California and specializes in intellectual property. Christopher’s primary practice areas include patent litigation and prosecution, and he has represented numerous clients in a variety of technology areas. Jay Barron ’06 has joined Keller Rickauckas LLP as senior counsel, focusing on complex business litigation. Barron was previously at Alschuler Grossman and Bingham McCutchen. Jesse Debban ’06 is a new partner at Farella Braun & Martel LLP in San Francisco. Adam Goldberg ’06 has joined Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP as counsel in the Litigation Department in the Hong Kong office. Steven Hurdle ’06 of Loeb & Loeb LLP was included in the “Up Next” feature of Variety’s Legal Impact Report, which recognizes top entertainment attorneys who are making a significant impact in the entertainment industry. Merril Keane ’06 was elected partner at the Portland-based firm Miller Nash Graham & Dunn.
Cynthia Tollett ’07 has been promoted to associate general counsel at the Directors Guild of America. Prior to joining the organization in 2011, Tollett was an associate at Sheppard Mullin.
Ryan C. Wong ’09 was promoted to counsel in Crowell & Moring LLP’s Irvine, California, office. Ryan’s practice focuses on antitrust recovery and defense litigation.
Kevin Zen ’07 has joined the Orange County office of Snell & Wilmer in the corporate and securities practice. Prior to joining Snell & Wilmer, Zen was an associate at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP in the firm’s Corporate Finance group.
Desmund Wu ’09 has joined the UCLA Law admissions team as the assistant director of admissions and manager of multicultural recruitment. Since graduation, he has worked as an attorney at Lambda Legal and at the law firms of Loeb & Loeb and Latham & Watkins. He also serves on the UCLA Law Alumni Association Board of Directors and on the Williams Institute Alumni Leadership Team.
Constance Liu ’08 has joined the estate and tax planning counsel at Hanson Bridgett LLP in San Francisco. Liu will advise individuals and families on the full spectrum of estate planning law. Most recently, Liu was with Schiff Hardin LLP. Seth Manfredi ’08 is now an associate in the San Francisco office of Nicolaides LLP.
Frank Petrilli ’09 has joined Arent Fox LLP’s San Francisco office from McKenna Long & Aldridge LLP.
2010 to 2015 Cynthia Gonzalez ’11 was featured in a KPCC-FM story for her work building local communities, ridding them of eyesores and cleaning up problems through the Los Angeles City Attorney’s rebounding Neighborhood Prosecutor program. Molly Odell Bennett ’12 has joined Sotheby’s International Realty’s Brentwood office as a real estate agent. She represents buyers and sellers of single family homes, condominiums and small apartment buildings throughout Los Angeles, primarily on the west side.
David Ambroz ’05, the executive director of corporate citizenship & social responsibility
at Disney|ABC Television Group, was honored by the White House as one of 12 former foster youth “Champions of Change.” Ambroz convened more than 100 partners, including private companies, foundations, nonprofit organizations and Disney|ABC, to create FosterMore, a multi-media campaign that shines a light on the potential of the 400,000-plus youth and countless families in the foster care system. As an alumnus of the foster care system, Ambroz has demonstrated a lifelong passion for child welfare reform. He worked to establish the National Foster Youth Advisory Council (1997), the GLBT Foster Care Joint Initiative (1998) and has served on the California Child Welfare Council and ABA Commission on Youth At Risk.
134 UCLA LAW MAGAZINE | FALL 2015