STACY L. FODE

Experience:

BROWN LAW GROUP: San Diego, CA

Partner, April 2002 – Present (including its predecessor, Vantage Law Group)

Ms. Fode’s practice focuses on business litigation with an emphasis on employment litigation and advisement. She specializes in the representation of clients in all aspects of employment law including wrongful discharge, discrimination, sexual harassment, whistle blower, employment agreement disputes, and wage and hour compliance matters. Ms. Fode’s clients include employers in the building, insurance, technology, energy and financial industries.

SMAHA & DALEY: San Diego, CA

Associate, April 1999 – April 2002

Ms. Fode’s practice focused on business litigation representing a variety of clients in state, federal, and bankruptcy litigation matters. She also drafted appellate briefs filed with the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, the Bankruptcy Appellate Panel, and the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, and a she drafted a petition for writ of certiorari to the U.S. Supreme Court. She also gained experience in corporate and general business planning, formation and operations.

Press & Media:

Ms. Fode has been a speaker on employment and diversity related topics and has published articles on these subjects. She has appeared on television segments relating to Sexual Harassment, Wrongful Termination and Recent Developments in Employment/Labor Laws and has been featured on: CBS Morning News (San Diego affiliate), NBC Morning News (San Diego affiliate); and KGTV Morning News (San Diego affiliate).

Community Involvement:

Ms. Fode is very active in the community. She is currently on the Board of Directors of the San Diego County Bar Association where she serves as its secretary and the co-chair of the membership development committee. She is a past president of the Lawyers Club of San Diego, a specialty bar association with over 1000 members. She also served on the Board of Directors of Lawyers Club, and served as its newsletter editor and the Chair of the Equality Committee. Ms. Fode is also an active member of many professional and law-related organizations, including the San Diego County Bar Association, American Business Trial Lawyer’s Association, American Bar Association, and California Women Lawyers. She was also a former member of the Louis M. Welsh American Inns of Court, and a member of the Board of Directors of the Barristers Club of San Diego. She was a finalist for the San Diego Business Journal’s 2005 “Women Who Mean Business” Award and a semi-finalist for the San Diego Daily Transcript’s 2007 Top Attorneys. Ms. Fode was recently honored by the San Diego Business Journal as a winner of a 2009 “Women Who Mean Business” award.

Service:

Ms Fode is a past volunteer for the San Diego Volunteer Lawyer Program, the YWCA Domestic Violence Program, and the Mediation and Restitution Services (MARS) Program, and a participant in the Susan B. Komen Three-Day Breast Cancer Walk.

Personal & Community Interests:

Ms. Fode is married to Dr. Matthew Spydell, an oceanographer at Scripps Institution of Oceanography and they have a daughter. She enjoys yoga, golf, and walking in her Point Loma neighborhood.

Education:

UNIVERSITY OF OREGON SCHOOL OF LAW, Eugene, OR

J.D., 1998

Member of the California State Bar since December 1998

Awards: Dean’s Scholarship Award

Activities: Journal of Environmental Law and Litigation: Associate Editor

Oregon Law Students’ Public Interest Fund: Co-Director

Certified Mediator: Small Claims Court Mediation Volunteer

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, Santa Barbara

B.A., Law and Society, cum laude, March 1994

Honors: College of Letters and Science Honors Recipient

Law and Society Honors Recipient (Distinction in Major)

Dean’s List Scholar’s Award