Summary
Overview
Work History
Education
Skills
Timeline
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Sophia Garcia

Livermore,CA

Summary

Legal professional familiar with reviewing regulations, legislation, and policies. Excellent research, writing, presentation, and public speaking skills. Organized, driven and adaptable with excellent planning and problem-solving abilities. Offering 8 years of experience in legal field, resounding work ethic, scrupulously analytical approach, and willingness to take on any challenge.

Overview

11
11
years of professional experience

Work History

Immigration Paralegal

Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP
06.2021 - Current
  • Drafted, compiled, and filed over 260 work authorization and immigration petitions, including relevant information and documentation to present strongest possible case. Achieved 100% petition approval rate.
  • Researched and produced adeptly condensed and easy-to-understand short-form articles on USCIS policy changes to contribute to firm's daily Immigration Updates newsletter, which was posted emailed to all clients.
  • Met with foreign nationals to synthesize complex legal processes, criteria, and procedures into language accessible to many varying levels of English fluency and explain petition processes, gather information, and determine necessary actions.
  • Consulted with foreign nationals to resolve routine and non-routine questions.
  • Maintained quick and efficient case compilation and filing schedule to enable timely client service delivery and promote firm's income growth.

Writer, Editor & Project Management Assistant

Green Street Consulting
06.2020 - 05.2021
  • Maintained up-to-date knowledge of all 539 California cities and counties' cannabis licensing regulations; including organizing and analyzing primary and secondary research to understand industry market and spot trends.
  • Disseminated daily news content regarding cannabis regulations in any and all of California's 539 cities and counties through company's social media platforms and newsletter for better monitoring and engagement with audiences and identification of stories of strong interest.
  • Corresponded with different state and local environmental protection agencies, city planning departments, and legal counsel to tailor production, manufacturing, sales, or full-stack business licensing plans to accommodate clients' needs and budgets.
  • Attended (via Zoom) and recorded notes on all California City Council and Board of Supervisors meetings regarding cannabis regulation and licensing matters to then include in daily social media and newsletter updates.

Research Assistant

UCSB Department Of Political Science
06.2018 - 06.2019
  • Assisted Dr. Joshua Meyer-Gutbrod with primary research examining variation in 50 state legislators' election campaign rhetoric by evaluating and categorizing campaign statements according to policy arena (as laid out by Comparative Agendas Project).
  • Conducted qualitative and quantitative data analysis examining variation in issue salience between candidates based on district demographics.
  • Employed developing dataset to author scholarly article on "right-to-work" state campaign rhetoric and legislation and isolated effects on working conditions and labor unionization in red versus blue states.
  • Research paper was sole undergraduate project chosen from UCSB Labor Studies program participants for presentation at UCSB History Department's Annual Labor Symposium.

Legal Assistant

Thompson Garcia Law
01.2012 - 01.2018
  • Worked year-round 2012-2014. Worked summers 2015-2018.
  • Filed court documents and legal pleadings with court clerk on behalf of attorneys.
  • Worked alongside attorneys, administrative assistants and fellow legal assistants on complex cases and legal processes.
  • Managed accounts and client records of clients, observing confidentiality and extreme discretion.
  • Prepared for trials, conducting legal research and drafting pleadings.
  • Reviewed, summarized, and organized key evidence exhibits to prepare for trials.

Education

Bachelor of Arts - Political Science

University of California, Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara, CA
12.2022

Coursework - Political Science

Sciences Po Paris
Paris, France
06.2020

Associate of Arts - Political Science

Santa Barbara City College
Santa Barbara, CA
06.2017

Skills

  • Microsoft Office (Outlook, Word, Excel, Powerpoint, Teams, OneDrive, and Sharepoint)
  • Google Workspace (Gmail, Calendar, Meet, Chat, Drive, Docs, Sheets, Slides, Forms, Sites)
  • Strong research and analytical skills;
  • Comprehensive knowledge of US immigration and criminal law;
  • Excellent proofreading and editing skills;
  • Extremely organized and adept at digital management systems and database maintenance;
  • Proven ability to work well independently and collaboratively;
  • Excellent oral and written communication skills;
  • Highly capable of managing multiple projects in various stages of development with strict deadlines simultaneously

Timeline

Immigration Paralegal

Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP
06.2021 - Current

Writer, Editor & Project Management Assistant

Green Street Consulting
06.2020 - 05.2021

Research Assistant

UCSB Department Of Political Science
06.2018 - 06.2019

Legal Assistant

Thompson Garcia Law
01.2012 - 01.2018

Bachelor of Arts - Political Science

University of California, Santa Barbara

Coursework - Political Science

Sciences Po Paris

Associate of Arts - Political Science

Santa Barbara City College

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Sophia Garcia