This website is my Portfolio

This page is intended to provide some background, a way to contact me, and a way to know a little about me both personally and professionally. It's not all encompassing and it is ever-changing. 

For my undergrad, I graduated from the University of La Verne (ULV) with honors and a Bachelor’s in Business Administration with a concentration in Marketing and a minor in Psychology.

I went on to receive my Juris Doctorate from Western State University School of Law with a Business Specialty Certificate with distinction. I consider myself a passionate and driven person and have displayed that throughout my studies and professional career, dedicating myself to justice in any small way that I can. During my undergraduate years, I was the President of ULV’s Students in Free Enterprise (Now Enactus), a successful business philanthropy organization that used business ideologies to enact change and support local communities. In law school, I took my first steps in a courtroom as a member of mock trial and it only solidified my love of law. 

Being a 1st generation American and Muslim as well as the eldest child of 7 with emigrant parents from both Mexico and Syria, and speaking 3 languages (Arabic, English and Spanish) -  my upbringing was full of multiple obstacles. I have experienced financial hardships that led to homelessness, severe health issues and, of course, discrimination. I believe it is precisely these obstacles that have helped me develop resilience and a drive for justice and compassion that is not free of healthy skepticism.

As I gain more experience I have learned that the hardest thing, for me, is being able to maintain that compassion in the face of those that care not. 

I believe myself to be aggressive but reasonable. I believe myself to be complex and multi-faceted. I can be effervescent. I can be firm. I think we all have the ability to be many versions of ourselves. 

I often approach problems with a fresh perspective - pushing the boundaries of the law, producing effective and unique results, advocate for change everywhere I can and I never forget the underprivileged always seeking to stand up for myself and for others. 

Outside of work, I enjoy spending time with my family including including my wonderful pets:  a 120-lb golden boxer lab named Potato or Tayto (aka Papitas) and my adorable orange cat Twinky (aka twinky binky). I pride myself on reading and learning when I can in my free time, exploring delicious food; writing, or creating art; going on mini-adventures and of course watching television. 

You'll often hear me say that I love food but I do not love to eat. I won't eat just anything, but I am willing to try almost anything I am legally and religiously allowed to.

But also...food is an art. I think my perspective on food parallels my perspective on life. Every foundational element in my cooking must be perfect. People underestimate how the smallest errors tend to pile up and it's exactly those foundational issues that makes for a really delicious meal or a mediocre one. It's understanding how the flavors play on each other, and how the textures even might enhance the experience - or destroy it. 

I approach that with literally everything. It doesn't matter if it's a frozen burrito, I'll perfect the experience down to adjusting the microwave power or time to the second. It's existential and hard to explain. It's all about balance. These are often small skills honed over time so that in a pinch I still have a delicious microwave burrito that only took 2 minutes but it took hundreds of burritos to get there. 

It is also understanding how to eat. Yes how! That means - I understand how to deliver my meal. How to explain what to do and enhance the experience. Yup - microwave burrito included. It's the same with law. Sometimes legal arguments need to be creative to push the needle. But always -  Pay attention to the little things, make sure you have a strong foundation, and make sure your delivery can be understood. It is not great if it is not well-received

Failures matter too. As an example - Lately I've really been into making tea at home. I recently made a lychee, strawberry, raspberry and lemon mint mojito oolong tea with rose water that would knock your socks off. But I made an horchata pina colada oolong tea once and it was not that good lol. 

Of course, we don't always have time for perfection. Sometimes, realistically, you have to have a solid but simple tea recipe or legal advice that is practical and curated for the recipient to be conscientious of time - and money.