Administration & Staff
James M. Smolich, Esq.
CEO
Kelly White
CFO
Brittney Adkins-Neumann, MBA
Executive Director
Filomena Yeroshek, Esq.
Dean
LeeAnn Stone, Ed.D.
Director, Institutional Research, Curriculum & Assessment
Aparna Aginhotri, Esq.
Student Resource Center Director
Melissa Fuller-Haskin
Registrar
Nikkole St. Mary, B.A.
Admissions Counselor
Faculty
Our professors do more than teach law, they practice it.
The faculty of Lincoln Law School consists of judges and lawyers from the legal community. Their practical experience provides context for the substantive material they teach, highlighting for the students the day-to-day application of the law. The students not only receive a realistic view of law practice but also have available highly qualified practitioners to act as mentors and role models.
Hon. Bunmi Awoniyi
Family Law and Community Property; B.A., University of Essex; LL.M., University of Leicester School of Law; J.D., Inns of court School of Law; admitted to practice in California State and Federal Courts, 1991; faculty member since 2015. Judge Awoniyi is currently a judge for the Sacramento County Superior Court.
Hon. Michael Bowman
Criminal Law; B.A., California Polytechnic State University; J.D. McGeorge School of Law; admitted to practice in California State and Federal Courts, 1988; faculty member since 2014. Judge Bowman is currently a judge for the Sacramento County Superior Court.
Jessica Cheong
Legal Analysis; B.Com, University of the Witwatersrand; L.L.B, University of the Witwatersrand School of Law; admitted to practice in the Northern Province of South Africa, 1997; admitted to practice in California State and Federal Courts, 2011; faculty member since 2012.
Tamiya Davis
Laws and the Judicial System of the United States; B.S., California Polytechnic State University; J.D., Lincoln Law School of Sacramento; admitted to practice in California State and Federal Courts, 2004; faculty member since 2008. Professor Davis is currently staff counsel with the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
Erin Doering
Moot Court; B.A. Arizona State University; J.D. McGeorge School of Law; admitted to practice in California State and Federal Court, 2012; faculty member since 2020. Professor Doering is currently a Deputy Attorney General with the Appeals Writs & Trials Section at the Department of Justice.
Hon. Laurie Earl
Criminal Law Pleading and Practice; B.A., University of California, Berkeley; J.D., Lincoln Law School of Sacramento; admitted to practice in California State and Federal Courts, 1989; faculty member since 2014. Judge Earl is currently a judge for the Sacramento County Superior Court. In 2013, she received a Ronald M. George Award for Judicial Excellence from the Judicial Council of California and Judge of the Year from the Sacramento County Bar Association. Named Alumnus of the Year in 2005 and 2012.
Hon. Curtis Fiorini
Evidence; B.S., California State University, Stanislaus; J.D., California Western School of Law; admitted to practice in California State and Federal Courts, 1995; faculty member since 2011. Judge Fiorini is currently a judge for the Sacramento County Superior Court.
Robert Gold
Legal Analysis; B.A., University of California, Davis; J.D., Lincoln Law School of Sacramento; admitted to practice in California State and Federal Courts, 1986; faculty
member since 1987. Professor Gold recently retired as an Assistant Chief Deputy District Attorney in the Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office. In 1993, he received an award for Outstanding Victim Service, and in 1996 he was named Sacramento County Prosecutor of the Year.
Stephen Grippi
Introduction to Legal Studies; B.A., California State University, Sacramento; J.D., Lincoln Law School of Sacramento; admitted to practice in California State and Federal Courts, 1986; faculty member since 1987. Professor Grippi recently retired as the Chief Deputy District Attorney in the Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office. In 2002, he was named Sacramento County Prosecutor of the Year.
Amy Holiday
Trial Advocacy; B.S., California State University, Fresno; J.D. University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law; admitted to practice in California State and Federal Courts, 1997; faculty member since 2019. Professor Holiday is currently an Assistant Chief Deputy in the Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office. In 2014 she received the Outstanding Victim Service Award and in 2015 she received the Brian L. Hintz Memorial Prosecutor of the Year Award.
Hon. Garen Horst
Trial Advocacy; B.A. University of California, Santa Barbara; J.D. George Washington University Law Center, Washington D.C.; admitted to practice in California State and Federal Courts, 1993; faculty member since 2021. Judge Horst is currently a judge for the Placer County Superior Court. In 1997 and 2006 he was named Prosecutor of the Year, Placer County District Attorney’s Office and in 2008 the California District Attorneys Association (CDAA) named him Outstanding Prosecutor of the Year, small and medium counties in the state of California.
Lisa Kobayashi
Immigration Law; J.D., University of California, Davis, LL.M., Keio Graduate School of Law; LL.B., Keio University; admitted to practice in California State Federal Courts, 2006; faculty member since 2015. Professor Kobayashi is currently in private practice specializing in Immigration Law.
