Chapman Law Group, A.P.C.

CEO / Head Attorney David Chapman, Esq. represents clients in high-stakes litigation before state and federal courts, and provides legal advice in regulatory matters before administrative agencies.

Mr. Chapman has experience with a wide range of industries including chemical, oil & gas, biotechnology, commercial real estate, hi-tech, medicine,
and insurance. He has represented clients on a variety of contract, consumer, corporate, medical, employment, environmental, personal injury, public
entity and municipality cases.

During law school, Mr. Chapman was a member of the Santa Clara Law Review, and served as a judicial extern for the Honorable Joyce L. Kennard, Associate Justice of the California Supreme Court. As a practicing attorney, he served as a law clerk for Justice Kennard.

Education
J.D., Santa Clara University School of Law (1999)
B.A., English, University of California, Berkeley (1991)

Awards
American Jurisprudence Bancroft-Whitney Award, 1998
CALI Excellence for the Future Award, 1988
Awarded for excellent achievement in the study of Constitutional Law II

Admissions
Mr. Chapman is a member in good standing of the State Bar of California.
He is admitted to practice before the following courts:

• • California Supreme Court and all state courts throughout California
  • U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit
  • U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California
  • U.S. District Court for the Central District of California
  • U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California

   

  Memberships

• American Bar Association
• The Bar Association of San Francisco
• Marin County Bar Association

Senior Attorney Natalia E. Thurston, Esq. has extensive experience representing business clients in transactional and commercial litigation matters in state courts across California.  Prior to joining Chapman Law Group, A.P.C., Natalia founded and served as Managing Attorney of Thurston Law Firm, a business transactional and litigation firm serving California business clients in commercial real estate, retail, food and beverage, manufacturing, commercial cannabis, and entertainment/media sectors.

Since 2010, Natalia has vigorously represented businesses in complex litigation matters of first impression involving zoning, land use, regulatory, and anti-trust issues.  Natalia has helped numerous clients launch successful businesses by providing legal counsel involving entity formation, commercial real estate, business contracts, ownership structure, corporate governance, licensing, regulatory compliance, intellectual property protection, and employment law.

Education

J.D., Berkeley Law, University of California, Berkeley, 2006

• Production Editor, Berkeley Technology Law Journal
• Publication: Buyer Beware: The Unexpected Consequences of the Visual Artists Rights Act, 20 Berkeley Tech. L.J. 701 (2005)
• Jurisprudence Award for Small Business Counseling Practicum
• Research Assistant, Samuelson Law, Technology & Public Policy Clinic
• Consultant, Economic Development Unit, East Bay Community Law Center

M.B.A., San Francisco State University, 2001

B.A., Sarah Lawrence College, 1994

Member of the California State Bar, License No. 262681

Senior Paralegal Denise Carruth was raised in Alameda County, California. She has worked in the legal field for over 30 years and has extensive litigation and jury trial experience. After obtaining her paralegal credentials through American River College, she formed an independent paralegal business in 1995 offering legal document preparation services to pro se litigants for divorce, custody, bankruptcy, and estate planning. She has worked for various reputable firms throughout Northern California specializing in complex civil litigation involving mass toxic-tort groundwater contamination matters caused by TCP, DBCP, VOC, TCE, PCE, and MTBE chemical exposure, as well as other highly litigated civil actions including residential and commercial real estate transactions, product and premises liability, domestic violence, family law, and estate planning. Ms. Carruth is also a registered Legal Document Assistant, a certified life coach for victims of domestic violence, careers, and family addiction, as well as an active member of the California Association of Legal Document Assistants (CALDA) and the National Association of Legal Assistants (NALA). She considers herself lucky to have worked in the legal field for all these years and for the opportunity to assist the public with their legal proceedings.

In her free time, Ms. Carruth enjoys hiking, camping, traveling, and any other activity that allows her to spend time with her family.

Paralegal Jordan Killen joined Chapman Law Group in February 2020. Mr. Killen grew up in Marin County, California and received his B.A. in Environmental Policy from Middlebury College in 2017, graduating with highest academic honors. He has worked in various fields, including International Administration, Environmental Policy, and Behavioral Health. Mr. Killen is fluent in Spanish and speaks conversational French, and has traveled and worked in over 30 different countries. He considers himself very fortunate to have seen so much of the world.

