KROLOFF - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Managing Shareholder
- Member of the Trial Attorneys of America
Allison Cherry Lafferty is experienced in all phases of litigation. Her practice focuses on commercial, real estate, products liability and construction litigation. Ms. Lafferty is well versed in complex commercial litigation, including class action defense and contract disputes. She represents a variety of businesses in planning and in litigation through trial. She has extensive experience, through trial, representing manufacturers and distributors in products liability litigation. Ms. Lafferty's practice includes representing businesses, farmers and landowners in a variety of contract and real estate disputes. Her representation of contractors and builders, spans from business advice to litigation and mechanics' liens. She has also defended the firm's hospital and physician clients in medical malpractice claims.
Ms. Lafferty is currently the firm's Managing Shareholder.
Ms. Lafferty is a frequent speaker on non-profit board governance at the Westgate Center.
Ms. Lafferty is a member of the Trial Attorneys of America and has been a speaker at its annual meeting in Chicago, Illinois.
Job Titles:
- Shareholder
- Member and past President of the Stockton Estate Planning Council
Christopher Engh has been named Super Lawyer® for Estate Planning in Northern California twelve times. He is the recipient of an AV® Preeminent™ Rating by Martindale-Hubbell, their highest rating. Mr. Engh is certified as a specialist in Estate Planning, as well as Trust and Probate law, by the State Bar of California. He advises clients on estate planning and tax issues and helps them develop plans to pass their assets to their beneficiaries in a manner that accomplishes their goals as efficiently as possible. He prepares both simple and complex Trusts, Wills, and Powers of Attorney for his clients based on their needs and their goals. He also develops more sophisticated plans as appropriate, including family business entities such as partnerships and limited liability companies, charitable trusts, intra-family sales transactions and irrevocable trusts.
Mr. Engh is a member and Past President of the Stockton Estate Planning Council.
Mr. Engh has been active in many community nonprofit organizations, including serving as a member and past president of the San Joaquin County Historical Society and Museum Board of Trustees.
Kelsea A. Carbajal earned her B.A. in Political Science and International Relations from San Francisco State University.
Following, her undergraduate studies, Ms. Carbajal went on to earn her law degree from Syracuse University College of Law and a Master's in Public Administration from Syracuse University's Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs. While at Syracuse, Ms. Carbajal participated in the Advocacy Honors Society, competed in various moot court and mock trial competitions, was an associate editor on the Impunity Watch Journal, and was a member of the Phi Alpha Delta Law Fraternity. Ms. Carbajal participated in the Veterans' Legal Clinic, where she worked with veterans on obtaining benefits, including presenting arguments to the VA's Board of Appeals in Washington, D.C. Ms. Carbajal was also a member of the Syrian Accountability Project, which documents crimes occurring throughout the Syrian Civil War. In her third year, Ms. Carbajal was the head of the Yazidi Project, within the Syrian Accountability Project, where she documented crimes committed by ISIS against the Yazidi People in Northern Iraq. Ms. Carbajal was also a contributing author to the White Paper "Report on the Yazidi Genocide."
While in Law school, Ms. Carbajal worked for the Onondaga County Attorney's office, where she assisted the county attorney in child removal cases, and the United States Attorney's Office in the Northern District of New York, where she worked on various civil and criminal cases.
Following law school, Ms. Carbajal returned to the west coast completing a state court clerkship in Yerington, Nevada and then a federal court clerkship with the Eastern District of California. Ms. Carbajal then joined Kroloff in the Fall of 2022. Her practice is primarily centered around litigation, employment law, estate planning, and trust administration.
Job Titles:
- Shareholder
- Member of the San Joaquin County Bar Association
- Member of the Stockton Rotary Club
- Member of the University
- Trustee for the Haggin Museum
Kerry Krueger, a shareholder with Kroloff, Belcher, Smart, Perry & Christopherson, joined the firm in 2006. Ms. Krueger has a litigation background, and her practice primarily consists of trust and estate planning and litigation, elder abuse litigation, employment advice and litigation, contract and construction dispute litigation and medical malpractice litigation. She represents trustees and beneficiaries, large and small employers including apartment managers, construction companies, trucking companies, hospitals, and local and regional commercial businesses. She also provides clients with business formation services.
Over the course of her career, Ms. Krueger has successfully mediated and settled a variety of cases involving employment rights, elder abuse claims, negligence claims, and contract claims. Ms. Krueger has successfully tried cases ranging from reasonable accommodation and retaliation to fraud as well as quiet title and easement rights. Ms. Krueger has been named a Northern California Rising Star in Civil Litigation Defense by San Francisco Magazine in 2013 and 2014. Ms. Krueger is admitted to practice before all courts of the State of California and the U.S. District Court, Eastern District of California.
