LARRABEE | MEHLMAN | ALBI | COKER LLP: U.S. Immigration Law

Staff

Adrian Brody
abrody@larrabee.com
Adrian was born in Chicago, Illinois and attended the University of Illinois in Champagne-Urbana where she received her Bachelor of Arts degree in English, with a double minor in Psychology and Spanish. Prior to joining the LMAC team as the Accounting Manager, Adrian held positions as a high school English teacher, as Vice President of Finance and Human Resources for a local spa manufacturer, and as a Controller for several small to medium sized companies. She enjoys all snow activities, especially dogsledding, and is currently participating in classes for certifications in Play Therapy and Sandplay Therapy to use in her volunteer work with terminally ill children.

Anna Ho
annaho@larrabee.com
Anna was born in Hong Kong and came to the U.S. to pursue a higher education. She attended Northern Illinois University where she earned the degree of Bachelor of Science, Magna Cum Laude, in Business Administration. She has worked as a senior accountant for a variety of successful companies prior to joining the Firm. She is an assistant to the accounting manager Adrian Brody and also serves as a Notary for the Firm.

Anna Riazanova
ariazanova@larrabee.com
Anna was born in Moscow, Russia and graduated from the State University in Moscow with honors Master's degree in Linguistics. She also completed a year of study on Urdu language and literature at the Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi. After graduation, she worked as an Assistant Professor at the Institute of Asia and Africa in Moscow and was editor of an Urdu-language magazine. She earned her paralegal certificate from West Los Angeles School of Law in California, graduating magna cum laude. She has personal experience with the immigration process, having immigrated to the U.S. as a winner of the visa lottery and prior to that, her H-1B visa petition was used as a part of the National Paralegal Association's efforts to classify a paralegal position as a specialty occupation. Anna worked in the field of immigration law for various law firms in Los Angeles before joining LMAC in 1996. She is a Senior Paralegal and part of the labor certification team.

Ashley Sur
asur@larrabee.com
Ashley is originally from Palos Verdes, CA. She currently attends the University of California at San Diego where she is studying Political Science and Neurobiology. With her goal of establishing a successful legal career, Ashley joined Larrabee | Mehlman | Albi | Coker LLP as a file clerk and plans on attending law school after she graduates from UCSD in Spring 2009. She enjoys spending time with her family and friends outside of school and work.

Carol Haskell
chaskell@larrabee.com
Carol is a Sr. Paralegal for Larrabee | Mehlman | Albi | Coker LLP. Although she currently specializes in labor certification applications for LMAC, Carol has also worked various aspects of immigration and previously held employment with both the U.S. Immigration & Naturalization Service and the U.S. Border Patrol.

Caroline Kobayashi
ckobayashi@larrabee.com
Caroline is a Senior Paralegal with LMAC and has worked for the Firm since August 1997. Prior to this Ms. Kobayashi was a Legal Assistant for Gray Cary Ware & Freidenrich LLP. A graduate of Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut, Ms. Kobayashi enjoys scuba diving, outrigger canoeing, and just about anything ocean related.

Celine Wheaton
cwheaton@larrabee.com
Celine is a Paralegal at LMAC. Born and raised in New Hampshire, she moved to San Diego in 1997. After working several years as a successful teacher, she decided to change career paths and obtained her Paralegal Certificate through the UCSD Extension program in 2000. Prior to joining LMAC, Celine worked as an Immigration Paralegal for over five years. She took a short hiatus in early 2006 to care for her ailing father and newborn son. Celine lives in North County San Diego with her husband, Ted; young son, Matthew; and big dog, Angel. She and her family enjoy hiking, going to the beach, and getting away for occasional ski trips.

Christine Carreño
christine@larrabee.com
Christine was born and raised in San Diego, CA. She received her Bachelor's degree in Criminal Justice from the University of Phoenix and is currently pursuing a Master of Forensic Sciences with a specialization in Investigations. Prior to joining the LMAC team as an Administrative Assistant in October 2005, Christine worked with USCIS as an Office Automation Clerk within their Adjudications department.

Daniel Allen
dallen@larrabee.com
Daniel was born in San Diego, California and was raised in the Los Angeles area. After receiving his Bachelor of Arts degree in Latin American Studies and Politics from the University of California, Santa Cruz and his Master of Arts degree in Latin American Studies from the University of California, Berkeley, Mr. Allen began employment with Larrabee | Mehlman | Albi | Coker LLP in February 2000. A Senior Paralegal, he specializes in nonimmigrant matters and is also the principal administrator for our LMAC Online Intake System. Mr. Allen speaks Spanish and Portuguese.

