SONDRA S.
SUTHERLAND
SUMMARY
Seasoned family, civil litigation and appellate attorney with decades of litigation and legal drafting experience. Adept at establishing trust with clients through strategic communication techniques. Dedicated to delivering expert representation and counsel through comprehensive legal knowledge, investigation and research and thorough preparation.
SKILLS
- Litigation Management
- Court Procedures
- Litigation Experience
- Client Representation and Advisement
- Examining Witnesses and Presenting Evidence
- Legal Research and Review
- Legal Document Preparation
- Organization and Administration
- Verbal and Written Communication
- Discovery and Document Review
EXPERIENCE
Attorney / Law Offices of Sondra S. Sutherland, APC - Menifee, CA : 05/1999 - Current
- Conduct all aspects of a (multi-county) solo law practice
- App. 58% family law: dissolution of marriage, parentage, child custody, child and spousal support, property division, domestic violence, civil harassment, attorney fees, grandparent visitation, modifying, enforcing and relief from orders, omitted assets/debts, prenups, MSAs and non-marital cohabitation agreements, consultations/second opinions
- App. 34% civil litigation (e.g., civil rights, personal injury [auto, slip & fall], breach of contract)
- App. 8% appeals and writs
Attorney / Sacks & Zweig - Santa Monica, CA : 02/1998 - 5/1999
- Handled business, entertainment and family law matters for small, boutique firm
- Paralegal to same firm from November 1990 thru February 1994; part-time 1994-1996
Attorney / Trope and Trope - Brentwood, CA : 12/1997 - 02/1998
- Handled high-end family law matters for large family law firm
Research Attorney / Los Angeles County Superior Court - Los Angeles, CA : 01/1997 - 12/1997
- Worked up app. 1,000 contested motions in family law matters for 6 of the 11 family law bench officers at the central Los Angeles courthouse
Judicial Extern / U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit - Pasadena, CA : Fall 1996
- Worked up app. 1,000 contested motions in family law matters for 6 of the 11 family law bench officers at the central Los Angeles courthouse
Judicial Extern / California Court of Appeal, 2nd App. Dist. - Los Angeles, CA : Summer 1995
- Reviewed appellate briefs
- Researched law in civil and criminal matters
- Drafted appellate opinions
EDUCATION AND TRAINING
J.D.
Whittier Law School - Hancock Park, CA : 05/1996
- Cum Laude; #11 in class (top 7%), Dean’s List, Honor Roll
- CALI Excellence for the Future Awards, Arbitration and Securities Regulation
- Am Jur Awards, Professional Responsibility and PR Practicum Skills (Advanced Legal Writing)
- Teaching Assistant, Contracts and Advanced Legal Writing
Associate of Arts
Cuyamaca College - El Cajon, CA : 06/1990
- 4.0 g.p.a., Dean’s List, Honor Roll, Phi Theta Kappa
Paralegal Certificate
University of San Diego - San Diego, CA : 11/1988
- Honors; #2 in class
ACCOMPLISHMENTS
- June-July 2022: Obtained jury verdict for $980,989 in back profits (+ clients entitled to 10% of future profits, valued in the millions) in joint venture dispute involving investment in an Orange County Mexican foods business
- 2011: Obtained $4.9 million jury verdict in 1983 civil rights action against Orange County Dept. of Social Services ($6.6 million once attorney fees added); court awarded lodestar billing rate at 2.5 X regular hourly rate
- 1996 to present: principal counsel and author of briefs in numerous writs and appeals, especially of family law orders and judgments
- 1999 to present: conducted numerous contested family law hearings, including evidentiary hearings and trials involving witness testimony
- 1999 to present: successfully litigated and/or settled numerous marital dissolution and parentage disputes
- 1999 to present: successfully enforced numerous orders and judgments
ACTIVITIES AND HONORS
- Member, California State Bar (since December 10, 1996)
- Member, U.S. District Court for the Central District (since December 10, 1996)
- Member, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (since January 14, 1997)
- Member, American Bar Association (since 1997)
- Recipient, Certificate of Tribute from The Harriett Buhai Center for Family Law (June 1, 1999)
- Member, U.S. District Court for the Southern District (since June 18, 1999)
- Member, U.S. Supreme Court (since March 20, 2006)
- Recipient, The Wiley W. Manuel Award for Pro Bono Legal Services (March 2009)
- Certificates of Appreciation for volunteer work from the North County Bar Assn. (2011-2013)
- Recipient, CLAY (California Lawyer Attorney of the Year Award, Family Law) (2012)
- Lead Counsel Rated, Family Law (2013-2016)
- Member, Daughters of the American Revolution (2021-2022)
- Member Riverside County Bar Association
- Member, San Diego County Bar Assn., North County Bar Assn., San Diego Family Law Bar Assn.
- Member, Phi Delta Phi
WEBSITES, PORTFOLIOS, PROFILES
- http://www.ssslegal.com/
PUBLISHED APPELLATE DECISIONS
- Sutherland v. Barclays (1997) 53 Cal.App.4th 299 (promissory estoppel as a substitute for consideration; prevailed against a $72 billion mortgage company and its numerous lawyers three months after being sworn into the Bar)
- Marriage of Lammers (2000) 83 Cal.App.4th 1309 (local rule requiring counsel to appear in court by 12 noon day before hearing and place “post-it” notes on the papers he/she wanted the judge to read unconstitutional as applied; led to widespread changes to Cal. Rules of Court to ensure statewide uniformity of procedures)
- Sutherland v. Kipperman (2006) U.S. Bkrtcy. (S.D. Cal.), Case No. 05-15215-H7, Adv. No. 06-90235-H7 (upholding validity of attorney’s charging lien, which attached upon liquidation of parties’ home)
- Marriage of Gruen (2011) 191 Cal.App.4th 627 (clarified statutory limitations on court’s jurisdiction to retroactively modify support orders)
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