Melinda Garcia

Melinda Garcia is the Managing Shareholder at the Garcia & Gurney law firm, where she focuses on providing businesses with the legal assistance and advice they need to compete. 

As a litigator, Ms. Garcia regularly appears in California state courts and private forums such as arbitrations and mediations. As a transactional lawyer, Ms. Garcia has the expertise to competently advise businesses regarding employment issues, intellectual property, business organization, real estate acquisition, commercial leasing, mergers and acquisitions, international business transactions, and other matters. 

Ms. Garcia is known for her keen business sense and her ability to provide practical, effective legal solutions for both businesses and individuals. Ms. Garcia believes in learning as much as possible about her clients' business needs and operating environment. She is also a firm believer in sharing her knowledge with her clients and others.

Ms. Garcia has educated business owners all over California with her popular lecture, "The Ten Things Every Small Business Owner Should Know." She has also taught continuing legal education courses on the formation, taxation, and operation of Limited Liability Companies and Limited Liability Partnerships in California. She was the keynote speaker for the San Francisco Chapter of the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO) and has spoken before various other business organizations.

A native of the San Francisco Bay Area, Ms. Garcia maintains a deep commitment to community service.  For three years, she served as a Director and Chair of the Axis Community Health Foundation, which provides health services to the indigent. She is on the advisory board of the San Jose Regional Medical Center and coached the successful Amador Valley High School Honors Mock Trial Team for five years. Ms. Garcia was Treasurer of the Las Positas College Foundation and was on the Board of Directors for four years.

Ms. Garcia has been repeatedly recognized for her contributions to the legal and business communities of the Bay Area. In 2011, she received the Women Entrepreneur of the Year award from the Women's Initiative for Self-Employment.  In 2008, Ms. Garcia was one of three finalists in Hispanic Business Magazine's Annual Entrepreneur of the Year Awards for Entrepreneurial Excellence in the Latina Entrepreneur category. In 2006, she was featured in the Tri-Valley Herald newspaper, and in an "Up Close" feature in the East Bay Business Times.  In 2004, Ms. Garcia was named to the top "40 Under 40" list of business persons by the East Bay Business Times. In 1999, she received a Santa Clara University Alumni Award.

Ms. Garcia holds degrees from the University of California at Berkeley and the Santa Clara University School of Law.  She was selected to participate in the Honors Moot Court, the Hispanic National Moot Court, the Santa Clara University Law School Trial Team, and the American Bar Association Negotiation Team.

• J.D., Santa Clara University School of Law (1999)
• B.A., University of California at Berkeley (1995)

• California State Courts
• U.S. District Court, Eastern District of California
• U.S. District Court, Northern District of California
• U.S. District Court, Central District of California
• U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit

• State Bar of California (Employment, Litigation, Business and Real Property Sections) (Standing Committee for LLCs and Partnerships for the Business Law Section of the State Bar 2010-2012)
• American Bar Association
• Santa Clara County Bar Association
• Eastern Alameda County Bar Association
• Contra Costa County Bar Association
• Hispanic National Bar Association
• National Association of Women Business Owners
• Pleasanton Chamber of Commerce
• Livermore Chamber of Commerce