Phillips Jessner LLP

Attorney Patricia Phillips

Patricia Phillips, a graduate of the University of California at Santa Barbara (B.A. 1956) and the Loyola School of Law, Loyola Marymount University (J.D. 1967), is a native of the City of Los Angeles. Now a partner at Phillips Jessner in Los Angeles, Ms. Phillips specializes in family law and civil litigation. She serves frequently as a mediator and arbitrator for business, employment, and family matters.

Ms. Phillips is a fellow of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers and is certified by the State Bar of California as a Family Law Specialist. In the practice of family law, Ms. Phillips handles issues relating to the dissolution of marriage, including child custody and support issues, as well as the complex areas of identification and valuation of community property, valuation of business assets and division of property. Ms. Phillips is well known in the legal community for her work in bringing concepts of alternative dispute resolution to litigation. She also handles business, employment, trust, and probate mediation. Ms. Phillips' clients range from owners of sole proprietorships to key people in closely held businesses, as well as employees. She has represented well-known political figures, as well as members of the entertainment community and many judges and lawyers.

Patricia Phillips was the first woman to be elected President of the Los Angeles County Bar Association, the largest voluntary bar association in the United States. She is the recipient of the Shattuck Price Award, given once each year to the Association's "Outstanding Lawyer." She has been honored by both her undergraduate and law school alma maters as an outstanding alumna and by the Women Lawyers' Association of Los Angeles and California Women Lawyers with the presentation of their Ernestine Stahlhut and Dragon Slayer Awards, respectively. She served for three years on the Judicial Council of the State of California and was a member and former Chair of the Los Angeles County Commission on Judicial Procedures. Ms. Phillips served as a vice president and member of the Board of Governors of the State Bar, where she organized the Statewide Committee on Professionalism and Public Action. In addition, she was chair of the State Bar Committee of Bar Examiners and the Commission on the Future of the Legal Profession and the State Bar. Ms. Phillips recently completed a term as President of the Chancery Club, the first woman to occupy any officer position in that organization. In April 1998, she received the ACLU Pro Bono Advocacy Award and has been honored as being one of Los Angeles' 50 most powerful women lawyers.

Ms. Phillips is a member of various Boards, including the Board of Visitors at Loyola Law School and the Board of Maternal and Child Health Access. She is a former Chair of the Board of Directors of the City Club at Bunker Hill. Ms. Phillips is a frequent lecturer and writer on family law issues, methods of dispute resolution, and professionalism. The Los Angeles Daily Journal recently profiled Ms. Phillips, describing her as a mentor to the legal profession in Los Angeles.

Bar Admissions:

• California, 1968

Education:

• Loyola Law School, Los Angeles, California, 1967
  • J.D.
• University of California at Santa Barbara, 1956
  • B.A.

Attorney Gregory W. Jessner

For seventeen years, Gregory Jessner represented the United States at the United States Attorney's Office in Los Angeles, holding a number of managerial positions including Chief, Criminal Complaints Section (1998-1999), Deputy Chief, Major Crimes Section (1994-1998), and Violent Crime Coordinator (1994-1998).

He received national recognition for his work as lead counsel for the prosecution in a case involving the indictment of forty members of the Aryan Brotherhood, believed to be the largest federal capital prosecution in U.S. history. He also successfully prosecuted two Jewish Defense League members who plotted to bomb the King Fahd Mosque in Culver City. While handling notable and complex cases, he maintained a nearly unbroken record of success at trial.

From 1985 to 1989 Mr. Jessner served as a Deputy District Attorney for the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office.

A former trial advocacy instructor for the Attorney General's Advocacy Institute, Mr. Jessner has lectured in numerous courses for the Department of Justice's Office of Legal Education.

Mr. Jessner received a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics from the University of California, Berkeley in 1982. He received a Juris Doctor in 1985 from Boalt Hall School of Law, where he was winner of the 1983 Moot Court Award for Best Brief, served as research assistant to professors Melvin Eisenberg and Michael Traynor, and served as an associate editor of the California Law Review. 

Bar Admissions:

• California, 1985

Education:

• Boalt Hall School of Law, University of California, Berkeley, California, June, 1985
  • Juris Doctor
  • Honors: 1983 Moot Court Award for Best Brief
  • Honors: Research Assistant to Professor Melvin Eisenberg
  • Honors: Research Assistant to Professor Michael Traynor
  • Law Review: California Law Review, Associate Editor
• University of California, Berkeley, June, 1982
  • Bachelor of Arts
  • Honors: With Distinction
  • Honors: Member, Honor Students Society
  • Major: Economics

Attorney Adam N. King

Adam King is an associate in the Litigation Department of Morrison & Foerster's Los Angeles office. He has participated in a diverse range of litigation matters in federal and state court.

Mr. King earned his J.D., cum laude, and his LL.M. in Comparative and International Law in 2001 from Duke University, where he was a staff editor of the Duke Environmental Law and Policy Forum. Mr. King earned his Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy in 1998 from the University of California at Berkeley, where he was both a Drake and Chancellor's Scholar. While pursuing his undergraduate degree, Mr. King also received the Margaret Simpson Harrison Prize for Jurisprudence while studying at the University of Leeds in England.

Mr. King is admitted to practice in California and is a member of several bar associations, including the American Bar Association, the Los Angeles County Bar Association, and the Korean American Bar Association. 

Bar Admissions:

• California, 2001
• U.S. District Court Central District of California, 2001
• U.S. Court of Appeals 9th Circuit, 2004

Education:

• Duke University School of Law, Durham, North Carolina
  • J.D.
• University of California, 1998
  • B.A.

