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George C. Leal

Dean, College of Law, and Professor of Law

EDUCATION:
J.D., University of San Francisco School of Law, 1980
B.A., San Diego State University, 1976

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Dean Leal was appointed in 2018 after a lengthy career practicing law in the public and private sectors. His career started in 1980 with his appointment as a trial attorney with the U. S. Department of Justice where he served five years in its Antitrust Division, including being assigned to the trial staff of U.S. v. AT&T. For the next twenty-five years, Dean Leal practiced as a civil litigator and trial attorney in San Francisco, eventually becoming a partner of Chan, Doi & Leal. LLP, where he represented corporate, commercial, and individual clients in complex civil litigation.

In 2009, Dean Leal returned to public service as the Director for Educational Standards working for the California State Bar’s Committee of Bar Examiners and its oversight of all non-ABA-approved legal education in California. Dean Leal was also involved in various pro bono matters, including serving as a pro tem Superior Court Judge and as a court-appointed mediator in numerous state and federal court cases. Dean Leal is an experienced legal educator having taught at San Francisco Law School from 1991 through 2000 and he has been a member of the State Bar of California since 1980.

melissa petrofsky associate professor irvine college of law

Melissa Petrofsky, J.D.

Academic Dean, Professor Law

EDUCATION:
J.D., Whitter Law School, 2007
B.S., Culver-Stockton College

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Professor Petrofsky earned her J.D. degree at Whitter Law School in 2007 after earning her B.S. degree at the Culver-Stockton College. She is the principal of the Petrofsky Law firm that specializes in business and employment litigation and advice and counsel to small businesses. Professor Petrofsky is an active member of the California State Bar and serves on the Board of Directors for the Conference of California Bar Associations.

Larry Fieselman

Professor of Law

EDUCATION:
J.D., Southwestern University School of Law, 1978
B.A., Kansas State Universality, 1969

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Larry Fieselman earned his JD from Southwestern University in 1978. A practicing attorney for 35 years, Professor Fieselman has worked as a member of a firm as well as a sole practitioner. He has experience in bankruptcy, civil litigation, family law, criminal law and appeals. He formerly taught at CSULB in the graduate business department. He is an active member of the California State Bar.

Louis Greenwald

Professor of Law

EDUCATION:

J.D., UC Davis School of Law, 1999
B.A., UCLA, 1993, SUMMA CUM LAUDE

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Louis Greenwald is a partner at the law firm Choi & Greenwald. His practice focuses on employment, contract, and art law matters. Over the years, Professor Greenwald has successfully represented clients at trial and in administrative hearings, including before the California Division of Labor Standards Enforcement and the California Employment Development Department. Professor Greenwald also assists clients with administrative agency investigations and provides clients with anti-harassment training. Professor Greenwald often presents workshops for non-profit organizations on art law. He is an active member of the California State Bar and a member of the Los Angeles County Bar Association.

cherol katz professor irvine college of law

Cherol Katz, J.D.

Professor of Law

EDUCATION:
J.D., Western State University College of Law
B.A., University of California

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Professor Katz earned her J.D. degree at Western State University College of Law and her B.A. degree in English at the University of California at Los Angeles. Professor Katz has practiced law in both the public and private sector working as a Deputy City Attorney for the City of Garden Grove and with the well-regarded law firm Mitchell, Silberberg & Knupp. She was also the assistant V.P. of business and legal Affairs at Concorde-New Horizons Motion Picture Corporation and the V.P. of Business & Legal Affairs at TeleSeminars, Inc. and was the as Associate Director of the Orange County Anti-Defamation League where she was involved in various Civil Rights and Discrimination cases and matters. As a legal educator, Professor Katz has 30 years of experience teaching at Western State University College of Law, U.C.I., South Coast College, Cerritos College and in both the undergraduate and graduate schools of the University of Phoenix. She is also frequently asked to appear on radio as a legal commentator. Professor Katz has been an active member of the State Bar of California since 1989.

Charles Mandel

Professor of Law

EDUCATION:
J.D., Pepperdine University School of Law, 1980
B.A., University of California, Los Angeles, 1976, cum laude

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Charles Mandel dedicated his career to public service, focusing on the needs of children, particularly child support enforcement. Professor Mandel retired as the head attorney in the Department of Child Support Services of the County of Los Angeles, and has managed its offices in Encino, Torrance, West Covina, and in the area of Criminal Prosecution. In 2006 he won national recognition and was received the Outstanding Manager of the Year award from the National Child Support Enforcement Association.

Professor Mandel is an active member of the California State Bar.

susan mccormick associate professor irvine college of law

Susan McCormick, J.D.

Associate Professor of Law

EDUCATION:
J.D., Western State University Law School, 2007
M.S., CSU, Fullerton, 2016
B.A., CSU, Fullerton, 1993

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Professor McCormick earned her J.D. degree, magna cum laude, from Western State University Law School in 2007. She earned her B.A. degree in 1993 and her M.S. degree in counseling in 2016 from California State University, Fullerton. Professor McCormick provided pro bono legal working with the Orange County Legal Aid Office and Public Law Center and now practicing law in Orange County where she specializes in workers’ compensation law. She is an active member of the State Bar of California.

