Law & Mediation

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Kristen Blabey | Attorney

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PRICE, POSTEL & PARMA LLP | WWW.PPPLAW.COM
KMRB@PPPLAW.COM | (805) 962-0011 EXT. 161

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About: Kristen works with clients to create a cohesive estate plan, helping individuals update their retirement plan and life insurance designations, making sure there is alignment between their financial assets and the ultimate disposition provided for in the documents. She facilitates discussions for families regarding wealth preservation and transfer strategies between generations and to charitable organizations. Another focus area to her practice is planned giving where she helps local non-profit organizations to create planned giving programs and helps individuals craft charitable trusts or other planned giving vehicles as a component of their estate plan.

In addition to lifetime estate planning, she handles probates and trust administrations. Kristen helps executors, trustees, and beneficiaries navigate through the various steps of the probate process or a trust administration including the filing of federal estate tax returns, court petitions and filings, sub-trust funding, real property transactions, business succession planning, and estate distribution issues.

Kristen joined Price, Postel & Parma in 2005. She previously worked for the law firm of Warren, Hensley and Bowen in Boston, MA, where she was involved in a wide range of legal matters, including civil litigation, estate planning, and real estate transactions. Ms. Blabey is a native of Santa Barbara where she attended Laguna Blanca School.

Specialties: Kristen's practice includes estate planning, probate, trust administration, conservatorship, charitable planning, and taxation matters. Her practice focuses on all aspects of estate planning including creating wills, trusts, charitable trusts, health care directives, durable powers of attorney, deeds, and other estate planning instruments.

Connect: Contact Kristen at kmrb@ppplaw.com or at (805) 962-0011 ext. 161, or visit her website below!

member since october 2017

Anna Burnbaum | Senior Associate Attorney

About: Anna Burnbaum is a senior associate in the firm’s Business and Commercial Litigation Department and Labor and Employment Department. Anna also has extensive experience in dealing with medical malpractice matters. Anna is licensed to practice law in the states of Washington, New York, and California. Anna earned her Juris Doctor from Seattle University School of Law in 2011 and graduated from the University of Montana Davidson Honors College in 2008 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English Literature and Pre-Law. In 2012, Anna earned her LL.M. in Alternative Dispute Resolution from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law.

Specialties: Anna represents clients in labor and employment and business and commercial litigation matters in federal, state, and administrative forums involving wage and hour, discrimination, harassment, wrongful termination, defamation, and contract disputes. She also regularly provides counsel and advice to clients’ human resources personnel, managers, and executive teams on contract, employment, and wage and hour laws.

Quote: “Mediation is conflict's way of looking at itself.” — Jeff Cohen

Connect: Contact Anna at aburnbaum@kleinlaw.com or at (661) 395-1000, or visit her website below!

MEMBER SINCE MAY 2023

Diane Byun | Class Action Associate

About: Diane received her B.A. from UCSB and her J.D. from University of San Diego, School of Law. Upon graduating law school, she clerked for the Honorable M. James Lorenz in the U.S. District Court, Southern District of California. Subsequently, she worked as a data privacy and commercial litigation associate at an AmLaw 100 firm and as a transactional associate at a sophisticated boutique firm in Santa Barbara, CA. Diane enjoys her class action practice with Strange LLP because she can utilize her legal skills while helping persons and entities who have been wronged.

Specialties: Diane is a dedicated class action attorney with a passion for seeking justice on behalf of individuals and companies. Skilled in legal research, case strategy development, and negotiation, Diane leverages her background in commercial litigation and commercial law in class actions to contribute to impactful legal cases and make a difference in the lives of those affected.

Quote: “Taking a new step, uttering a new word, is what people fear most.” — Fyodor Dostoevsky

Connect: Contact Diane at diane@strangellp.com or at (310) 207-5055 or visit her website below!


MEMBER SINCE March 2023
 

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Jennifer Duffy | Attorney

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About: Jenn earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from UCLA and her Juris Doctorate degree from the University of San Francisco. In college, she wrote for the Daily Bruin newspaper. During law school, she served as the Editor-in-Chief of the Law Review, a Judicial Extern with the Supreme Court of California, Vice President of the Student Body, and a Public Interest Law Scholar. She returned to her home town of Santa Barbara in 1999 as an attorney and became a Partner at her prior law firm in 2008. As of  March of 2021, she is a founding partner of the Santa Barbara office of the international law firm of Rimon Law.

Jenn loves what she does and enjoys helping people. She says that her favorite part of her work as an employment law attorney is to help companies solve problems. Her favorite part of her work as a family law attorney is to help her clients get to a place of empowerment, ready for their next chapter.

Jenn also thinks it is important to give back to the community, to give a hand up to people in need. She is on many local boards, and she also volunteers weekly for Dream Foundation's Flower Empower program and other events and programs. She has been a member of the Santa Barbara Chapter of National Charity League since 2012, which is a mother-daughter philanthropy organization. Since 2016, she has been awarded the President's Volunteer Service Award from the President of the United States for her volunteer work (separate from her board work), and she was named Volunteer of the Year for Dream Foundation in 2018. (her daughter was Youth Volunteer of the Year in 2020.) Jenn has also named one of the Top 50 Women in Business in the tri-counties as well as Who’s Who in Professional Services by the Pacific Coast Business Times in multiple years since 2017.

Specialties: Jenn has two distinct practice areas: employment law (mostly on the management side) and family law. When asked which she does more of and which she enjoys more, she comments, "My work in each field ebbs and flows, but it is pretty even, over time. I love them both. They keep me balanced and focused."

