Alumni Success

Explore the diversity of our Alumni careers, to learn what a Juris Doctor degree can provide. One Degree. A World of Option.

Marlene was struck with the law school lightning bolt on the first day of a Business Law class at CSUF. She worked as an IRS auditor throughout law school, which explains why she blew the top off the scores in Ron Henderson’s Taxation class. Marlene was a member of the 1991 founding Editorial Board of the San Joaquin Agricultural Law Review, while delivering a son that spring semester. Having won awards for SJCL in national moot court competitions with Patricia Williams (’93), Marlene later taught Moot Court at SJCL from 1993-1997. After graduation she worked in insurance defense, first as an associate and then as a partner, with Sarah Schmidt (’88), then with two different insurance defense firms before opening her own firm. Marlene does special appearances and contract work for over 400 attorneys, in courts in 6 counties, along with her own cases. Her specialty is defending commercial truck drivers in criminal prosecution of violations of their special traffic and federal regulations. Marlene leads a special ministry at NorthPointe Community Church – the Elder Care Ministry. They help elderly residents, family and caregivers, provide education and support in elder issues, and create a sense of community in assisted living facilities. Marlene thanks a dedicated faculty for a superior education and the start of her rewarding legal career.

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Extensive and Diverse Alumni Network

Our success can be seen in the extraordinary achievements of our graduates in bar passage rates and dynamic careers. San Joaquin College of Law graduates serve as District Attorneys, Superior Court judges, court commissioners, administrative law judges, general counsel of large corporations, in-house counsel to agricultural enterprises, and much more. Alumni have benefitted from launching their careers in a region where the population is growing and the prospect of getting into a prominent position quickly is proven higher. If a graduate desires to leave the Valley, he or she is in a strategic position to make a lateral move to a city of their choice or obtain a leadership position nationally or internationally.

More than 30% of the practicing lawyers in the Fresno-Clovis area are SJCL graduates. Of the women lawyers in the area, nearly 44% are SJCL graduates. More than 37% of the minority lawyers are graduates.

Careers of SJCL Alumni in the Area Include

  • Administrative Law Judge
  • Baker, Manock & Jensen
  • Bankruptcy Judge, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of California
  • California State Assistant Attorney General
  • Centex Homes In-House Counsel
  • Children’s Hospital of Central California Counsel
  • City Attorney
  • County Counsel
  • District Attorney
  • Dowling Aaron
  • Fresno County Clerk/Registrar of Voters
  • McCormick, Barstow, Sheppard, Wayte & Carruth
  • Magistrate Judge, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of California
  • Member, Fresno County Board of Supervisors
  • Pappas Telecasting, Special Counsel & Vice President
  • Private Practitioners in every area of practice
  • Public Defender
  • Saint Agnes Medical Center Counsel
  • Superior Court Commissioner
  • Superior Court Judge
  • Research Attorney, Fifth District Court of Appeal
  • Research Attorney, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of California
  • Trinity Fruit In-House Counsel

Careers of SJCL Alumni Outside the Area Include

  • California Environmental Protection Agency, Deputy Director
  • California Secretary of Health & Human Services
  • California State Water Resources Control Board, Member & Chair
  • Chevron Human Resource Manager, Asia south Business Unit, Thailand
  • Chief of Staff for California State Assemblyman
  • Contra Costa County Court Commissioner
  • Delta Dental, In-House Counsel, San Francisco
  • Glenn County Superior Court Judge
  • Honeywell Corporation, Phoenix, Arizona
  • Monterey County Superior Court Judge
  • Nevada Care Counsel & CEO
  • Point Loma Nazarene University, Fermanian Business Center Director
  • San Francisco Assistant City Attorney
  • San Luis Obispo County Court Commissioner
  • Santa Barbara County Counsel
  • TelePacific Communications Corp, Assistant General Counsel, Nevada
  • U.S. Food & Drug Administration, Washington, D.C.
  • Wells Fargo Bank, Trust Counsel, North Carolina