FLOC Officers & Board of Directors
Frances Prizzia
President
Frances-Marie Prizzia dedicates her law practice to upholding the constitutional rights of her clients and zealously defending them. Her passion has always been in criminal defense and public service, as evidenced by her prior work and volunteer history.
For the past 17 years, Frances has dedicated herself to the practice of law. Years before opening this firm, Frances worked as an Orange County Public Defender as well as in the Los Angeles County Alternate Defender's Office. While working for Orange County as a trial attorney, she obtained many dismissals, in addition to taking more cases to jury trial and winning more than any other attorney within her unit during that time. Frances is also fluent in speaking Tagalog.
Prior to becoming an attorney and while in law school, Frances worked at the Public Defender's office in Santa Cruz. As a law student, she successfully argued and won a motion to suppress evidence due to the unlawful violations of the Fourth Amendment by the investigating police officers.
Frances has always been what attorneys call "a true believer." After graduating college, Frances worked for immigrant labor organizations as well as a mental healthcare center. It was during these times, in addition to her experiences growing up in Los Angeles, Frances was able to witness first-hand the injustices suffered by the disenfranchised and impoverished.
Nathaniel Epstein
President-Elect
Nathaniel Epstein is in-house counsel for Elevance Health.
His practice area focuses on provider and clinical contracting. Prior to his role at Elevance Health, "Nate" focused on managed care litigation representing hospitals in reimbursement disputes.
"Nate" has been a steady presence in FilAm organizations. He currently serves as Chair of the Filipino American Democratic Caucus (FADC) of California, he past Chair of OCBA Young Lawyers Division Community Outreach committee, he was the Rising Star of SuperLawyers in 2021, and he also serves on the board of a local non-profit named the Youth Center in Los Alamitos.
He has served on multiple boards of non profit organizations that amplify Filipino and Asian American issues. He received the unsung heroes award this year. He resides in Orange County with his wife, Michele, son Jordan, and newborn daughter, Emilia.
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Christina Ahluwalia
Treasurer
Christina believes in a comprehensive approach to financial planning. Prior to joining Pure, Christina was a financial advisor at a mid-size wealth management firm, where she worked with clients to develop strategies to reach their financial goals. While there she held FINRA Series 7 and 66 securities licenses as well as a life and health insurance license for several states.
Christina obtained her bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Irvine. She then went on to earn a Juris Doctor from Chapman University, Dale E. Fowler School of Law, and a Master of Business Administration from Golden Gate University.
Christina has been admitted to the State Bar of California and is a member of several Orange County bar associations including the Filipino-American Lawyers of Orange County, for whom she serves as Treasurer. In her free time, Christina enjoys traveling and trying new vegan restaurants.
Lycia Stokely
Secretary
Lycia is the founding attorney of the Stokely Estate Planning Law Firm, where she creates customized estate plans for individuals and families (including revocable trusts, wills, advanced health care directives, etc.).
In addition to being FLOC's Secretary, Lycia is a Board Member of the Orange County Bar Association's Trusts and Estates Section.
Lycia also serves as defense counsel in workers' compensation cases and previously practiced in business litigation. Lycia obtained her LL.M. in Taxation from Chapman University, her J.D. from New York Law School, and her B.A. from UC Irvine.
Lycia currently resides in Orange County with her husband and their three young children.
Mark Servino is a Supervising Deputy County Counsel with the Office of the County Counsel for the County of Orange. He represents and advises clients in matters involving administrative law, the California Public Records Act, CEQA, Mitigation Fee Act, election law, redistricting, property tax, and writs and appeals. He has been chosen to write several amicus briefs and letters on behalf of the California League of Cities and the California State Association of Counties. He has participated as counsel or amicus in several published decisions including Teamsters Local 856 v. Priceless, LLC (2003) 112 Cal. App. 4th 1500 (Public Records Act), Barratt American, Inc. v. City of Rancho Cucamonga (2005) 37 Cal. 4th 685 (Mitigation Fee Act), Nguyen v. Nguyen (2008) 158 Cal.App.4th 1636 (Election Law), Silverado Modjeska Recreation & Parks Dist. v. County of Orange, 197 Cal. App. 4th 282 (2011) (CEQA), and Sierra Club v. Superior Court (2013) 57 Cal. 4th 157 (Public Records Act).
