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To say that Christopher W. Todd ’86 is proud of his law school would be an understatement.

Todd is a partner at the San Diego firm Wingert Grebing Brubaker & Juskie, LLP—and served the past two years as a California State Bar trustee.

“California Western graduates are very highly thought of by the local bench and bar,” Todd says. “They come to the courthouse far more prepared and ready to work than those who go to law schools that provide more theory-based education. The emphasis on practical skills development has really worked and is critically important in these times, particularly since the State Bar of California is moving toward ensuring that newly licensed lawyers have practical skills either through pro bono or practicum-type courses and through clinical internships—the very skills California Western already cultivates.”

When Todd went to California Western, those practical skills courses had already been a mainstay of the law school’s curriculum for years.

“The practical skills development that had been initiated by Professor George Gafford in the trial practice program was just fantastic,” Todd says. “Without the guidance of professors such as Stiglitz, Lynch, and so many others, I would not be the attorney that I am.”

Todd’s father, the Hon. William L. Todd Jr., was a superior court judge, an appeals court justice, and an adjunct professor at California Western. Todd decided not to take his father’s class, though Justice Todd was a huge inspiration to his son.

“I realized the good things my father did as both a lawyer and a judge,” says Todd. “I knew I wanted to at least try to do the same sort of good things.”

The younger Todd feels he is succeeding.

“I really feel that I am providing something of value—to the client, to the community, and to the administration of justice in our state and country,” he says. “It’s such a wonderful profession to be a part of.”

// RES IPSA ONLINE