in 1985 and 1999 by the San Diego County Bar Association and was included as one of the “Legends of The Bar” by the Historical Committee of that same organization. He received the prestigious Bernard Witkin Award presented by The Law Library Justice Foundation and was chosen Honorary Chairman of the 1998 Lawyers Have Heart 5K race sponsored by the American Heart Association and the San Diego County Bar Association. In 1985, he was named one of San Diego’s Citizens of the Year by the San Diego Jr. Chamber of Commerce. He has also been inducted into the Thomas Jefferson School of Law Hall of Fame.
In 1989, he served as President of the San Diego County Bar Association, the year their impressive Bar facility was purchased by the Association. That same year he founded the statewide organization of the California Association of Local Bars and directed the implementation of the Civil Litigation Code of Conduct of the San Diego County Bar Association. In 1990, he co-designed and implemented the fund-raising drive which raised more than $1.1 million for the San Diego County Bar Association’s new facility.
In 1997, he created and implemented, at eight different statewide locations, the Allen J. Broussard Presentation on Professionalism and Civility jointly sponsored by the Supreme Court of California, the Judicial Council and The State Bar of California.