He received his J.D. from U.C. Berkeley (Boalt Hall) and his undergraduate degree from Loyola Marymount University. He previously practiced law at the firms of Morrison & Foerster, Brobeck, Phleger & Harrison, and Best, Best & Krieger. Mr. Servino is a recipient of the County Counsels’ Association of California’s 2009 Litigation Award and 2011 Recognition of Outstanding Service.
Directors
Mark Servino
Kristine Balandra
Kristine is the Director of Enterprise Procurement at Pacific Life Insurance Company, in charge of leading
a team that drives significant cost impact and reduces risk for the organization. In her role, she works
closely with the legal department in negotiating complex, multi-million dollar contracts and uses her
legal background to train the Procurement team in contracts drafting.
Kristine graduated from Cal State Fullerton with her B.A. in Business Administration with a concentration
in Accounting and earned her J.D. from Western State College of Law. She is currently preparing to take
the California bar exam.
Kristine was born in Manila, Philippines and immigrated to California while she was in elementary
school. The youngest of over 30 first cousins, she spends much of her free time with family, including
her son, Dylan, and shih-tzu, Truffle. She also enjoys reading, going to concerts, volunteering, and
watching Kdramas.
Jeremy Basuga
Jeremy Basuga is currently a 2L law student at Western State College of Law. His activities in school involve being on the Moot Court Team, SBA social committee, and President of the Asian Pacific American Law Student Association. Prior to law school, he was a front-liner in COVID-19 relief; helping administer COVID-19 tests and running vaccine operations. Before the pandemic hit, he served as a U.S. Peace Corps Volunteer, in the Philippines, for 21 months. There, he worked with some of the most impoverished communities doing humanitarian work with children and youths.
Ray Sagun
Ray has served in the public sector in Chicago. He has been responsible for the award and management of multi-million dollar construction, architectural and engineering, professional service, commodity and revenue generating contracts. He has also served as an advisor to senior decision makers on departmental initiatives, contract administration, specification design, grant agreements and budgetary analysis. Ray has served on committees with other agencies such as the Chicago Transit Authority, Illinois Department of Transportation, and Illinois Tollway to develop strategies to increase minority business participation.
Ray earned his B.S. in Accountancy at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and his J.D. from the Loyola University Chicago School of Law evening program, where he served as Treasurer of the Asian Pacific American Law Student Association.
Food is one of his favorite topics and pastimes. 90’s R&B and Hip-Hop are his favorites, but a little-known fact is that he also loves Polynesian Reggae and Country Music.
Vince Verde
Vince Verde is the head of the firm’s Trial Practice Group. He is a litigator and former prosecutor with extensive jury and non-jury trial experience. He has tried and won jury trials in multiple jurisdictions and represents employers in state and federal courts in single and multi-plaintiff actions. His diverse practice includes the representation of regional and national clients in all phases of litigation involving employment and labor matters, unfair competition, trade secret and non-compete matters, work place violence, intellectual property rights, class action lawsuits and complex business disputes. He has extensive experience in all areas of employment law, including wrongful termination, retaliation and 1102.5 claims, discrimination, harassment, wage and hour issues, family and medical leave, disability discrimination and accommodation and employee privacy. Mr. Verde draws on his skills as a trial attorney in order to successfully resolve matters early in the litigation or obtain dismissals through summary judgment.
Vincent Gonzales
Vincent M. Gonzales is Senior Environmental Counsel for Southern California Gas Company, a Sempra Energy Utility. He provides environmental legal advice to the Company, focusing on climate change, air quality, water quality, hazardous materials, and site remediation issues, among others.