Attorney Kristin M. Kellet

Kristin Kellet is of counsel at Phillips Jessner LLP. Her practice covers a broad range of family-law areas, including dissolution proceedings, domestic-violence proceedings, child custody, child support, spousal support, modification of support, division of community property, confirmation of separate property, and negotiation of family law disputes.

Ms. Kellet joined Phillips Jessner in 2007 after being an associate at the Los Angeles office of Morrison & Foerster LLP, where she specialized in land use and environmental law and represented corporate clients in both federal and state litigation.

Ms. Kellet received her B.A. degree, summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa, from Claremont McKenna College in 1998. She earned her J.D. in 2002 from the University of California at Los Angeles School of Law, where she was elected to the Order of the Coif. She is admitted to practice in California and is a member of the American Bar Association and the Family Law Section of the Los Angeles County Bar Association.

Bar Admissions:

• California, 2002

Education:

• University of California at Los Angeles School of Law, Los Angeles, California, 2002
  • J.D.
  • Honors: Order of the Coif
• Claremont McKenna College, 1998
  • B.A.
  • Honors: summa cum laude
  • Honors: Phi Beta Kappa

Attorney Joanna Huchting

Joanna Huchting is a litigator with substantial experience handling complex construction defect disputes, insurance coverage and bad faith litigation and residential real estate disputes. Ms. Huchting's practice focuses also on risk management, including counseling builders and developers on complex pre-lawsuit claims in an effort to avoid litigation.

Ms. Huchting has litigated a broad range of disputes including mold and water intrusion claims, purchase and sale disputes, warranty disputes, lis pendens issues, easement and access claims, property valuation claims, breach of contract disputes, misrepresentation and non-disclosure claims and statutory real estate claims. She routinely serves as personal counsel for builders and developers, overseeing panel counsel hired by insurance companies to defend against construction defect litigation.

Ms. Huchting has handled numerous arbitrations from filing through award, as well as several court trials. She also has handled several successful appeals, including on issues involving enforceability of alternative dispute resolution provisions.

Ms. Huchting was admitted to the State Bar of California in 1998 after receiving her law degree from the University of California at Los Angeles School of Law, where she was a member of the Journal of Environmental Law and Policy and a moot court participant. She graduated magna cum laude from Loyola Marymount University in 1995, where she was a member of the Honor Program, Alpha Sigma Nu Jesuit Honor Society and Sigma Tau Delta English Honor Society. Ms. Huchting was the recipient of the Rev. Alfred J. Kilp Academic Scholarship and the Dean's Citation for Excellence. Ms. Huchting is a second-generation member of the bar.

Ms. Huchting is a member of the National Association of Home Builders' Forum of Legal Counsel and its Committee on Alternative Dispute Resolution. She is a member of the Building Industry Association's Committee on Quality Construction. She is active on both the state and local levels, including in monitoring and promoting legislative reforms. Ms. Huchting is a member of the State Bar of California and the Los Angeles County Bar Association.

Bar Admissions:

• California, 1998

Education:

• University of California at Los Angeles School of Law, Los Angeles, California, May, 1998
  • J.D.
  • Law Journal: Journal of Environmental Law and Policy, Member
• Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles, California, 1995
  • B.A., Bachelor of Arts
  • Honors: magna cum laude
  • Honors: Alpha Sigma Nu Jesuit Honor Society
  • Honors: Sigma Tau Delta English Honor Society
  • Major: English

Attorney Kyle B. McGuire

Kyle McGuire is an Associate at Phillips Jessner. His practice covers a wide range of family-law matters, including dissolution proceedings, domestic-violence proceedings, child custody and visitation, move-away requests, child support, spousal support, modification of support, division of community property, confirmation of separate property, and negotiation of family law disputes. Prior to joining Phillips Jessner, Mr. McGuire was a litigation associate at the Los Angeles offices of Irell & Manella LLP and Kirkland & Ellis LLP, where he participated in a diverse range of litigation matters in federal and state court. Mr. McGuire earned his J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School in 2020, where he served as President of the Trivia Board. While in law school, Mr. McGuire participated in the Intensive Trial Practice Workshop and the Moot Court Boot Camp. Mr. McGuire earned a B.A. in American Literature and Culture, summa cum laude, from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in 2015. He is admitted to practice in California and is a member of the Family Law Section of the Los Angeles County Bar Association.

Bar Admissions:

• California, 2021

Education:

• University of Chicago Law School, J.D., 2020
• University of California, B.A., 2015

Professional Memberships and Achievements:

• State Bar of California
• Los Angeles County Bar Association
• Irish American Bar Association

Attorney Alejandro “Alex” P. Pacheco

Alex Pacheco is an associate at Phillips Jessner. His practice covers a wide range of family-law matters, including marital dissolution, domestic violence, child custody and visitation, move-away requests, child support, spousal support, modification of support, division of community property, confirmation of separate property, and negotiation of family law disputes.

Before joining Phillips Jessner, Mr. Pacheco spent ten years as a litigation associate at three prominent national firms, advising and representing institutional clients in a broad range of consumer and commercial matters. Through this work, he developed deep expertise across multiple legal disciplines, including products liability, intellectual property, employment, consumer protection, and financial services litigation. He now channels this rigorous litigation background into protecting the vital personal interests of individual family law clients.

Mr. Pacheco earned his B.A. degree from Amherst College in 2008, after which he worked in the mental health field for four years. He went on to earn his J.D. from Stanford Law School in 2015.

Bar Admissions:

• California
• U.S. District Court Central District of California
• U.S. District Court Northern District of California

Education:

• Stanford Law School, Stanford, California, J.D., 2015
• Amherst College, B.A., 2020