Quote: "Be yourself. Everyone else is already taken." —Unknown

Connect: Contact Jenn at jennifer.duffy@rimonlaw.com or (805) 618-2606, or visit her website below!

member since october 2017

Jill Friedman | Attorney/Partner

MYERS, WIDDERS, GIBSON, JONES & FEINGOLD, LLP |

WWW.MWGJLAW.COM | JFRIEDMAN@MWGJLAW.COM | (805) 644-7188

About: Jill Friedman is a tenacious civil trial attorney, seeking justice for her clients for more than three decades. She graduated from UCLA with a BA in English and was a Chancellor’s Scholar. She received her JD from the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law. She is a past president of both Santa Barbara Women Lawyers and Women Lawyers of Ventura County. Ms. Friedman has served on the board of directors for the Santa Barbara County Bar Association and the Ventura County Bar Association. She is a founding member and former chair of the Ventura County Diversity Bar Alliance, now known as the Ventura County Unity Bar. In 2016, she was the keynote speaker at the Women Lawyers of Ventura County’s annual dinner and received the Legacy Award for her work as a pioneering woman attorney.

She joined Myers, Widders, Gibson, Jones & Feingold, LLP in 2010, and later became the first female partner in the now 50+ year old firm. In 2024, after a 23-day binding arbitration on behalf of a local educator, she obtained a $3.1M judgment in a real estate fraud case against prolific house flippers.

She enjoys the intellectual challenge of litigation and prides herself on making complicated legal matters easy for her clients and juries to understand. All trial attorneys are litigators, but not all litigators are trial attorneys. Cases are more likely to settle when the other side knows you are ready and able to take the case all the way to trial.

Specialties: Jill Friedman’s litigation practice includes personal injury, employment, business, and real estate. She represents plaintiffs and defendants. Ms. Friedman is a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA), a prestigious invitation-only organization for attorneys who have tried a minimum of ten civil jury trials to conclusion as lead counsel. Nationally, women comprise approximately 10% of ABOTA membership. She is one of only four female ABOTA members in the Tri-Counties. In 2018, Ms. Friedman served as president of the ABOTA Tri-County chapter.

Quote: "A strong woman stands for justice, fights for equality, and empowers others through the law." - Unknown

Connect: Contact Jill at jfriedman@mwgjlaw.com or at (805) 644-7188, or visit her website below!

MEMBER SINCE JANUARY 2025

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Angela Greenspan, Esq. | Attorney

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FAUVER LARGE ARCHBALD & SPRAY, LLP | WWW.FLASLLP.COM
agreenspan@flasllp.com | (805) 453-6439

About: Angela Greenspan, an attorney at Fauver, Large, Archbald & Spray, LLP, focuses her legal practice on transactional business law and estate planning. She has a deep commitment to ensuring the protection of families and business owners. Alongside her legal expertise, Ms. Greenspan holds a California Real Estate Agent license and is the co-founder of schoolofbookkeeping.com.  

Ms. Greenspan is passionate about assisting business owners in establishing a well-protected business. Her experience includes adeptly representing clients in business transactions and settlement negotiations. This litigation background uniquely positions her to guide clients to proactively avoid unforeseen challenges in business. Ms. Greenspan offers a holistic approach emphasizing the significance of a secure business foundation, aligning legal strategies with real-world business challenges to ensure compressive protection for her clients. 

As a seasoned professional in estate planning, she is dedicated to empowering individuals and families to secure their legacies and protect their wealth. With a comprehensive understanding of the complexities surrounding estate planning, she specializes in crafting personalized solutions that transcend generations

Specialties: Estate plan drafting and tax planning, trust administration and litigation, business succession planning, negotiation and dispute resolution, entity formation and preparation of formation documents, contract drafting and review, and corporate governance

Quote: “The secret of getting ahead is getting started. The secret of getting started is breaking your complex overwhelming tasks into small manageable tasks, and starting on the first one.” — Mark Twain

Connect: Contact Angela at agreenspan@flasllp.com or at (805) 453-6439, or visit her website below!

MEMBER SINCE March 2024

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Cristi Michelon Vasquez | Attorney

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LAW OFFICE OF CRISTI MICHELON VASQUEz | WWW.MICHELONLAW.COM
CRISTI@MICHELONLAW.COM | (805) 882-2226

About: Cristi specializes in the areas of probate, trust and  conservatorship litigation as well as landlord-tenant litigation. Cristi is known for her strong client service skills, the clarity of her advice, and straightforward legal approach.

Cristi is a former President of Santa Barbara Women Lawyers, former Vice President of the Santa Barbara Women Lawyers Foundation, and former affiliate governor to the Board of California Women Lawyers, and Santa Barbara County Bar. Cristi is also past president and former board member to the Santa Barbara Rape Crisis Center and Women's Economic Ventures. She is a current board member for Coastal Housing Partnership.

Cristi received her law degree from Santa Barbara College of Law in 2001 and was admitted
to practice law in the State of California in May 2001. She was also admitted to practice
before the United States District Court, United States Court of Appeal, and the Supreme Court
of the United States.

Cristi is a member of the State Bar of California, the Santa Barbara County Bar Association,
Los Angeles County Bar Association, Santa Barbara Women Lawyers, and California Women
Lawyers.

Specialties: Cristi focuses her practice on assisting Business Owners, Real Estate Investors, Landlords, Trustees, Beneficiaries, Conservators, and Conservatees.

Quote: "Experience is what you get when you didn't get what you wanted."

Connect: Contact Cristi at cristi@michelonlaw.com or at (805) 882-2226, or visit her website below!

member since october 2017