Sophie C. Bidet
V-CardMs. Bidet joined Trope and Trope LLP in October 2006. She earned her Juris Doctor degree from the University of San Francisco School of Law and her Bachelor of Arts degree with Dean's Honors from the University of California, San Diego. Prior to joining Trope and Trope LLP, Ms. Bidet was an associate at Buter, Buzard, Dunaetz & Fishbein LLP, where she also practiced family law. While in law school, Ms. Bidet interned at Clifford Chance in Paris, France and worked for the Department of Labor-EBSA. At Trope and Trope LLP, Ms. Bidet's practice is dedicated exclusively to family law. She is admitted to practice in California and is a member of the Los Angeles County Bar Association (Family Law Section), the American Bar Association, the Beverly Hills Bar Association, and the Consulat General de France à Los Angeles as a French-speaking family law attorney. Ms. Bidet was named a Southern California Super Lawyer Rising Star in 2008. Ms. Bidet’s opinion includes the unpublished California Court of Appeal case of Reynaga v. Reynaga, 2010 Cal.App. Unpub. LEXIS 8614.
Sarah M. Engelbert
V-CardMs. Engelbert obtained her Juris Doctor degree and Certificate in Dispute Resolution from Pepperdine University School of Law in 2005 and her Bachelor of Science degree from Valparaiso University. She is admitted to practice law in California, the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, and Illinois. Prior to joining Trope and Trope LLP, Ms. Engelbert practiced family law at a Beverly Hills law firm where she handled client cases from intake through trial. She has argued over 100 motions and order to show cause hearings and has been the lead attorney on multiple trials. Ms. Engelbert's practice is exclusively devoted to family law litigation. She is a member of the Los Angeles County Bar Association.
Michelle Fay
V-CardMs. Fay joined Trope and Trope LLP as an associate in 2007. She earned her Juris Doctor degree from Loyola Law School and her Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of California, Los Angeles. Before joining the firm, she practiced civil litigation for three and a half years. She then opted to change the focus of her practice and volunteered as a pro bono attorney with the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles's Family Law and Domestic Violence clinic in Santa Monica. Prior to joining Trope and Trope LLP, Ms. Fay worked for a sole practitioner in Century City practicing predominantly family law. She now devotes her practice exclusively to family law matters. Ms. Fay is admitted to practice in California.
Angela D. Harris (Cairns)
V-CardMs. Harris was admitted to the Law Society of Upper Canada in 1997 and began her career as a civil litigator in Toronto, Ontario. Admitted to the State Bar of California in 1999, her practice is now limited exclusively to family law. Ms. Harris has been named as a Rising Star by Southern California Super Lawyers in 2005; 2006; 2007; 2008; 2009; 2010 and 2011. In addition to practicing family law, Ms. Harris has made several appearances on the nationally syndicated legal news program Celebrity Justice. Ms. Harris raises her two sons in Brentwood, California.
Katherine Heersema
V-CardMs. Heersema joined Trope and Trope LLP as an associate in 2010. She obtained her Juris Doctor degree from the University of Southern California Law School and her Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of California, Los Angeles. Before joining Trope and Trope LLP, Ms. Heersema practiced family law at another Los Angeles law firm. Ms. Heersema is admitted to practice in California and the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. She is a member of the Los Angeles County Bar Association.
Soo J. Kim
V-CardMs. Kim has been admitted to practice law in California since 1995 and is certified as a Specialist in Family Law by The State Bar of California Board of Legal Specialization. She earned her Juris Doctor degree from Southwestern Law School, her Master of Education (with emphasis in Counseling Psychology) from the University of California, Santa Barbara and her Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of California, Irvine.
Prior to pursuing a career in law, Ms. Kim was an educational and psychological counselor. For the past 16 years, her legal practice has been devoted exclusively to the area of family law. Ms. Kim speaks fluent Korean. She is a member of the Los Angeles County and Asian American Bar Associations. Ms. Kim also volunteers her time as trial counsel for Harriett Buhai clients and is on the Board of Directors of Levitt and Quinn.
Jennifer M. Leong
V-CardMs. Leong joined Trope and Trope LLP as an associate in 2008. She earned both her Bachelor of Arts and Juris Doctor degrees from the University of Southern California. In law school, Ms. Leong interned with the Harriett Buhai Center for Family Law and Public Counsel's Children's Rights Project, and externed for a Judge in the Family Law section of the Los Angeles County Superior Court. Ms. Leong's practice is devoted exclusively to family law. She is an active attorney volunteer with the Buhai Center, providing free legal services to low income individuals. Ms. Leong is admitted to practice in California and before the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California and the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
Jonathan Pakravan
V-CardMr. Pakravan joined Trope and Trope LLP as an associate in 2006. He earned his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Southern California Law School and his Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of California, Los Angeles. While in law school, Mr. Pakravan was an extern in the Family Law Division of the Los Angeles Superior Court. He is admitted to practice in California and is a member of the Los Angeles County and Beverly Hills Bar Associations.
