From the Courtroom to the Conference Table

Andy did not begin his career sitting behind a desk working on corporate documents.

He began it in the courtroom.

After graduating from law school and joining the California Bar in 1982, Andy became a trial attorney with the Orange County District Attorney’s Office. Over the next several years, he handled serious criminal cases and developed the practical judgment, preparation, and confidence that come from being responsible for real cases with real consequences.

It was there that he met Mat Vallance. The two were young prosecutors who regularly found themselves in court, compared notes over lunch with a small group of colleagues, and developed a strong respect for one another’s abilities.

In 1987, they decided to leave government practice and build a firm of their own.

The practice did not become focused on corporate law overnight. Andy and Mat initially drew on their courtroom backgrounds, including criminal defense work, while gradually expanding into other areas of law.

Andy moved into the firm’s small-business and corporate work earlier than Mat, helping develop what eventually became a central focus of the practice.

Nearly four decades later, that same partnership still shapes the way Andy practices: practical rather than theatrical, preventive rather than reactive, and focused on relationships that extend well beyond the initial incorporation.