Honorable Jacqueline Duong, the first Vietnamese-American woman appointed to the bench in Northern California, to speak at KGACLC annual event

Judge Jacqueline Duong, appointed by Governor Schwarzenegger on May 23, 2007, is the first Vietnamese American woman appointed to the bench in Northern California.

Judge Duong was born in Vietnam and immigrated to the United States with her family in April of 1975, first to Pennsylvania then, in 1980, to California. She is a graduate of the California public education system, starting with Franklin-McKinley Elementary School, J.W. Fair Middle School, Yerba Buena High School, then graduating Magna Cum Laude from San Jose State University in 1991 with a degree in Political Science. She later obtained her Juris Doctorate degree in 1994 from the University of California, Davis School of Law.

Prior to her appointment, Judge Duong has spent most of her legal career in the public sector. She started her legal career working in private practice at the Law Office of J. Thomas Sherrod, then worked for the Santa Clara County Office of the Public Defender for three and half years. She transitioned from criminal to civil practice by joining the Santa Clara County Office of County Counsel in 1999, where she worked for eight years until her appointment to the bench.

In addition to her professional accomplishments, Judge Duong has a long history and a wide-range of community experience. She served as a member of the Asian Law Alliance Board of Directors and was a past President in 1999 and 2000. She also served on a variety of Boards and Commissions, including the Santa Clara County Bar Association (SCCBA) Blue Ribbon Diversity Commission, the KNTV Community Board, the East Side San Jose Community Law Center Advisory Board, the Santa Clara County Domestic Violence Council, and the San Jose Mercury News VietMercury Advisory Board. She was also a coach for the Mocktrial program for her alma mater Yerba Buena High School.

Judge Duong was the Co-Founder and the first President of the Vietnamese American Bar Association of Northern California (1996). In 2006, she spearheaded the inaugural National Conference of Vietnamese American Attorneys attended by more than 150 Vietnamese American attorneys from across the country. Judge Duong is also the Founder of the Vietnamese American Professional Women of Silicon Valley (2006). Judge Duong has been the recipient of various awards, including the recent SCCBA Women Lawyers Award (2010), the Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi Distinguished Alumni Award (2009), National Conference of Vietnamese American Attorneys Trailblazer Award (2008), Asian Law Alliance Legal Impact Award (2008), the Vietnamese American Bar Association of Northern California Trailblazer Award (2007), the Santa Clara County Bar Association MAC Unsung Heroes Award (2007), the County of Santa Clara County Executive Unity in Diversity Award (2006), and the Helen Tsao Community Service Award (1999). In 2008, she was named as one of the "Women of Influence in Silicon Valley" by the Silicon Valley/San Jose Business Journal.

Judge Duong is the current Presiding Judge of the Superior Court Appellate Division, and serves on the Judicial Council’s Access and Fairness Advisory Committee and the CJER Ethics and Fairness Education Committee. Judge Duong is currently assigned to the Juvenile Justice Court and oversees the Juvenile Treatment Court. As part of her work as a Juvenile Justice Judge, she collaborated with the East Side Union High School District and Franklin McKinley School District to host an Education Forum to address gang violence and substance abuse for past two immediate consecutive years. Judge Duong is committed to serving the community by pursuing opportunities to mentor students and young professionals. She is a firm believer in giving back to the community in the form of public and community service.

At six years of age, Javier Villegas knew intuitively that there had to be a profession that would allow him to fight injustice. Now, as a graduating 3rd-year law student who just finished taking the Consumer Rights course at the Alexander Community Law Center, he is well on his way to keeping his appointment with fate.

For him, it all goes back to an event he witnessed as a child while playing in a neighborhood park in Sacramento – a place also frequented by many homeless people. A compassionate child, he had convinced his mom to make a few tacos to feed a Spanish-speaking homeless man he had seen at the park. And then, while the man was eating, a police car pulled over abruptly and two officers ran towards the homeless man. In an instant, the officers brushed the man’s plate to the ground, tackled him, handcuffed him and threw him in the police car, as if all this was necessary to make an example out of him before the captive audience of Latino neighborhood children. This made an indelible impression on young Javier as he thought, “You must never treat a defenseless human being that way. That seems very unfair, and when I grow up, I want to do something about that.”

