North Bay Business Journal

Spotlight on law firm managing partners, listed alphabetically by law firm name: Patrick Emery of Abbey, Weitzenberg, Warren & Emery, Wendy Whitson of Anderson, Zeigler, Disharoon, Gallagher & Gray, Michael Garcia of Beyers Costin, Arthur Curley of Bradley, Curley, Asiano, Barrabee & Gale, Alan Brayton of Brayton Purcell, John Mackie of Carle, Mackie, Power & Ross, Clay Clement of Clement, Fitzpatrick & Kenworthy, Cynthia Smith of Coombs & Dunlap, Scott Gerien of Dickenson, Peatman & Fogarty, Katherine Ohlandt of Farella Braun + Martel, Peter Kleinbrodt of Freitas, McCarthy, McMahon & Keating, John Friedemann of Friedemann Goldberg, Dave Gaw of Gaw Van Male, Michael Carlson of Geary, Shea, O’Donnell, Grattan & Mitchell, Andrew Giacomini of Hanson Bridgett, Jessica Karner of Keegin Harrison Schoppert Smith & Karner, Bill Arnone of Merrill, Arnone & Jones, Anne Hernandez of Mullen & Filippi, James Parrinello of Nielsen, Merksamer, Parrinello, Mueller & Naylor, Michael Watters of O’Brien Watters & Davis, James Sell of Parton Sell Rhoades, Leslie Perry of Perry, Johnson, Anderson, Miller & Moskowitz, David Feingold of Ragghianti Freitas, Glenn Smith of Smith Dollar, Gregory Spaulding of Spaulding McCullough & Tansil, and Michael Vasquez of Vasquez, Estrada & Conway.

College of Marin hired Jonathan Eldridge as new vice president of Student Services. …

Attorney Michael Pfeifer has joined Santa Rosa-based law firm Smith Dollar PC. Mr. Pfeifer will head the firm’s office in Orange. … Also joining the firm’s Orange County office are attorneys Annabelle de la Mora and Libby Wong. …

Buckelew Programs named Steve Eckert, LCSW, as the organization’s new executive director. …

Kim Kaselionis has been named to the governing board of the Women’s Inititative for Self-Employment, a national organization headquartered in Novato, and elected to the Marin Women’s Hall of Fame. …

The Press Democrat appointed Jennifer Williams as director of advertising. …

Blu Homes, Inc. announced that Gary Martell has joined the company as chief financial officer, based in Vallejo. …

Visit Napa Valley promoted Sonyia Grabski to vice president, consumer direct marketing. …

Cline Cellars and Jacuzzi Family Vineyards promoted Keith Morris to vice president and national sales manager. …

SANTA ROSA — Smith Dollar PC opened the firm’s third office, located in Lewisville, Texas, giving the financial services law firm now a presence in three states — California, Florida and now Texas.

Sept. 12, 2012: Bank of Marin held their annual Shred Day event at the Napa Branch office. Event attendees also brought school supplies of notebooks, packs of crayons, pencils and pens, glue and reams of copy paper. Bank of Marin will match the donations with a $5,000 contribution to the Napa Valley Education Foundation. / Aug. 10, 2012: Smith Dollar’s 3rd Annual Contractors BBQ & ECA Monthly Mixer

Bank of Marin has announced several management promotions at its Petaluma offices. …

Smith Dollar PC announced that mortgage banking litigation attorney Rachel Dollar has been named by Super Lawyers as one of the top attorneys in Northern California in 2012. …

American Red Cross has announced changes in the regional leadership team. …

The Sonoma County Section on Aging has appointed the following leadership team officers. …

Windsor-based Sonoma County Vintners Co-op has elected the following officers to its board of directors. …

H.D.D. LLC, owners of VML and Truett Hurst wineries, as well as the Bradford Mountain, Sauvignon Republic and Stonegate brands, announced the appointment of Jim Bielenberg as the company’s CFO. …

Sutter Pacific Medical Foundation announced the addition of Gagik Oganesyan, M.D., Ph.D., a board-certified dermatologist. …

Dr. Anika Sanda recently joined the Novato-based Prima Medical Group, specializing in pediatrics. …

Reflections, a private residential drug and alcohol treatment facility in Novato, named William J. Hanna, Psy.D, as its new clinical director. …

Brief news about businesses and organizations in the north San Francisco Bay area

Banking and Finance North Valley Bank appointed Terrance Davis as senior vice president and business banking officer at the company’s Santa Rosa branch.  Mr. Davis has been in the financial services industry for over 20 years, including eight years as president of Summit State Bank. He was also executive vice president and chief operating officer [...]

March 3, 2011: The Becoming Independent Board of Directors annual meeting was held in Santa Rosa. / March 10, 2011: Smith Dollar PC & Burr Pilger Mayer mixer was held at Mayacamas.

Listed alphabetically by firm name

Oct. 6, 2010: PEP Housing’s groundbreaking ceremony for Acacla Lane Senior Apartments – Its first affordable housing development for seniors in Santa Rosa / October 13, 2010: Smith Dollar PC hosted the Santa Rosa Chamber of Commerce Political Action Committee Mixer

SANTA ROSA — Rachel Dollar, attorney, certified mortgage banker, certified financial crimes investigator and founding partner of the law firm Smith Dollar, was just 17 when she first took a job in a law office.

NORTH BAY — The North Bay Business Journal has selected 10 women from Sonoma, Marin and Napa counties for its 10th annual Women in Business awards honoring leaders, innovators and visionaries across a wide range of professions.

(Listed alphabetically by firm name)

Last August when we published our first group of Most Influential Leaders in the North Bay, we promised we would bring you more of their stories. We honor that pledge today and promise to bring you more of the inspiring stories of business people in future editions.

Attorney, Smith Dollar PC

NORTH BAY — In addition to lost productivity, employers can add legal risk to the list of annoyances related to employee use of social networking at work, according to North Bay legal experts who sounded off on trends for 2010.

SANTA ROSA – By the time the mortgage debacle really hit, Sonoma County law partner Rachel Dollar was already well-established in the lending fraud niche, having closed numerous complex, federal cases and publishing a book and widely followed blog on the topic.

SONOMA COUNTY — The county’s longest-standing professional association of lawyers now has a committee focused on real property law.