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N. Stephen
Vokshori, Esq
Managing Attorney
Los Angeles Office
Tel: 877-486-5529
stephen@voklaw.com |
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Education
University of California, Los Angeles School of Law (J.D.)
University of Southern California, Marshall School of Business (B.S.)
Admissions
Member, State Bar of California
Member, Central, Southern, Northern, and Eastern Districts of California
Memberships
National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys
Central District Consumer Bankruptcy Attorney Association
Los Angeles County Bar Association
Commercial Law & Bankruptcy Section, LACBA
Real Property Section, LACBA
Business Law Section, California State Bar
Real Property Law Section, California State Bar
Solo & Small Firm Section, California State Bar
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For the boring bio stuff, just scroll down this page. But if you're interested in meeting Stephen Vokshori, continue reading here.
1. Tell us about your past and current legal practice: where do you work; and what type of law do you practice?
For three years I practiced business and civil litigation at Quinn Emanuel in Los Angeles and Demler Armstrong & Rowland in Long Beach. I then worked in-house for a mortgage company based out of Pasadena – that’s when I realized that consumers were grossly underrepresented. At that point, I decided to make it my priority to represent consumers and homeowners rather than the mortgage companies, and that’s when I started my own practice advocating on behalf of the people. Since then I’ve also been inspired to volunteer at pro bono legal clinics, including Public Counsel’s pro-bono bankruptcy assistance in Los Angeles.
2. How do you like living in Los Angeles?
With mountains, beaches, Hollywood, and great weather...you have to love this place.
3. Who or what inspired you to become a lawyer?
My junior year of college I did one semester of business law, after returning from a summer internship with a securities firm. After taking business law I was convinced that law, and the advocacy it entails, could be both fun and a path to meaningful public service.
It also runs in the family. My sister practices at KL Gates, a large firm in Orange County. We inspire each other to be great at what we do.
4. When are you the happiest?
Sitting by the fireplace, on a winter afternoon in Mammoth, with family and friends.
5. What is your favorite comedy film and why?
The Hangover. It’s the only movie I've seen in the theater and then again several more times on DVD. It was just that funny.
6. What is your all time favorite film and why?
The Shawshank Redemption. Great acting, great characters, great plot, memorable lines -- it had it all.
7. What do you consider your greatest legal accomplishment?
Over the course of the last several years, I’ve helped hundreds of people keep their homes and families intact. Most of us have been witness to the horrible mess created by the housing bubble. Hundreds of thousands of people have lost their homes because of irresponsible lending practices. Spouses unable to cope with the stress of it all have filed or are planning to file for divorce and are watching their families get torn apart.
As a consumer advocate, any time the lender returns a permanent loan modification or the court signs an order confirming a chapter 13 plan or a chapter 7 discharge it is a tremendous feeling of accomplishment. Persuading a large financial institution is a tough burden, and the negotiation process is a considerable emotional and time investment. So having the community validate your efforts is really rewarding. More importantly, you feel like you’ve made a positive impact on society.
8. How would you like to be remembered in the legal community?
An exceptional advocate. A big picture thinker. Honest, tough, and fair.
9. The best thing about being an attorney is…
It draws on many diverse talents, and demands that you develop many different skills. At various times, you have to be both analytical and empathetic, logical and emotional, intellectual and common-sensical. The best attorneys display a remarkable combination of "people skills" and intellect.
10. If you could have any job in the world, what would it be and why?
A college football head coach. You get to mentor players, give motivational speeches, and devise and implement a strategy for victory. And there is perhaps no greater competition than a football game. Plus, you are a pillar of a university community.
BIOGRAPHY – N. Stephen Vokshori, Esq.
Stephen Vokshori graduated Magna Cum Laude from USC’s Marshall School of Business and elected to attend the UCLA School of Law for his Juris Doctor. While in UCLA’s Business Law and Policy Program, he exhibited academic excellence in Real Estate, Corporate, and Finance law, and became a recipient of the Stephen E. Claman Scholarship.
Mr. Vokshori’s work experience has included being managing partner at Taylor & Vokshori, a prominent real estate law firm, in-house legal counsel for a sizeable commercial and residential real estate company, litigation consultant with Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, and litigation associate at Demler Armstrong & Rowland.
As Managing Attorney at Vokshori Law Group, Mr. Vokshori utilizes his unique background in law, accounting, finance, and business when encountering complex real estate transactions, bankruptcy litigation, or business planning in anticipating and formulating solutions for his clients. He brings a strategic perspective to his work that enables clients to understand the issues they face in new ways. All the while, Mr. Vokshori understands that clients want to be kept apprised of their case and he makes time to personally meet with them and provide frequent status reports.
Mr. Vokshori represents clients in all facets of bankruptcy proceedings and litigation, as well as insolvency issues in business transactions, and he represents debtors and secured lenders in their in- and out-of-court restructurings. He also negotiates loan modifications on behalf of distressed homeowners who have been victimized by the proliferation of sub-prime and predatory lending as well as those who have witnessed double-digit percentage declines in property values which has stripped the equity out of their homes.
Mr. Vokshori also regularly advises business owners and entrepreneurs in all of their business transactions including matters relating to business planning and growth, and provides advice and legal services at all stages including startup, business expansion, transition planning and execution. He is also experienced in estate planning and trust administration, including business succession planning for family and other closely held enterprises.
Mr. Vokshori understands the importance of community service and regularly devotes significant time to delivering needed pro bono legal assistance. Throughout his legal career, he has volunteered his services to individuals fighting against corporate and state powers. Volunteering with Public Counsel’s general relief advocacy program, Mr. Vokshori argued to protect the rights of people in the welfare system that were homeless or at risk of becoming so. Mr. Vokshori also provided free legal assistance to UCLA students through UCLA’s Student Legal Services program, counseling students on a wide variety of legal issues.
Currently, Mr. Vokshori spends his free time at Public Counsel’s Consumer Law Project & Debtor Assistance Project in representing below median income debtors with Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 bankruptcy. He also provides assistance to low-income tenants fight against illegal evictions and unlawful detainer actions – a troubling corollary of the subprime mortgage foreclosure crisis.
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