Ms. Krueger is a member of the San Joaquin County Bar Association and previously served on the Board of Governors for 6 years.
Kerry is a Trustee for the Haggin Museum and previously served as President of the Board of Trustees.
Kerry is a member of the Stockton Rotary Club and has served on the Board of Directors.
Ms. Krueger serves as a member of the University of the Pacific Physical Therapy Leadership and Development Council.
Matthew Planas Javier earned his B.A. in Political Science from the University of California, Berkeley. He was a member of the Undergraduate Economics Association and the Debate Society of Berkeley.
Mr. Javier earned his law degree from the University of California, Davis School of Law. He interned at the Sacramento County Public Defender's Office, where he helped represent indigent people in court and advised community members of their rights. Mr. Javier also competed on the King Hall Negotiations Team.
Mr. Javier started his legal career with Kroloff in 2021. Mr. Javier's practice revolves around business transactions, litigation, intellectual property, employment counseling and litigation. Mr. Javier also practices estate planning and trust administration.
Paul Joseph Borges was born and raised in Stockton. Following graduation from Saint Mary's High School, he attended Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and received a B.A. in Political Science. While at Cal Poly, Mr. Borges was a member of The National Political Science Honor Society and a recipient of Dean's List and President's List academic honors.
Following his undergraduate studies, Mr. Borges attended the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law in Sacramento, where he concentrated in the study of business law. While at McGeorge, Mr. Borges completed externships in both the private and government legal spheres and served as a clerk at the Superior Court of San Joaquin County. He also had the unique opportunity to complete a research externship at Università degli Studi di Parma in Parma, Italy and to attend summer school in Salzburg, Austria, where he was taught by former Supreme Court Justice Anthony M. Kennedy.
Upon the completion of his law degree, Mr. Borges returned to his hometown of Stockton to commence his legal career, and began working at Kroloff in the fall of 2021. His practice is primarily centered around business law, and consists of business and real estate transactions and litigation as well as employment counseling and litigation. Mr. Borges also practices estate planning, trust administration matters, and medical malpractice defense.
Job Titles:
- Society for Human Resources Management, VP of Legislative Affairs
Mr. Perry has been recognized by his peers by election to membership in the American Board of Trial Advocates, an elite group of civil trial attorneys representing plaintiffs and defendants, with a mission to preserve and foster the civil jury trial system, and to promote civility by trial attorneys with their adversaries, witnesses and judges. Locally, he served as President of the Sacramento Valley Chapter. He has also been elected to membership in the Federation of Defense and Corporate Counsel, a prestigious national group of defense leaders and defense lawyers.
Tony Patiño Fellow - A prestigious merit fellowship awarded to law students showing exemplary community leadership and academic achievement.
Velma Lim has extensive experience in representing employers, both private businesses and public entities, in federal and state courts, as well as before administrative agencies in litigated employment matters. She also provides counseling and advice to employers in all phases of employment law as preventive measures to avoid litigation. In addition, Ms. Lim represents businesses in litigated matters concerning contract, labor, and other business disputes. Ms. Lim is awarded an AV® Preeminent™ Rating by Martindale-Hubbell, which is their highest rating for legal excellence and ethics. She is also designated a Northern California Super Lawyer in Employment Law.
Ms. Lim is well versed in discrimination, harassment, retaliation, whistleblower, wrongful termination, reasonable accommodation, defamation, breach of contract, wage and hour, and the myriad of employment cases. She also represents business owners and employers in individual cases and in class actions. She has successfully concluded numerous cases by obtaining dismissals, prevailing in pre-trial motions, trying cases in arbitrations, and obtaining jury verdicts in federal and state courts in favor of employers. Ms. Lim is most comfortable trying cases before juries in the courtroom and enjoys trials and working with clients to achieve a successful outcome.
In her employment counseling practice, Ms. Lim reviews and analyzes everyday personnel issues, ranging from wage and hour, policy enforcement, discipline, termination, and unemployment to numerous other issues, then provides advice to employers as to the best and most effective steps to reduce liability exposure. She prepares employment contracts, severance agreements, writes and reviews personnel policies, reviews employee handbooks for legal compliance and negotiates collective bargaining agreements, among numerous other tasks.
With her practice focus in employment law, Ms. Lim is often requested by other attorneys to serve as a mediator. She mediates assorted types of cases and has a high success rate in bringing the parties to middle ground to settle their cases. Ms. Lim also serves as a discovery referee and arbitrator for the Superior Court.
Ms. Lim is a frequent speaker and presenter on current employment issues to employers, human resources professionals, and managers.