Giving Profile: Tyler Gerking and Amelia Miazad
Tyler Gerking ’02 and Amelia Miazad ’02 knew they would learn a great deal at Berkeley Law. An unexpected part of their education: discovering the future value of their diplomas could not be taken for granted. “Berkeley Law is far from a fully-funded public institution,” says Miazad, a civil litigation lawyer at Hanson Bridgett’s San Francisco office. “The school won’t be able to maintain its current status unless alumni play an active role in preserving it.”
Gerking and Miazad met in law school, got married after graduating, and co-chaired their class’ 5th reunion weekend last fall. A litigation attorney at Farella, Braun & Martel in San Francisco, Gerking wants to ensure that future students enjoy all the opportunities he and Miazad had at Berkeley Law.
“That’s why it’s so important for recent graduates to contribute,” he says. “For younger alumni, their diploma is more important now than it will be later when they’ll have had time to build a professional reputation. A gift to Berkeley Law is an investment in the value of that diploma.”
Giving Profile: Ken King
With each passing work day, Ken King ’87 sees more and more traffic at the nexus of law and business. As the Bay Area corporate group leader at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, he wants Berkeley Law students to be fully prepared to tackle the complexities of his rapidly changing field.
That is why King chose to make a significant contribution to the Berkeley Center for Law and Business (BCLB). “I think BCLB can make a big impact,” says King, the partner in charge of Skaddens San Francisco and Palo Alto offices. “The center is in a great position to martial the assets and resources needed to help build a strong bridge to the business community.”
King handles sophisticated corporate and securities transactions—and has been involved in three of the world’s five largest technology deals. “Working for one of the largest corporate firms in the country, I’m constantly seeing how important the law-economy intersection has become,” he says. “BCLB develops skill sets that are extremely valuable in today’s legal marketplace.”
Giving Profile: Holly Fujie
Collegiality and collaboration are hallmarks that set Berkeley Law apart from many of the nation’s other top law schools. As Holly Fujie ’78 knows, they are also key staples of the Partners in Leadership campaign, which challenges alumni in organizations with five or more Berkeley Law graduates to achieve 100 percent participation in the giving program.
“It’s an effective initiative because it involves both school pride and firm pride,” says Fujie, a litigation partner at Buchalter Nemer in Los Angeles. “As my firm’s Partners in Leadership coordinator, I talk about the importance of funding to the law school and the benefits our firm receives from its participation.”
Despite her busy schedule at Buchalter Nemer—and as President of the State Bar of California—Fujie compounds her generous financial contributions by serving on the Boalt Hall Alumni Association board. “I loved my time at Boalt and supporting the school is a tremendous priority for me,” she says. “Besides providing a world-class legal education, it introduced me to some of the best friends I have today.”
Giving Profile: Angel Garganta
Since graduating from Berkeley Law in 1992, Angel Garganta has witnessed a steady decline in the state funding of public education in California. “I try to support the law school as best I can because funding levels have fallen tragically behind in recent years,” he says. “It has become increasingly important for alumni to help fill that void.”
A partner in the San Francisco office of Arnold & Porter, Garganta was also instrumental in obtaining a major cy pres contribution for the school’s Samuelson Law, Technology & Public Policy Clinic. He is repeatedly named a Northern California “Super Lawyer” in San Francisco and Law & Politics magazines, and has emerged as a prominent expert on California’s consumer protection laws.
An associate editor of the California Law Review during his student days, Garganta sees the impact of Berkeley Law’s excellence on a regular basis. “I work every day with remarkable associates my firm has hired from the law school,” he says. “To maintain that talent level, we need to lend our support as best we can.”