Board of Directors
Suzanne Bowlby Ervine, President
Suzanne
Bowlby Ervine is one of ALDAP’s co-founders and currently serves
as the association’s President. In addition to her paralegal training
and experience, Suzanne brings to ALDAP more than a decade of experience
managing nonprofit organizations, having served as a development officer,
executive director, and board member for several business and charitable
organizations. She has previously served as ALDAP’s Vice President, Treasurer
and Communications Director.
Following a successful career in the non-profit sector, Suzanne transitioned to the legal field in 2001. In 2006, she left her position as a corporate paralegal and registered as a legal document assistant. She established Red Sky Legal to provide self-help legal services to consumers and paralegal services to California attorneys. Suzanne is bonded and registered as an LDA in San Diego County, and practices as a freelance paralegal. She is also a commissioned notary public.
Suzanne received her Paralegal Certificate, with Honors, from the University of San Diego. Upon graduation, she was honored with both the Top Business Litigation Student Award and the Legal Research and Writing Award. She earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Communication, cum laude, from California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, and holds a Certificate in Management Techniques for the Non-Profit Organization.
In 2009, Suzanne was instrumental in the legislative negotiations to modify California’s proposed AB 590, preserving the LDA profession and protecting the rights of consumers to choose from among a number of options to meet their self-help legal needs.
In addition to maintaining two blawgs for her LDA practice, In Propria Persona and The Contractor’s Secret Weapon, Suzanne is a contributor to SCRIBE, ParalegalGateway, and CHS-Law’s Legal Tips & Commentary. She is a member of the Female Legal & Investigative Professionals (FLIP) and the San Diego Paralegal Association.
Contact Suzanne at President@aldap.org or (619) 567-5176.
Kathleen Mountjoy, Secretary/Legislation Director
Kat
Mountjoy has worked in the legal field for over thirty years as a legal
secretary and paralegal. She has actively served the legal community in
various capacities, including active involvement with:
- President, Stockton San Joaquin County Legal Secretaries’ Association
- Director & Speaker, Northern Central Valley Forum
- Member, California State Bar Law Office Management Section
- Member, California State Bar Family Law Section
- Director, Mock Trials — San Joaquin County Superior Court
- Speaker, Humphreys School of Law; Legal Secretaries Incorporated
- Participated in LSI negotiations between Matthew Bender and The Rutter Group in relation to publication contract — The Legal Secretary’s Handbook
- Assisted with preparation and marketing of The Rutter Group Legal Secretary’s Handbook —Family Law
- State Bar of California Convention Volunteer (1985 — 1995)
- Director, California Association of Legal Document Assistants (CALDA)
- President, North State Chapter, CALDA
- Member of Female Legal & Investigative Professionals (FLIP)
Kat retired from the law firm of McDonough Holland & Allen (Sacramento) in early 2005, and registered as a legal document assistant soon thereafter. Kat works as a “dual” professional, actively working both as a paralegal and as an LDA. Together with business partner and Technical Sage, Michael Brinsley, she owns and operates Catalyst Legal, a dynamic state of the art self-help legal and technology service center providing clients the ability to research and create legal documents and forms on their own or with assistance using a registered and bonded legal document assistant.
In 2009, Kat’s eleventh-hour discovery of California’s proposed AB 590 resulted in significant amendments to the bill which, absent the amendments, would have effectively outlawed the LDA profession and drastically limited the rights of consumers to choose non-attorney alternatives including LDAs and unbundled legal services.
Kat is one of ALDAP’s co-founders, and currently serves as Secretary and Legislation Director. She has previously served as ALDAP’s President and Director of Compliance & Ethics.
Contact Kat at Secretary@aldap.org or (916) 644-3090.
Gail Hahn, Treasurer/Education Director
Gail
Hahn is a life-long paralegal, and was one of San Diego County's first
registered legal document assistants. Hahn operates Legal
Choices offers self-help legal document preparation, paralegal and
mediation services. In addition to serving as Treasurer, Gail is currently
ALDAP’s Education Director. She chairs the association’s Court
Liaison Committee, serves as the point of contact for ALDAP’s recommendations
to the Judicial Council of California’s Elkins Family Law Task Force,
and oversees ALDAP’s educational events, including the popular LDA Roundtable.
Contact Gail at Treasurer@aldap.org or (619) 593-6000.
Anna Taylor, Director of Fundraising & Membership/Director of
Compliance & Ethics
Anna
Taylor, ALDAP’s Director of Compliance & Ethics, operates Sapphire
Typing Service, where she specializes in assisting individuals with
customer service, identity theft and other consumer protection issues.
Anna is a bonded legal document assistant, registered in Orange County, and a Certified and Background Screened Notary Signing Agent. She holds a Certificate in Paralegal Studies and a Certificate in Legal Administrative Assistant Studies. For several years, Anna worked as a California Licensed Security Guard. She later attained a position at National Recreational Land Liquidators, where she assisted with streamlining Land Buyer contracts to Land Sellers. In 2009, Anna registered as an Orange County LDA and established her self-help legal service.
Anna was recently invited to appear in a new book by Sally Shields, a noted speaker, and radio personality.
She presently also serves as ALDAP’s Director of Fundraising & Membership and recruits active, student and advisory members; coordinates events; and networks ALDAP with complementary legal professionals.
Contact Anna at Membership@aldap.org or (714) 352-1818.
Amanda Ruth Paull, Esq., MDR, Advisory Member
Amanda
Ruth Paull, Esq., MDR, is a graduate of the Pepperdine University School
of Law, where she concurrently earned her Master’s Degree in Dispute
Resolution at the number-one-ranked Straus
Institute for Dispute Resolution. During her time at the Straus Institute,
she received a certification in Domestic Relations Dispute Resolution
and mediated numerous small claims, limited jurisdiction and victim/offender
cases.
Amanda graduated with her Juris Doctor in 2004 and with her Master’s in Dispute Resolution in 2005. After her admission to the California State Bar in 2005, she worked exclusively in the family law litigation field. During this time, she witnessed first hand the emotional and financial ruin of her clients as they moved through the litigated divorce process. Further, she saw the devastating effect traditional litigated divorce has on children.
Amanda believes that knowledge is integral to alleviating the fears of the unknown and helping self-representing parties make informed decisions.
Click here to contact Amanda.
Michael Brinsley, Advisory Member
Michael
Brinsley is a 1987 graduate of California State University, Sacramento,
where he obtained his Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration
with emphasis in Management Information Systems (MIS). Further interests
in technology propelled him into a career focused on sales, setup and
assembly of computers.
Michael’s continued business success expanded to include web hosting and design services provided through his company, iServe. Michael’s expertise enables him to configure specialized IT applications for a multitude of clients, including doctors, hotels, homes and legal offices.
Michael became involved in the legal document assistant profession in 2005, as a partner in Catalyst Legal and technical consultant for several LDAs and related legal associations. He is a registered process server and commissioned notary public, and now enjoys optimizing Self-Help Legal Services in concert with with his continued IT and self-help technologies and solutions.
Michael serves as the designer, webmaster and technical contact for ALDAP’s statewide LDA Directory.
Click here to contact Michael.
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