Elizabeth Honerkamp
ehonerkamp@larrabee.com
Elizabeth is a Paralegal at LMAC. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Criminal Justice from Salve Regina University in Newport, RI. While obtaining her degree, Elizabeth was a tutor for girls who were in the Rhode Island Training School (RITS), a unit within Rhode Island 's Juvenile Correctional Services that is focused on helping teenage girls obtain GEDs. Upon graduation, Elizabeth worked as an intern for the Superior Court of Washington D.C. in the Multi-Door Dispute Resolution Division where she played a key role in coordinating with judges, attorneys and mediators in assisting to resolve cases before going to trial. Elizabeth has over 5 years of immigration law experience after working for top immigration law firms in both New York and San Diego. Locally, Elizabeth enjoys representing her community as a member of a local outrigger canoe team..

Erin Carlson
ecarlson@larrabee.com
Originally from Pennsylvania, Erin moved to San Diego in 2001. Erin attended Gannon University in Erie, Pennsylvania where she earned a double major in Paralegal studies and Psychology. Erin has worked as an Immigration Paralegal for over 6 years, working her way up to a Supervising Paralegal at a top firm in San Diego. Prior to this time, Erin worked as an in-house Paralegal for a large company in San Diego. Erin is skilled in all types of nonimmigrant and immigrant visa cases and currently works on the NIV team at LMAC. Erin plans on attending law school in the future and enjoys spending time going to the beach and participating in outdoor activities.

Jenifer Collins
jcollins@larrabee.com
A Southern California native, Jenifer earned her Bachelor's degree in Psychology from the University of California, San Diego in June 1997. She went on to obtain her Master's of Business Administration from San Diego State University in August 2003, focusing in Entrepreneurship and Management. Since joining the firm in March 2001, Jenifer has specialized in Immigrant petitions, including first preference outstanding researcher and extraordinary ability petitions. As a Senior Paralegal, she also contributes to the Non-Immigrant and Permanent Residency teams.

Jessica Landers
jlanders@larrabee.com
Jessica was born and raised in Fresno, California. She earned a Bachelor's degree in Political Science from the University of California, San Diego in 2004. Jessica joined LMAC as a case writer in 2007.

Jesus Barney IV
jbarney@larrabee.com
Jesus was born in Pasadena, California. He graduated from California Polytechnic State, S.L.O. (B.S., 1991) and Ohio Northern, Claude W. Pettit College of Law, Ada (J.D., 1998). Mr. Barney joined Larrabee | Mehlman | Albi | Coker LLP in August of 2004 and works in the capacity of Paralegal.

Justin Walters
jwalters@larrabee.com
Justin was born and raised in Porterville, California. He earned a Bachelor's degree in Journalism at San Diego State University in December 2002 and received his Paralegal Certificate at the University of San Diego in the Spring of 2003. Justin has been employed with the firm since July 2003. He works mainly on applications for Permanent Residency, as well as Immigrant and Non-Immigrant visa petitions.

Kanji Kawanabe
kkawanabe@larrabee.com
Kanji is a graduate from the University of Colorado with a Bachelor's degree in International Relations. He spent two years abroad teaching English in Japan, before moving to San Diego, where he subsequently joined our team here at LMAC. With a strong international background, Kanji is one of our senior paralegals who specializes primarily on immigration petitions.

Kim Terlecky
kterlecky@larrabee.com
Kim was born in Downers Grove, IL, and has been living in San Diego since 1984. She obtained her Bachelor of Arts degree in English from San Diego State University in 2006 and is currently attending the Paralegal Certification Program at Miramar College, with hopes of attending Law School in the future. Kim enjoys horseback riding, practicing Kung Fu and Tai Chi, and spending time with (and spoiling!) her French Bulldog, Beep. Kim joined LMAC in July 2007.

Kris Cherevas
kcherevas@larrabee.com
Kris is the Legal Assistant to Partner, Attorney Sharon Mehlman. She received her Bachelor's of Arts Degree from SDSU, Paralegal Certification from USD, and will be attending California Western School of Law in the Fall of 2007. She is also an active soccer player, runner, and surfer.

Kristi Wistner
kwistner@larrabee.com
Kristi graduated from Western New Mexico University with a Bachelor's degree in Mathematics and a minor in Computer Science. She joined LMAC in April 2001. Kristi is responsible for managing the file room, administrating internal computer programs and document management systems, and assisting our IT department. She is also responsible for the preparation and submission of attorney inquiries to the California Service Center. When Kristi is not troubleshooting computer related problems or tracking down files, you can find her on the basketball court shooting hoops and spending time with her family.

Leslie Procter
lprocter@larrabee.com
Leslie was born and raised in New Jersey and New York. She received a Bachelor's degree in journalism and creative writing, with a concentration in psychology, from Manhattan's Baruch College. Prior to joining Larrabee | Mehlman | Albi | Coker LLP, Ms. Procter held administrative positions in the fields of interior renovation and event coordination. Ms. Procter moved to San Diego in June of 2006 and currently works with the firm in the capacity of administrative assistant.

