Receivership News is pleased to profile one of its younger and more active members, Stacy Rubin, from the San Diego Chapter of the California Receivers Forum. In the following paragraphs, Stacy tells her story from the beginning, with a focus on those experiences that have made a difference and sound advice for those just starting their legal careers.

Stacy was born in Torrance and raised in Palos Verdes. Like many Southern Californians, her parents were natives of the east coast. Following a record setting snow storm, they not surprisingly decided to move to sunny Southern California.

In high school, Stacy was consumed with community service and volunteerism at a nearby Los Angeles hospital. Most of the time was spent in the pediatric unit, and she was genuinely moved when helping those who were not able to help themselves.

She earned a B.A., in political science (with a minor in Spanish) from the University of California at Santa Barbara in 1999, and graduated from California Western School of Law in 2003.

Before law school, the White House was her next stop as an intern during the Clinton Administration and, no, she emphatically states that she did not know Monica. She worked for the Office of the Vice President and managed communications for Vice President Al Gore’s Task Force. Pretty heady stuff! The highlight of this experience (aside from reading and hearing about Monica) was when Vice President Al Gore and then comedian Al Franken (now a United States Senator) presented an award for “No Gobbledygook” to two gentlemen from the Bureau of Land Management. These gentlemen had shortened a dense, full page regulation to a crisp, four-sentence paragraph. There were only about 15 or so people there, and Stacy reports that the presentation was utterly hysterical.

So with her hospital volunteerism experience, why didn’t Stacy become a doctor rather than a lawyer? Her answer: Writing has always been one of her greatest strengths. Litigation allows her to research legal issues and then craft written arguments to advance her client’s position or present oral argument to the court. Since litigation involves research and writing, she reports that she enjoys this aspect of being a lawyer.

So now we know why Stacy is a lawyer, but how did she become an insolvency lawyer? During law school, she worked for the Sacramento County Counsel – Division of Revenue Recovery as a certified legal research assistant. During her time as a certified legal research assistant, she prepared and presented trial court cases for the County of Sacramento under the supervision of lead counsel. Stacy reports that it was here that she was first exposed to the area of insolvency.

Next, Stacy clerked as a judicial extern for the Honorable Judge Ellen Carroll at the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of California in 2003. She states that it was an excellent way to hone her legal research skills and observe an eclectic array of hearings. After this experience, Stacy started her career as a young lawyer focusing on creditors’ rights and remedies. She quickly ascended to becoming a frequent seminar instructor to continuing legal education participant in areas of debt collection, credit reporting, statutory compliance, and identity theft. She also became licensed to practice in Nevada.

Stacy reports that with this experience, she joined Mulvaney Barry where she has achieved nirvana by practicing both litigation and insolvency law. She handles a fair amount of commercial litigation cases in addition to receivership work. One of Stacy’s most memorable cases occurred when she was working on a receivership matter involving a residential care facility for the elderly. It was important to make the transition as seamless as possible so as not to disturb the residents. This especially resonated with her because her 99-year old grandmother lives at such a facility. The assignment was also, RN observed, akin to her voluntarism in the medical arena.

In addition to practicing law, Stacy has been very active in the California Receivers Forum. Stacy identified three important benefits of membership in this organization: (a) Networking opportunities – where one can deepen existing business relationships and make new contacts on a regular basis; (b) Professional development – these relationships afford an ongoing source of inspiration and ideas for professional development, offering members the chance to update their knowledge of business and industry trends; and (c) Support systems – members can often take advantage of mentoring relationships (even on an informal basis) with more experienced professionals who provide guidance and useful insights.

There is a personal side to Stacy. She was just married in September to Derek Foppes, and the gleeful couple honeymooned in Fiji (see picture). Stacy’s hobbies are yoga, travel, hiking, and playing with her mischievous rescue dog.

Stacey’s response to the question: “Who are your most important mentors?”: “It always makes me nervous to single out one person as my mentor because I have been influenced and inspired by so many different people, and I would not want to insult someone by omission. I wish I could simply list them all but if there is one person who set the foundation for the lawyer I have become, it would be my great uncle, Herbert Rubin. He is one of the smartest and most meticulous lawyers I have ever met. At 95, he still practices law and goes into the office every day…a true inspiration! As I have told him before, I would not be the attorney I am today if not for the care he took to guide me. More importantly, he officiated at our recent wedding.” What a nice testament!

RN asked Stacy what advice she might have for new, young lawyers. She offered three suggestions that she gleaned from her great uncle before she began practicing:

1. Develop meaningful relationships with a goal of getting to know everyone in the office and learn how to function together to achieve the firm’s goals and perhaps most importantly, know when to seek help from others.

2. Find a mentor who can provide insight by sharing information about their own experiences, and perhaps act as a valuable sounding board. The Young Insolvency Professionals group is a terrific resource.

3. Get involved: Become actively involved in the area of insolvency. Perhaps consider volunteering for a local bar event or dive into a leadership position as a panelist for an insolvency program.

RN is not in the business of forecasting success, but based on this interview, RN would not be surprised to have just interviewed a future Chair of the California Receivers Forum. Stay tuned.

* *Robert P. Mosier is a Southern California receiver and trustee and principal of Mosier & Company, Inc., a firm that has specialized in managing and turning around troubled companies for more than 25 years.