---

---

Practice Areas: Criminal Defense

Additional Information:

Mr. Cephas, the firm founder, has extensive experience in civil and criminal litigation, including substantial successful trial experience. He received a Bachelor of Science in Business with an emphasis in accounting from the University of Connecticut in 1986, and his Juris Doctorate from the University of Chicago in 1993. Before entering law school, Mr. Cephas was an Audit Manager and a Captain in the United States Air Force Audit Agency, stationed in San Bernardino, California. Mr. Cephas is licensed to practice law in California and Colorado. Prior to founding the firm, he was of counsel with Winston and Strawn LLP in their Los Angeles office.

Employment Law Experience: Mr. Cephas has extensive experience defending Fortune 500 companies, as well as smaller employers, in both California and Colorado. He has obtained summary judgment in favor of his clients in a number of discrimination, harassment and wrongful termination cases. Mr. Cephas has defended employers in several class actions alleging race, age and sex discrimination, as well as wage & hour actions. He has also successfully tried several employment-related matters, and has represented employers before administrative agencies including the Department of Fair Employment and Housing, the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the California Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (the Labor Commissioner). Mr. Cephas has provided extensive employment counseling and advice to human resource professionals, and has given presentations to many management groups regarding litigation avoidance practices. In addition to his employment with national law firms in Denver and Los Angeles, Mr. Cephas was employed as a Senior Trial Attorney for the EEOC in the agency's Los Angeles and San Diego offices.

Criminal Experience: Mr. Cephas is also an experienced criminal defense practitioner. He was employed as a Deputy Federal Public Defender in the Central District of California for three years where he represented more than one hundred clients. His experience included countless court appearances, numerous trials and the negotiation of favorable plea agreements. Mr. Cephas has also successfully secured pre-trial dismissals for several of his clients and has extensive experience challenging government requests to detain clients without bail. In addition to his work before the District Court, Mr. Cephas has litigated cases before the Ninth Circuit Courts of Appeal. He also has substantial experience challenging international extradition agreements. Mr. Cephas has been appointed to the Criminal Justice Act Indigent Defense Panel for the Central District of California where he is responsible for the representation of indigent clients in criminal cases.

Mr. Cephas is a member of the employment and criminal defense sections of the Los Angeles County Bar Association, the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, the employment and criminal defense sections of the California Bar Association, and the Colorado Bar Association.

Cases:

United States of America v. Mher "Capone" Darbinyan and Arman "Horse" Sharopetrosian

United States of America v. Andranik Aloyan"

United States of America v. Rondale Young a/k/a Pueblo-Gump

United States of America v. Christopher Paul George, Crystal Taiwana Buck and Albert DiRoberto