Our Team
KI YUN HWANG, ESQ.
CEO & General Counsel
Ki is responsible for the financial performance of BLD, leading company-wide business development, project management, strategic partnerships and strategic initiatives. As General Counsel, he also manages BLD's legal issues. Prior to joining BLD, he was the promotional partner at a boutique law firm that represented Fortune 500 companies and international clients. He also has experience working at international law firms. Education: J.D., University of Minnesota Law School; B.A., UCLA. Languages: Korean.
GEORGE MANDELLA
COO
george@blackletterdiscovery.com
George manages BLD's business and technology operations, and oversees the management of the company's off-site review facilities. He consults our clients on network deployment and security. Prior to BLD, George was CTO of an internet communications company that serviced the world's largest life sciences companies. He managed the IT and engineering team and oversaw the company's project management, engineering, strategic and technical consulting, and R&D. George directed product development efforts including a website content management system and a website traffic analysis suite, and was responsible for the deployment of new technologies. Education: B.A., USC (Honors).
GEOFF WILCOX, ESQ.
Executive Vice President
geoff@blackletterdiscovery.com
Geoff is responsible for the business operations of Black Letter Discovery's Ohio Review Centers, and is also involved in company-wide business development and project management. He was instrumental in developing BLD's operating manuals for document review best practices and continues to implement improvements. He is a frequent speaker on e-discovery, and designs and teaches BLD's Continuing Legal Education classes on document review practice. Clerkships: U.S. District Court, Northern District of California; Massachusetts Appeals Court. Education: J.D., Harvard Law School (magna cum laude); B.A., Miami University (summa cum laude).
NAMITA DILAWRI, ESQ.
Senior Director of Recruiting
namita@blackletterdiscovery.com
Namita is responsible for staffing document review projects in the San Francisco Bay Area. She has worked with the Bay Area offices of some of the world's largest law firms. Prior to joining BLD, Namita worked in legal recruiting for one of the largest staffing companies in the world. At BLD, she hones her legal recruiting experience exclusively on staffing large-scale document review projects, and takes pride in finding the "right" attorney for the job. Namita began her career in the legal field as a securities arbitration attorney, and continues to tutor examinees for the California Bar Exam. Namita has also been an instructor at UCLA extension, teaching a prep course for the legal world and family law. Education: J.D., Lewis and Clark School of Law; B.A. University of California, San Diego (Honors). Languages: German.
MICHAEL HUFF, ESQ.
Director of Project Management
mhuff@blackletterdiscovery.com
Mike leads BLD's project management team in Columbus, Ohio. Through process-driven best practices and a focus on review team leadership, Mike helps clients maximize quality and defensibility, while minimizing cost. Mike has led teams in review projects involving insurance, antitrust, pharmaceutical, patent and other litigation matters. Mike works closely with clients, counsel, and litigation support professionals to efficiently and effectively meet our clients' needs. Prior to joining BLD, he litigated matters in state and federal courts throughout Ohio. Mike's first exposure to large-scale document review was a multi-million-document review arising from EPA litigation. Mike is as an Adjunct Professor at Capital University Law School. Education: J.D., Capital University Law School, summa cum laude; B.A., Speech Communication, University of Illinois.
JASON HAGER, ESQ.
Director of Discovery Operations
jason@blackletterdiscovery.com
Jason is responsible for leading our Cleveland Office. Jason will be responsible for servicing existing clients, cultivating new client relationships and managing all aspects of the document review process for BLD's clients. Prior to joining BLD, his experience included managing a practice group for a Cleveland based law firm, operating his own business development and marketing company and participating in a complex toxic tort document review project. Education: J.D., University of Toledo College of Law; B.A., Political Science, Ohio State University.
BOB ROBERTS, ESQ.
Director of Discovery Operatoins
Bob is responsible for leading our Cincinnati office. Bob will service existing clients, cultivate new client relationships and manage all aspects of the managed document review process. Prior to joining BLD, his experience included managing a portion of the civil division of the Prosecutor's Office for one of Ohio's largest counties. Prior to that, he had several years experience representing private clients in state and federal courts throughout Ohio. Bob also has previous experience working on complex and large-scale document review projects including a patent infringement litigation and a class action mortgage lending suit. Education: J.D., University of Cincinnati College of Law; B.A., University of Dayton (cum laude).