Matthew Sparks
msparks@larrabee.com
Raised in San Diego, Matthew worked as an Account Executive for the public relations firm The Grove Agency before joining Larrabee & Associates in September of 2000. As a Paralegal, Mr. Sparks works directly with LMAC attorneys, primarily on permanent resident applications.

Meagan Knepp
mknepp@larrabee.com
Meagan works as a case writer for LMAC. She graduated from Antioch University Los Angeles with an MFA in creative writing and from UCSD with a B.A. in Visual Arts -Film. She was born and raised in Southern California where she still lives with her husband and her cat.

Melinda Hawkins
mhawkins@larrabee.com
Melinda grew up in Illinois, surrounded by mile after mile of delicious corn. She graduated from Southern Illinois University in Edwardsville in 2002 with honors and a BA in English. Melinda joined the LMAC team as an administrative assistant in February of 2006.

Michelle De Lara Ibarra
mibarra@larrabee.com
Michelle is a senior paralegal specializing in the area of labor certification applications. She received her Bachelor's Degree and paralegal certificate from the University of San Diego. Prior to joining LMAC, she gained experience working on non-immigrant visa petitions at another law firm. She has over six years of experience in the field of labor certification applications and has been with the firm since 2001.

Nancy Thompson
nthompson@larrabee.com
Nancy was raised in Bonita and loves riding her horse for recreation and in local parades. When she is not tending to the stables, Nancy loves camping and spending time with her husband and her son. Many of you have undoubtedly spoken with Nancy as she has been our receptionist since 2000.

Randell "Del" Romine
dromine@larrabee.com
Del was born in Yuma, Arizona and grew up on the family farm in Wellton, Arizona (just east of Yuma ). After graduation from high school in 1960, Del enlisted in the U. S. Navy and served as a Radio Operator while stationed aboard the USS Engage (MSO 433) and was a machine gunner while deployed in Viet Nam. After serving the Navy, Del enrolled in college and two years later joined the U. S. Immigration Service in 1966. As a result of his service, Mr. Romine has worked most facets of immigration enforcement while climbing the ranks and holding the positions of Radio Operator, Border Patrol Agent, Immigration Inspector, and Immigration Examiner before retiring in May 1997 as the Deputy Assistant District Director, Adjudications. Although Del joined LMAC (at that time known as Larrabee & Associates LLP) in June 1997, Del 's history with the firm goes farther back than that as he first met Peter Larrabee while both were employed as agents in the Border Patrol in the Chula Vista Patrol Sector.

Satoko Hasegawa Simonds
satoko@larrabee.com
Born and raised in Numazu, Japan, a cosmopolitan Ms. Simonds is bilingual in Japanese and English. She accomplished her childhood dream of studying in an American university, and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism from San Diego State University. After several successful years in Los Angeles as an Editor-in-Chief for the largest Japanese media in the United States, Ms. Simonds moved back to San Diego, and joined the firm in April 2006. She finds the immigration law field challenging yet rewarding, and enjoys sharpening her skills and expanding her knowledge as a valued member of the NIV team.

Shannon Napier
snapier@larrabee.com
Shannon graduated from the Lee Honors College of Western Michigan University in December 2005 with magna cum laude distinction, majoring in English. Shannon has worked in the field of business immigration law since 2002, where she started as a legal secretary and worked her way to a Paralegal position. Shannon joined LMAC in January 2006 and has since been a Paralegal for the firm's Labor Certification Team. Shannon is also currently working towards her J.D. degree at the Thomas Jefferson School of Law in San Diego.

Shannon Flores
sflores@larrabee.com
Shannon was born and raised in Hawaii, then moved to Los Angeles, where she received her B.A. from the University of California, Los Angeles. Ms. Flores joined Larrabee & Associates in June of 2000 and continues to work with LMAC in her current role of Immigration Assistant. She currently works off-site, supporting two of LMAC's clients in Newport Beach, CA.

Thanhthuy Nguyen
tnguyen@larrabee.com
Thanhthuy was born in Orange, CA. Although accepted to University of California, Los Angeles, Thanhthuy decided to attend University of California, San Diego and break a family tradition that her older siblings had set forth in attending UCLA. She graduated with degrees in both Psychology and Political Science (with an emphasis on Public Law). Upon graduation, Thanhthuy accepted a position with what was then referred to as Larrabee & Zimmerman LLP and continues to work for the firm as administrative assistant to Diana Vellos Coker.

Yuki Murata
ymurata@larrabee.com
Yuki is a Sr. Paralegal with Larrabee | Mehlman | Albi | Coker LLP. She is bilingual in Japanese and English with an understanding of both Japanese and American business practices and customs. Yuki assisted the firm’s international clients with the preparation of non-immigrant and immigrant petitions for many years before rejoining the firm in July 2007.