Stephanie Rocha ’00, J.D. ’09 appeared in the Silicon Valley Business Journal’s 2014 40 Under 40 list. She is an associate attorney at Miller Morton Cailat & Nevis LLP, where Rocha represents developers, builders and prime contractors in construction litigation, including defect and payment disputes. She also represents real estate agents and brokers, homeowners, landlords, tenants and other individuals and entities in a variety of real estate- and business-related matters.
A Santa Clara native, Rocha started her career at a semiconductor company in Santa Clara County. She quickly moved up the ranks in the human resources department and — unfortunately, as the recession began to hit — was involved in handling company layoffs, exposing her to legal employment claims and piquing her interest in law.
Her experience at this time also included working as employee relations manager for a biotech company, where she was able to cultivate her newfound interest by working closely with the company’s outside labor and employment counsel.
Indulging her varied outside curiosities, Rocha earned her real estate license and began selling real estate at nights and on the weekends, while still maintaining her full-time job. Exposure to real estate law was the final push she needed to pursue law school.