For June we are pleased to shine the spotlight on one of our clients. Enjoy Alisha’s story!
People often ask Alisha why she wanted to become a lawyer after teaching for so many years. She explains that she always had an interest in understanding equality v. inequality and knowing what a person’s rights were. As a teacher, she often wished she could do more for people.
When her family moved to Maryland due to her husband’s new job at the World Bank, she decided that it was time for a career change. When their son started college, Alisha started law school. She commuted from her home in Silver Spring, Maryland to Baltimore and attended classes at the University of Maryland law school. She was one of the few “moms” to be in her law school class. She graduated in May, took the bar exam that summer, and was admitted to practice law in Maryland in December 2010. Their daughter graduated from high school that same year.
Finding work was not easy, though, in this highly competitive DC metro area, especially as a non-traditional graduate. To gain experience, Alisha volunteered at legal clinics, observed several attorneys and started by taking family law cases pro bono. Alisha was grateful to have mentoring attorneys guide her through these custody, child support, and divorce cases. Eventually, she rented an office in Rockville, Maryland and continued to broaden her practice by working with another attorney, Daniel Steven, on estate planning and probate administration. She became licensed to practice in the District of Columbia in 2016.
Alisha enjoys helping clients understand the legal process and what choices they have. She has represented clients in divorce, child support, child custody, guardianship, probate administration, and estate planning. She also reviews contracts and negotiates settlements.
Part of being a solo attorney is the challenge of finding time to develop her business and to market her legal services. A few years ago, Alisha joined a business networking group and learned about Roberta Biese and RWS Consulting through another attorney who hired her to develop his web site. Alisha found Roberta to be patient, thorough, and easy to work with while building her web site. Alisha can relax now knowing that RWS Consulting also manages her web site.
In her free time, Alisha loves being with her family and friends. She also likes to hike, go for bike rides, practice her French, and attend comedy shows. And sometimes, she even learns a bit of new technology.
Thanks for reading!