Criminal Law

• Wrongful Death
  Graves & King has defended numerous wrongful death cases originating out of construction site accidents, heavy equipment and automobile accidents. Our experience enables us to provide our clients with a full assessment of the injuries and the potential exposure in the earliest stages of each case.
• Misdemeanors
  Mr. Ziegel graduated cum laude from California State University of Fullerton with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science in 2016. He went on to graduate cum laude from University of La Verne, College of Law in 2019. While in law school, Mr. Ziegel was an active member of the Armenian Law Society, and Asian Pacific American Law Students Association. He also participated in and served as the Director of the Moot Court Traveling Team. In addition, he served as the Marshal for the Shriver chapter of the Phi Alpha Delta law fraternity. To gain hands-on experience, Mr. Ziegel worked for the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office as a certified law clerk handling complex felony and misdemeanor cases, as well as appellate homicide cases. He became a member of the State Bar of California in 2019.
• Homicide

Business and Corporate Law

• Business Disputes
  Ms. Derias obtained her law degree in French and European law from the University of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne. She holds an LL.M. degree from Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne University, with an emphasis on international law, and an LL.M. degree from the University of Southern California, Gould School of Law, with an emphasis on Business Law.

Employment Law

• Wrongful Termination
  2003-Present, Partner, Graves & King LLP, with emphasis in construction defect, public entity and transportation defense, wrongful termination defense, harassment and discrimination defense, general liability tort defense
• Employment Litigation
  Graves & King LLP was founded in 1993 and, since its inception, has focused its practice on the representation of public entities, corporations, and insured individuals in general liability, common carrier litigation, employment litigation, premises liability, flood control, and inverse condemnation claims. With offices in Riverside and Glendale, California, the Firm represents clients in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino Counties. The Firm was established, and has succeeded, on the premise that a small focused team of experienced legal professionals could provide its clients with more personalized and cost-effective services while achieving outstanding results. The Firm continually strives to maintain this goal and, as a result, has remained a solid presence in the Southern California legal community for over 28 years.
• Sexual Harassment
  Graves & King represents public entities including counties, cities, flood control districts and school districts in cases involving personal injury and wrongful death, highway design, flood control design, inverse condemnation, wrongful termination, discrimination, and sexual harassment.

Property Law

• Premises Liability
  Mr. Wimer also has extensive experience in the defense of transportation-related claims involving trucks, buses, taxi cabs and other common carriers. He is readily familiar with issues dealing with accident reconstruction and the bio-mechanical forces generated in an auto collision as well as the accurate assessment of personal injury claims, both large and small. Lastly, Mr. Wimer has successfully handled hundreds of auto, premises liability and other general negligence claims on behalf of self-insured businesses and the insureds of liability insurance carriers.
• Construction Litigation
  Michael D. Sargent is a partner working in the firm’s Riverside office primarily working with public entities on a wide range of legal issues. Mike has also worked extensively with contractors on various civil liability claims including construction defect and breach of contract. Mike received his Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice Administration from San Diego State University in 1995. He received his Juris Doctorate in 2002 from the University of La Verne – College of Law.
• Property Damage
  The firm has extensive experience in the defense of public transportation claims and defending the interests of common carriers such as bus, shuttle, taxi cab fleets, rental car companies, and their customers, against wrongful death, personal injury, and property damage actions.

Health Law

• Personal Injury
  Szu Pei Lu-Yang, a Partner of the firm, has been with Graves & King since 2005. Mrs. Lu-Yang’s practice is centered on general liability litigation, large personal injury losses, defense of public entities, and the investigation of fraudulent and suspect claims. She defends public transportation entities, public and private employers, corporations, private individuals and insurance companies. Prior to Graves & King, Mrs. Lu-Yang was a partner in a boutique accounting firm in 2002 preparing corporate and individual tax returns.
• Medical Malpractice
  Ms. Herrera joined Graves & King, LLP in 2020. She is admitted to practice before all the courts of the State of California as well as the United States District Court, Central District. Before joining Graves & King, Ms. Herrera’s practice focused on medical malpractice and elder abuse defense law as a Senior Associate at La Follette Johnson DeHass Fesler & Ames between 2018 and 2020. Ms. Herrera was a Senior Research Attorney for the Superior Court Judges in the Civil Unlimited and Appellate Divisions and also served as a Temporary Judge with the Orange County Superior Court, Central Division from 2005 until her retirement from the Court in 2018. Prior to joining the Court, Ms. Herrera was an associate with Bonne, Bridges, Mueller O’Keefe & Nichols where she defended professional and medical malpractice cases. Ms. Herrera graduated with a B.A. in Criminal Justice from California State University, Fullerton, then received post-graduate Paralegal Certification from the University of San Diego. She received her Juris Doctorate from Western State University College of Law, cum laude in 1992.

Trusts and Estates

• Wills
  While attending Chapman University Fowler School of Law, Ms. Ring earned top academic honors in Legal Research & Writing, Civil Procedure Lab, Constitutional Law, Wills & Trusts, and Constitutional Jurisprudence Clinic. Working with the Constitutional Jurisprudence Clinic, Ms. Ring drafted and submitted three United States Supreme Court briefs, two in support of writ of certiorari (
• Trusts
  (highest grade in law school class): Civil Procedure, Legal Research & Writing, Wills & Trusts, First Amendment & Equal Protection, Constitutional Jurisprudence Clinic

Finance Law

• Bankruptcy