Mirka Royston
V-CardMs. Royston practices family law litigation, encompassing all issues pertaining to divorce, separation, child custody, child support, spousal support, restraining orders and property distribution. In addition to family law, her experience includes litigation of complex business disputes, insurance and professional negligence claims. Ms. Royston has conducted several trials, and has successfully argued numerous motions and orders to show cause, including a contested motion for nonsuit. She obtained her Bachelor of Laws degree from Osgoode Hall Law School and her Bachelor of Arts degree from York University. She was admitted to the U.S. District Court, Eastern District of California in 1998, the California Bar in 1997, and the Ontario Bar in 1996. Ms. Royston has been named a Southern California Super Lawyer Rising Star for 2005 through 2008, and is recognized in America’s Who’s Who for having achieved success in her field. Mirka has volunteered for Break the Cycle, a nonprofit organization providing preventive domestic violence education and free legal services to teens throughout Los Angeles County. She has also acted as a volunteer mediator for the Los Angeles Superior Court and has made numerous appearances as a family law advisor on legal news programs.
Tara L. Scott
V-CardMs. Scott joined the firm in August 2001 and began practicing shortly thereafter upon successful completion of the California Bar Exam. She earned her Juris Doctor and Masters in Dispute Resolution degrees from Pepperdine University, and her Bachelor of Arts degree from Loyola Marymount University. Ms. Scott is admitted to practice in California and is a member of the Los Angeles County and Beverly Hills Bar Associations.
Melanie Shornick
V-CardMs. Shornick has devoted her practice exclusively to family law since joining Trope and Trope LLP as an associate in 2006. She earned her Juris Doctor degree from Southwestern Law School and her Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of California, Los Angeles. Ms. Shornick is admitted to practice in California. Prior to joining Trope and Trope LLP, Ms. Shornick was an associate at Reback, McAndrews & Kjar where her practice was dedicated to defending claims of professional liability including the defense of physicians, hospitals and health organizations in such areas as malpractice and sexual harassment. Ms. Shornick has acted as a volunteer mediator for the Los Angeles Superior Court and was selected as a Rising Star for Southern California Super Lawyers in 2009, 2010 and 2011. Her published opinions include Simmons v. Ghaderi (2008) 44 Cal. 4th 570 and Quintanilla v. Dunkelman (2005) 133 Cal.App. 4th 95.
Hillary Slevin
V-CardMs. Slevin joined Trope and Trope LLP in 2003 after completing a two-year clerkship as a judicial research attorney at the Los Angeles Superior Court, Family Law Department. She obtained her Juris Doctor degree from the University of California, Los Angeles Law School and her Bachelor of Arts degree from Hampshire College. During her tenure with the Court, Ms. Slevin worked with numerous judicial officers. Currently, Ms. Slevin focuses in all areas of family law including dissolutions, paternity, custody, and pre and post marital agreements. She is admitted to practice in California.
Mary Dinius White
V-CardPreviously a sole practitioner, Ms. White joined Trope and Trope LLP in 2001. She received certification as a Specialist in Family Law from the State Bar of California Board of Legal Specialization in September 2007, and also practices in the area of trusts and estates. Ms. White earned her Juris Doctorate degree from Loyola Law School, with membership granted in The Order of the Coif, an honorary scholastic society whose purpose is to recognize and encourage excellence in the field of legal education. She was admitted to the State Bar of California in 1991, and is also a member of the Los Angeles County Bar Association, as well as the Los Angeles County Bar and State Bar Family Law Sections. Ms. White's current practice primarily involves litigation and settlement of family law matters, including: dissolutions; child custody; child and spousal support; property division; paternity; and drafting and litigation of prenuptial and postnuptial agreements and cohabitation agreements. In the area of trusts and estates, her practice encompasses estate planning, including the drafting of family living trusts, wills, powers of attorney, and advance health care directives; uncontested probate matters; and guardianship and trust litigation. In addition, she previously handled criminal appeals under appointment from the California Court of Appeal as a member of the Panel of the California Appellate Project.
Ms. White presently serves on the Pro Bono Panel of the Harriet Buhai Center for Family Law and volunteers as a family law settlement officer for the Los Angeles Superior Court. She has also served on the Board of Directors of the Airport Marina Counseling Service, a nonprofit mental health clinic serving the Westside and South Bay. And she was the Awards/Advancements Chair and den leader for Cub Scout Pack 748 in Westchester. Prior to entering law, Ms. White, who graduated magna cum laude from Loyola Marymount University with her Bachelor of Science degree, was a Member of the Technical Staff at Hughes Aircraft Company. While there, she was part of a team awarded a patent for tear-resistant flexible flat cables, and helped author a training manual for NASA-certified soldering. Before joining Hughes Aircraft, she taught high school chemistry and physics.