AMY KANG, ESQ.
Director of Recruiting
Amy is responsible for recruiting candidates in the San Francisco Bay Area. Prior to joining BLD, Amy practiced as a corporate attorney, working closely with start-up technology entrepreneurs. She is a board member of the Korean American Bar Association of Northern California, and extremely active in the legal community. Education: J.D., Santa Clara University School of Law; B.A. University of California, Berkeley (Highest Distinction).
ASHLEY RUGGIERO, J.D.
Director of Recruiting
ashley@blackletterdiscovery.com
Ashley is located in BLD's Columbus, Ohio office and is responsible for recruiting candidates for our Ohio review centers (Cincinnati, Cleveland, and Columbus). Prior to joining BLD, Ashley externed for a large mutual insurance company where she assisted with discovery projects on a number of litigated matters. She is a member of the Columbus Bar Association and was invited to join the Phi Kappa Phi honors society in 2008. Education: J.D., Capital University Law School; B.S., The Ohio State University, cum laude.
ERIC PARHAM, ESQ.
Project Manager
eparham@blackletterdiscovery.com
Eric is a Project Manager at BLD's Columbus, Ohio Review Center and provides project management for large scale, as well as smaller, document review projects for law firms and corporate clients. With over twenty years of complex civil litigation experience, including extensive document review management, Eric provides overall project management, including working closely with clients, general counsel and contract attorneys and utilizing best practices to define and implement time- and money-saving procedures. Clerkship: District of Columbia Superior Court. Education: J.D. Georgetown University Law Center; B.A. Duke University.
AARON JACKO, ESQ.
Project Manager
ajacko@blackletterdiscovery.com
Aaron is a Project Manager at BLD's Columbus, Ohio Review Center. In addition to managing reviews, Aaron also provides technical support to help streamline the document review process, including developing complex search protocols to identify specific sets of documents, developing processes to effectively organize and manage large amounts of data, and creating applications to streamline the review process. Aaron has led several projects which focused on crafting search terms that significantly reduced the amount of documents ultimately reviewed. Education: J.D., Ohio State University Moritz College of Law; B.S., Biology, Magna Cum Laude, Ohio State University.
THERESA ZAMECNIK, ESQ.
Project Manager
tzamecnik@blackletterdiscovery.com
Theresa is a Project Manager at the Cleveland, Ohio Facility. Her project management responsibilities include working with clients to implement review protocols that streamline the review process. She also manages review teams to optimize the strength of each team member to best capture opportunities to produce quality reviews as well as providing clients with an outstanding impression of BLD's abilities and resourcefulness. Education: J.D., Ohio Northern University Pettit College of Law, B.S., Psychology, The Ohio State University.
VALERIE HIRSH, ESQ.
Recruiting Coordinator (Southern California)
valerie@blackletterdiscovery.com
Valerie coordinates recruiting and staffing of BLD's document review projects in Southern California. Valerie has over seven years of litigation experience and has been a practicing attorney for nearly ten years. Before joining BLD, Valerie worked as a litigation attorney practicing in the areas of business, construction defect, and complex litigation. Education: J.D., University of California, Davis, King Hall School of Law; B.A., University of Washington.
ZAIN ALI
Payroll Manager
Zain is responsible for payroll operations at BLD. He has worked in the payroll and H/R field for over 10 years. Zain enjoys the challenges and intricacies of running an accurate and effective payroll and is excited to be part of the elite team at BLD.
PRESTON JOHNSON
Review Center Manager
preston@blackletterdiscovery.com
Preston manages and maintains BLD's off-site review centers. He provides technical and logistic support for off-site attorneys and project managers, and ensures that all aspects of review center operations are optimized to provide a productive environment for document review. Prior to BLD, Preston worked as a Commercial Leasing Associate in San Francisco's Financial District.