Previously, Mr. Gonzales was in-house counsel for Atlantic Richfield Company (ARCO), once operating as BP America. In addition to environmental law, Mr. Gonzales provided legal advice to the ARCO companies in the areas of commercial law, real estate law, and maritime law. Before ARCO, he was a
corporate and banking associate for Melveny & Myers in downtown Los Angeles (DTLA).
Mr. Gonzales was a recent member of the International Board of Directors of the Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC) where he chaired ACC’s Energy Network, Environmental & Sustainability
Network, and Council of Networks. He was a member of the Board of Directors of the Southern California Chapter of the ACC, as well as its former President.
Mr. Gonzales is currently on the Board of Directors of Asian Americans Advancing Justice – Los Angeles, serving as its Secretary and as a member of its Governance Committee. He is a lifetime member and former president of the Philippine American Bar Association. He serves on the Executive Committee
(past Chair) of the Environmental Law Section of the Los Angeles County Bar Association. He is a former member of the Board of Directors of the Los Angeles Division of the Anti-Defamation League and is a founding member and past President of the Filipino-American Lawyers of Orange County.
Mr. Gonzales is a graduate of the University of Southern California Gould School of Law where he served as a staff member and Publication Editor of the Southern California Law Review. He received a B.A. from Haverford College, majoring in Philosophy, and a M.A. in Philosophy from the University of
California, San Diego.
Mr. Gonzales works in DTLA and resides in Orange County, California with his wife and
two children. His hobbies include skiing, snowboarding, golf, basketball, and dancing with his wife, Libby.
Carolyn Enciso Sieve
Carolyn Enciso Sieve has represented employers of all sizes in business litigation and employment matters for more than twenty-five years. Currently, she is a partner with Constangy, Brooks, Smith & Prophete LLP, a law firm with nearly 200 lawyers across 15 states that focuses on helping employers navigate the ever-changing laws and regulations that govern the workplace. She opened and now manages Constangy’s Orange County, California office.
In addition to her litigation practice, Carolyn provides counseling and advice to employers regarding a variety of employment issues, from handbooks, to interactive process, to protection of trade secrets. She also conducts workplace investigations.
Carolyn is a graduate of Temple University School of Law and, after her graduation from law school, clerked for the Honorable Thomas Tang of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. She is rated AV-Preeminent by Martindale-Hubbell.
Carolyn is a founding member and former Treasurer of FLOC. She is also served as a Secretary and board member of the Philippine American Bar Association in Los Angeles (PABA). Carolyn loves spending time with her family (twin 18-year-old daughters, Lauren and Olivia, husband, Mark, and Max the dog) and extended family and friends; travel; hiking; and her two book clubs.
Ronald Baldonado
Ronald Baldonado serves as in-house counsel for Apollo Insurance Solutions Group LP, a subsidiary of Apollo Global Management, Inc., which is a global alternative asset management firm. Ronald's practice primarily focuses on providing legal support in connection with investment management services for certain insurance company clients. Previously, Ronald served as Senior Associate General Counsel for a subsidiary of a leading multinational investment bank and financial services company that specializes in fix & flip residential lending.
Ronald began his legal career in insurance defense litigation at small and mid-sized law firms before transitioning to in-house real estate finance attorney roles. He graduated from the University of California, Irvine with a Bachelor of Arts in Criminology, Law & Society and received his Juris Doctor from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Ronald is a founding board member of the Filipino-American Lawyers of Orange County (FLOC).
Michael Caoile
Michael Caoile is an associate at Resnick & Louis, P.C. His work focuses on insurance defense. Previously, Michael served as in-house counsel for a national insurance company. Prior to civil litigation, Michael worked in the areas of immigration and special education law.
He received his Juris Doctor from Whittier Law School in 2017. Michael served as president of the Asian Pacific American Law Student Association. Michael is licensed to practice law in California and Nevada.
Michael was born in Pampanga, Philippines and grew up in Guam and Las Vegas, Nevada before moving to Orange County. In his free time he likes to cook and watch basketball.