About June D. Bell
June Bell is an award-winning San Francisco-area freelance writer who has contributed to The National Law Journal, California Lawyer, law school alumni magazines and many other publications. A Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Cornell University, she is also a ghostwriter and content strategist.
Articles written by June D. Bell
How Hal Bartholomew Got a Namesake Park …
… Even though the Elk Grove family law attorney is very much alive and wellHal Bartholomew has played slow-pitch softball for decades, but he has yet to step up to bat at the Elk Grove park named in his honor. The family law attorney vows to remedy that soon, on a summer evening when dusk comes late. Not that daylight is required to enjoy the Hal Bartholomew Sports Park. Many fields on its 46 acres are lighted, allowing lacrosse, soccer, football, tennis and softball players to practice and compete after dark, year-round. “It offers so much,” says Bartholomew, of …
A Comforting (Tele)Presence
How a timely technology purchase eased Peter Brewer’s mind after a serious accidentOne spring day last year, Peter Brewer passed a pop-up shop selling telepresence robots, sometimes dubbed “Skype with wheels.” The Palo Alto real estate lawyer, never one to resist new technology, bought one and set it up in his office, planning to use it from home to “meet” with colleagues and clients. Two days later, Brewer was riding his motorcycle near the Stanford University campus when he was hit by a vehicle, went briefly airborne and was knocked unconscious. During his recovery, …
For a Friend of a Friend of a Friend
Yosef Peretz has taken on heavyweights like Tesla, but he always finds time to help those down on their luck hang onto their homesYosef Peretz’s father, Samuel, was something of a minor celebrity in their Jerusalem neighborhood. When a washing machine quit or a car wouldn’t start, Peretz would often coax it back to life, then shrug off payment. It made a powerful impression on his four children. The oldest, Yosef, followed in his father’s footsteps; not with mechanical skills—“I’m not so qualified to do that,” he says with a laugh—but through extensive pro bono work, often for low-income tenants and people …
Ana de Albaâ's Homegrown Activism
The daughter of immigrant workers returns to Central Valley, law degree in handOne summer day in 1986, 6-year-old Ana de Alba accompanied her mother and grandmother, Mexican immigrants, into the Central Valley tomato fields, bringing them water from a communal jug so they could work without a break. When de Alba filled a cup for her mother, she saw that the sun-warmed water was a dirty brown. The little girl pointed this out to the supervisor, who hoisted her onto the tailgate of a truck in the field. He told her, within earshot of all the workers, that if anyone had a …
Story of Dreamers
Immigration attorney Minette A. Kwok helps possibilities become realitiesIf the San Francisco International Film Festival gave out best supporting actress awards, this year’s recipient might be immigration attorney Minette A. Kwok. She helped the San Francisco Film Society snag Noah Cowan, an artistic director with the acclaimed Toronto International Film Festival, for the leading role at SFFS. The film society hopes its new executive director will bring increased prominence to the city’s annual fest. Kwok had just two months to help Cowan, a Canadian, secure a …
How Debra Bogaards Got Tough
The formidable personal injury attorney both goes for the jugular and encourages civility (through scotch and baseball)The toughest courtroom battle of Debra Bogaards’ career had nothing to do with the case itself. The multimillion-dollar brain-injury suit she was defending was not unusually challenging; the witnesses were not contentious. The problem was the San Mateo judge presiding over the lengthy case: He interrupted Bogaards repeatedly and treated her with such disdain that she dreaded returning to court each day. Bogaards, who was staying at a small Redwood City hotel during the trial about 20 years …
Man With a Mission
Protecting children from sexual abuse—it's a calling for Robert AllardWhen a prospective client phoned Robert Allard in the summer of 2009, work was far from the attorney's mind. He was in Syracuse, N.Y., 2,800 miles from his San Jose law office and in the thick of a summer visit to his in-laws’ home. Allard’s four young children were scampering around with twice as many of their cousins, and the house was noisy with chatter and laughter. The voice on the other end of the line, however, was somber. Allard listened closely as the caller described how a San …
Simple Justice
Kevin M. Fong brings old-fashioned elegance to the appellate courtBy the time a case makes its way to an appellate attorney, the record is closed. There are no more witnesses to grill; no provocative evidence to expose. And that’s just the way Kevin M. Fong likes it. Some might consider the penetrating analysis that appellate work demands to be a ho-hum endeavor, but for Fong, a few minutes before a panel of appellate judges is a delight. “I like to bring some energy and enthusiasm [to appellate court] because I think it is a great opportunity,” says …
Concerted Effort
Haynes Lea holds a yearly Western bash to raise money for the blindYou won’t find the Lea Brothers Band rehearsing, but what a concert The Western Classic and Barbecue they host is. Held almost every year since 1990, the event has raised nearly $1 million for the national Foundation Fighting Blindness (FFB) organization. Haynes P. Lea, organizer of the fundraiser and a member of FFB’s board, is a North Carolina attorney who specializes in venture capital transactions. He plays harmonica and percussion, and became acquainted with the foundation after …
When Can You Shoot in Self-Defense?
Florida's Stand Your Ground law changed the circumstancesDoes a new state law give you permission to shoot a woman who may be an armed robber—or just an Avon lady—as she knocks on your door and peers through your window? Does it allow you to use deadly force against a panhandler who may approach you with a knife and demand your wallet—or who is only trying to wheedle a handout? Some lawyers fear that those two scenarios, extreme as they seem, could fall under the reach of a new state law that removes people's obligation to retreat from …
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