Senior Associate
Growing up, Sarah witnessed the dedication and sacrifices her family made in order to operate restaurant and construction businesses in California. This is why she understands the importance of approaching legal issues with prompt and cost-effective resolutions. Whether a business is in the throes of unavoidable litigation or at a crossroads on a delicate advice and counsel matter, Sarah will provide tactful solutions to achieve the best outcome.
Prior to joining Cook Brown, Sarah worked as an Employment Law Subject Matter Expert at the California Chamber of Commerce where she answered over a thousand questions on the Labor Law Helpline for a wide range of businesses, drafted handbook policies, and served as an expert panelist to train businesses on topics such as HR best practices, leaves of absence, and wage and hour laws.
Sarah also brings extensive litigation experience to the table. After law school she practiced at a civil litigation firm where she worked on an array of employment law matters for nonprofits, represented large commercial retailers in personal injury cases, and defended public entities facing serious claims of employee misconduct. After this experience, Sarah worked at a large law firm where she focused exclusively on employment law and litigated harassment, discrimination, retaliation, as well as wage and hour class and PAGA actions.
Sarah graduated from U.C. Davis School of Law in 2017, where she led the King Hall Labor and Employment Law Association as President and served as an editor on Law Review. While in law school, she also externed for Justice Louis Mauro at the California Third District Court of Appeal and drafted appellate judicial opinions, including People v. Steele (2016) 201 Cal.Rptr.3d 363, which was published in April 2016. Prior to law school, Sarah graduated summa cum laude from Saint Mary’s College of California in 2014 with a degree in Politics.
Sarah is licensed to practice law in all California courts and the United States Court for the Eastern District of California.
Results
- Won Labor Commissioner hearing on behalf of nonprofit facing over $100,000 in damages for claims of exempt employee misclassification.
- Obtained dismissal of case minutes after finishing plaintiff’s deposition by uncovering fraud.
- Assisted in high exposure trial on behalf of public entity in employee misconduct case with admitted liability and achieved favorable jury verdict ($45 million demand, $1.135 million verdict).
- Achieved favorable settlements with careful negotiation and thoughtfully timed dispositive motions.
Publishing
- Navigating Employee Leave Laws: 5 Critical Reminders for California Employers
- Employers Must Carefully Define the Scope, Duration, and Mutuality of Arbitration Agreements
- DLSE Updates FAQs on California Paid Sick Leave Expansion
Community
Sarah serves on the Board of Directors for Wellspring Women’s Center, a nonprofit serving women and children in Sacramento that she has volunteered with since middle school. She is also on the Executive Committee for the American Inns of Court (Levi-Schwartz chapter), which is an association of lawyers, judges, and other legal professionals dedicated to professionalism, ethics, and civility.