In his free time, Mr. Killen enjoys swimming, hiking, and reading science fiction.

Junior Paralegal Ryan Mirdadian, Jr. joined Chapman Law Group in April 2023.
His profile is coming up soon.

Law Clerk Mary Owens joined Chapman Law Group in September 2021. Ms. Owens grew up in Los Angeles, California.  She studied Liberal Arts and Sciences at Los Angeles Valley College and College of Marin, where she was a member of the Alpha Gamma Sigma Honor Society. She brings many years of multifaceted legal experience gained from her work in diverse law firm environments in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Marin County. Her Los Angeles experience includes a 10-year association with the law firm of Corinblit & Seltzer, where she worked on the notable cases of ZZZZ Best and Equity Funding securities fraud litigations.  Her San Francisco work experience consists of work with the mid‑size law firm of Nossaman Guthner Knox and Elliot (now Nossaman LLP) and 9 years with Brown & Wood (which in 2001 merged with Sidley Austin to become Sidley Austin Brown & Wood), a firm of over 200 attorneys.

In her free time, Ms. Owens enjoys gardening, sprouting, cooking and baking.

Office and HR Manager Svetlana Lolua joined Chapman Law Group, A.P.C. in May 2022 after her long career in the dental field. While working for small companies, Svetlana developed her core competencies in integrating business systems and running seamless office operations. Having a keen interest in the legal field, she earned her Paralegal Certificate from CCSF where she joined the Alpha Gamma Sigma Honor Society. Svetlana continued her education at SFSU where she earned her B.S. in International Business, and B.A. in Criminal Justice. Graduating in the top 6 percent of her Business Class, Svetlana received a life membership at the Beta Gamma Sigma Honor Society. Through her professional experience, Svetlana has evolved as an expert and a champion for change in human resource management. She is a proud member of NCHRA, and SHRM, having held her SHRM-SCP certification since 2016. Raised in Kiev (Ukraine), she is fluent in Ukrainian and Russian.

Svetlana spends most of her spare time following the news, learning about wellness and science discoveries, watching movies, documentaries, and National Geographic. She absolutely adores dogs and cats. Svetlana likes practicing pencil drawing, navigating through Wondrium, and reading Sedaris for positivity boosts. Above all, she loves spending time with her family and cannot imagine her life without her twin sister.

Seiko Nozaki, Director of Administration/Controller, began working at the firm as Office Administrator in 2012. Over the past 10 years, she has helped David grow this business from the start by providing customer support, handling all administrative and client billing matters, and finding the best technological solutions to address business demands. Seiko takes pride in developing trusting and positive relationships with our clients and is determined to attract the best professional talent to achieve this aim. Seiko’s extensive background as a graphic designer has helped her master a variety of legal applications and project management platforms to support our firm’s operations. As a leader, she pours her creative mind into addressing diverse business challenges and fosters a highly productive and inclusive work environment. In her current position, Seiko oversees the firm’s financial sustainability, plays a critical role in supporting business development, and ensures operational excellence.

Originally from Yokohama (Japan), and a graduate of Economics from Community College in Tokyo, Seiko worked for many years at a major insurance company in Japan before coming to the United States. Landing in San Francisco in 1996, Seiko followed her passion for Graphic Design by earning a B.A. degree from the prestigious Academy of Art College. Thereafter, Seiko led a successful career working with leading Bay Area graphic design enterprises. Successful projects have included Levi’s, Design Within Reach, and Soma Magazine. Embracing a community-oriented mindset, Seiko has led both Design and Marketing departments for various advertisers and magazine publishers in the Bay Area. By working with innovative and established enterprises, Seiko has acquired a strong business acumen and a deep appreciation for working with diverse teams.

Seiko is happily married and has two talented teenagers. More than anything, she loves spending time traveling with her family, gardening, and walking with the family dog. In addition to having a green thumb, Seiko continuously uses her creative mind to improve the home and office ambiance. She also enjoys playing piano.