Nicholas Edward Trent

Dean Emeritus, Professor of Law

EDUCATION:
J.D., Irvine College of Law, 1996
B.A., Carleton University, 1962

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Edward Trent was interim dean of the College of Law after serving for 12 years as Associate Dean. A skilled attorney and former business executive, he practices business law with emphasis on contracts, and mergers and acquisitions. During a long career he has served as vice-president and general manager of the Canadian operations of the Macmillan Company, general manager of printing operations for the Carswell Company, a legal publisher subsequently acquired by Westlaw, president and chief executive officer of Sutton Industries, Inc., whose properties were eventually acquired by the Walt Disney Company, president of Alan Weston Publishing Inc., a motion picture promotion company, and president of Maxoil, Inc., an independent petroleum company. He practiced law with the firm of Smith Silbar Parker & Woffinden, retiring in 2005.Dean Trent received his BA in Journalism from Carleton University in 1962, and his JD from Irvine University in 1996. He is an active member of the California State Bar.

Anthony Radogna

Associate Professor of Law

EDUCATION:
J.D., La Verne Law School
B.A., Cal Poly Pomona, 2001

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Anthony Radogna worked for over 5 years as an Investigator for the State Bar of California’s Office of Chief Trial Counsel (“OCTC”), investigating a wide-range of ethical complaints brought against attorneys.

In addition, he served on specialized task force teams and has experience investigating the unauthorized practice of law (Business and Professions code section 6126.3), abandoned law practices, disbarred and resigned attorneys, and other activities such as drug abuse and physical or mental illness (Business and Professions code section 6180 and 6190).

He is admitted to practice law in California and the United States Central District Court. Anthony now provides advice, consultations, and representation to California attorneys involved in State Bar proceedings, from resolving complaints, to defense in State Bar trials and appeals.

Anthony graduated in 2001 with a Bachelor of Science in Business from Cal Poly Pomona. He received his Juris Doctorate from La Verne Law School and became a licensed attorney in 2008. He also holds a LL.M in Criminal Law and Practice from Southwestern Law School.He currently serves as the 2nd Vice President in the Association of Discipline Defense Counsel and is a member in the national Association of Professional Responsibility Lawyers.

Tracy Sims

Professor of Law

EDUCATION:
J.D., University of Pepperdine School of Law, 1995
B.A., University of Notre Dame, 1990

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Professor Sims has been an attorney for over 17 years. Born and raised in New York City, Professor Sims attended a prestigious prep school in Connecticut earning a full athletic and academic scholarship to the University of Notre Dame. Professor Sims was a two sport athlete at the University of Notre Dame (football and track) and majored in Political Science, earning his B.A. degree in 1990. Prof. Sims went to work briefly as a policy analyst for the New York City Dept. of Correction. From there, Prof. Sims moved west to attend law School at Pepperdine University. At Pepperdine, Prof. Sims was elected vice-president of the Black Law Student Association, while also working as a law clerk for the Los Angeles County District Attorneys Office. Professor Sims earned his JD in 1995 and immediately joined the DA’s office where he has enjoyed a long career as a prosecutor. During his tenure as a District Attorney Prof. Sims has prosecuted a variety of cases, from simple larceny cases to homicides, generally to a positive result. Most recently Prof. Sims was assigned to the Major Narcotics Unit and tasked with prosecuting major importers of large amounts of controlled substances into the U.S., working closely with multi-jurisdictional task forces including FBI, DEA and ICE. Professor Sims is an active member of the California State Bar.

gordon smearer associate professor irvine college of law

Gordon Smearer, J.D.

Associate Professor of Law

EDUCATION:
J.D., Irvine College of Law, 2015

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Professor Smearer earned his J.D. degree from Irvine College of Law in 2015. He started his career with the U.S. Army as a con-commissioned officer and tank commander. After leaving active duty, Professor Smearer started his 25+ year career in law enforcement with his appointment to the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department and, currently, the Torrance Police Department where he serves as a sworn officer. Professor Smearer is also an experienced trial attorney prosecuting and trying misdemeanor criminal cases for the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office. He is an active member of the State Bar of California and is a member of the Los Angeles County Bar Association.

probal young professor irvine college of law

Probal Young, J.D.

Professor of Law

EDUCATION:
J.D., Golden Gate University School of Law, 1996

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Professor Young earned his J.D. degree from Golden Gate University School of Law in 1996 and, since then, he has practiced civil law as a litigator and trial attorney in both northern and southern California specializing in the defense of catastrophic injuries, medical malpractice and other complex civil liability. Professor Young is also a very experienced legal educator having served for 12 years on the faculty of the John F. Kennedy College of Law in Pleasant Hill where he taught a variety of classes including Remedies, Trial Practice and Electronic Discovery. He currently practices law in Irvine with the national firm Gordon, Rees, Scully & Mansukhani, LLP and is an active member of the State Bar of California.