Today, the homeless man has become symbolic of the clients he worked with at the Community Law Center. One of those clients is Ms. Escorcia, a Spanish-speaking woman who purchased a used car from a local dealership in November, 2010. Nearly three months after the purchase, the dealership invalidated the contract and asked Ms. Escorcia to return with a co-signer. Soon after that, the dealership cancelled the second contract and offered to refund her money but only if she purchased a different car simultaneously. The salesman limited her options to three different cars on the lot, all of them allegedly in good working order. She picked one of the cars, drove home and discovered that the brakes did not work. She returned the car to the dealership immediately but the salesman ignored her when she asked for a refund or a remedy to the situation. Shortly thereafter, she received a notice in the mail indicating that the second car had been sold and that she was liable for some optional items that were never included in the third English-only contract. Ms. Escorcia sought assistance from the Consumer Rights Clinic at the Katharine & George Alexander Community Law Center.

“Researching the applicable law and putting into practice what I learned in class was very exciting,” said Javier of this case. Working under the supervision of Consumer Rights Attorney Scott Maurer, Javier wrote a very thorough demand letter on his client’s behalf. He determined that the dealership had violated California’s Consumer Legal Remedies Act, the Automobile Sales Finance Act and the California Translation Act, among other statutes. To his client’s relief, the dealership promptly rescinded the third contract, which represented nearly $12,000, and returned the $2,300 that Ms. Escorcia had already paid.

Javier worked with his client entirely in Spanish – a language skill he perfected in pursuit of his double degree in English and Spanish Literature while in college. “Ever since I was little, I had to translate for my parents, so I understood the power of language very early on. Now, I want to give a voice to the people who do not have one and empower them. Speaking to my client in her own language gave her much confidence, and I think it also made me a better advocate for her. This is what I have wanted to do all my life,” he said.
 

The KGACLC is the fortunate beneficiary of the legal services provided by James Lindfelt ’10, the recipient of a public interest fellowship offered by the Pillsbury, Winthrop, Shaw, Pittman law firm (simply known as “Pillsbury”). The one-year fellowship, which started August 2010, has given him the opportunity to work on cases within the Consumer-Debtor and the Workers’ Rights areas at the Community Law Center. This is what James says of his experience:

“My career path followed a model common to many law students. Be successful in law school, spend a summer at a law firm, hopefully be offered a position, graduate, pass the bar and join the firm. However, this path has taken a detour. Instead of joining the firm after graduation, I was offered a year-long public interest fellowship. And I could not be happier.

This has allowed me to work at the place which made me want to be a litigation attorney, the KGACLC. During my two semesters as a student at the KGACLC, I learned the principles necessary to being a successful attorney. It was these principles that helped in my successful completion of law school and in obtaining an associate position at Pillsbury. This fellowship has allowed me to continue my professional development alongside the Community Law Center’s attorneys, but this time as a colleague. During my time at the KGACLC, I have been able to represent Workers’ Rights and Consumer Rights clients in U.S. Bankruptcy Court, U.S. District Court, various Superior Courts, the Labor Commissioner and the Unemployment Appeals Board. Personally, this fellowship has also allowed me to spend time with my wife and our 8-month old son.  I am thankful to Pillsbury for this opportunity and to the KGACLC for allowing me to be a part of the great work that it does for the community."

Over the last few months, James has collaborated very closely with Margarita Alvarez, the Workers’ Rights attorney at the Community Law Center. According to her, James has “enriched our offerings of the Law Center’s programs.

Having studied and tried a case with me, James was ready to step into my shoes on those days when I needed to be in two places at once. Moreover, his litigation experience also prepared him to assist our Consumer Rights program to the point that he is managing the Consumer caseload this summer. We are grateful to Pillsbury for the valuable resources James has brought to our clients, students and staff through their fellowship, ” says Ms. Alvarez.