Heath Langle
Wills and Trusts and Professional Responsibility; B.A., San Francisco State University; M.A., University of Phoenix; J.D., Lincoln Law School of Sacramento; admitted to practice in California State and Federal Courts, 2006; faculty member since 2019. Professor Langle is currently in private practice specializing in estate planning, probate, conservatorship and probate and trust litigation.
Hon. Marcie Larson
Administrative Law and Real Property; B.A., California State University, Chico; J.D., Lincoln Law School of Sacramento; admitted to practice in California State and Federal Courts, 2000; faculty member since 2015. Judge Larson is currently an Administrative Law Judge for the Office of Administrative Hearings, State of California.
Derrek J. Lee
Legal Research and Writing; B.A., University of California at Davis; J.D., Thomas Jefferson School of Law; admitted to practice in California State and Federal Courts, 2014; faculty member since 2022. Professor Lee is currently a Senior Appellate Attorney at the Third District Court of Appeal.
Anisha Leibert
Workers’ Compensation; B.A., University of California, Santa Cruz; J.D., Southwestern Law School; admitted to practice in California State and Federal Courts, 2012; faculty member since 2017. Professor Leibert is currently in private practice.
Scott Mallery
Civil Procedure; B.A., University of California, Davis; J.D., McGeorge School of Law; admitted to practice in California State and Federal Courts, 2012; faculty member since 2021. Professor Mallery is currently counsel at Sayfarth Shaw, LLP, a worldwide firm specializing in litigation and transactional legal service.
Jamie Mauhay Powers
Introduction to Legal Studies; J.D., Lincoln Law School of Sacramento; admitted to practice in California State and Federal Courts, 2019; faculty member since 2021. Professor Mauhay Powers is a Civil Litigation Attorney at Kershaw, Cook & Talley, specializing in class actions and mass torts.
Hon. Troy Nunley
Business Associations and Agency; B.A., St. Mary’s College; J.D., University of California, Hastings College of the Law; admitted to practice in California State and Federal Courts, 1990; faculty member since 2006. Judge Nunley is currently a United States District Court Judge for the Eastern District of California.
Linda Parisi
Criminal Procedure; B.A., University of California, Berkeley; J.D., Lincoln Law School of Sacramento; admitted to practice in California State and Federal Courts, 1978; faculty member since 1988. Professor Parisi is a retired Public Defender from the Sacramento County Public Defender’s office and is currently in private practice.
Raymond Rouse
Contracts; B.S., California State University, Sacramento; J.D., Lincoln Law School of Sacramento, Valedictorian; admitted to practice in California State and Federal Courts, 2005; faculty member since 2006. Professor Rouse is currently a Tax Counsel at the California Franchise Tax Board – Legal Division.
James Schiavenza
Torts, Government Tort Liability, ADR/Negotiations; B.S., Santa Clara University; J.D., Santa Clara University School of Law; admitted to practice in California State and Federal Courts, 1974; faculty member since 1984. Professor Schiavenza retired in 2010 from the Office of the Attorney General, Department of Justice, as a Senior Assistant Attorney General and served as the School’s Dean from 2010-2021.
Kathleen Schramm
Legal Writing; B.S., National University; J.D., Lincoln Law School of Sacramento, Valedictorian. Admitted to practice in California State and Federal Courts in 2009. Professor Schramm is currently in private practice specializing in employment law, family law, and estate planning.
Selvi Stanislaus
Taxation; B.A., Sri Lanka College; L.L.M. McGeorge School of Law; J.D., Lincoln Law School of Sacramento; admitted to practice in California State and Federal Courts, 1995; faculty member since 2002. Professor Stanislaus is currently the Chief Executive Officer of the Franchise Tax Board for the State of California.
Hon. Jill Talley
Remedies and Torts; B.A., Rutgers College, New Brunswick; J.D., Pepperdine School of Law; admitted to practice in California State and Federal Courts, 1995. Faculty member since 2012. Judge Talley is currently a Judge for Sacramento County Superior Court
William Wright
Constitutional Law, Civil Law Pleading and Practice; J.D., Lincoln Law School of Sacramento; admitted to practice in California State and Federal Courts, 1983; faculty member since 1984. Professor Wright is currently in private practice in Sacramento practicing employment law and civil rights litigation.
Hon. Julie Yap
Civil Procedure; B.A. Fordham University; J.D., Fordham University School of Law; admitted to practice in California State and Federal Courts, 2006; faculty member since 2021. Judge Yap is currently a judge for the Sacramento County Superior Court.
Filomena Yeroshek
Dean, Professional Responsibility and Advanced Professional Responsibility; B.A. University of California, Davis; J.D., University of California, Davis School of Law; admitted to practice in California State and Federal Courts, 1986; faculty member since 1997. Dean Yeroshek retired in 2021 from the Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability Commission as Chief Counsel.