Allan has been practicing workers’ compensation law since 1959, working hard to improve working people’s lives and to make the workers’ compensation system treat each injured worker with dignity and respect. Allan also serves as a pro bono Settlement Master and Arbitrator for the Santa Barbara Superior Court and on the non-profit boards of the FoodBank, the Ensemble Theatre, the Rehabilitation Hospital Foundation, and the Legal Aid Foundation of Santa Barbara County.

Sylvia has served for 10 years as the Executive Director of the Good Samaritan Shelter, with 7 locations, 16 programs and 65 employees all dedicated to provide emergency, transitional and support services to the homeless and those in recovery throughout the central coast. She is also the co-chair of the 10 Year Plan to End Chronic Homelessness in our County and a staunch advocate for veterans’ rights.

Judge Ochoa served as the Executive Director of the Legal Aid Foundation of Santa Barbara County from 1980 – 83. At 32, he was appointed to the Municipal Court, the youngest judge in the state at the time and the court’s first Hispanic judge in that century. He was elected to the Superior Court in 1996. Judge Ochoa is credited with starting two successful adult drug court programs, a Juvenile Drug Court and the Court Administered Appropriate Dispute Resolution program (CADRe).

The Women’s Fund responds to critical community needs through the collective philanthropy of women. Since its founding by Carol Palladini and Meredith Scott in 2004, the all-volunteer organization has given more than $2.5 million to 33 nonprofit agencies that benefit thousands of women, children and families within the greater Santa Barbara area.

Justice Gilbert has served as the Presiding Justice of the Court of Appeal, Second District, Division Six since 1999. He started his law career as a Deputy City Attorney in Los Angeles followed by 10 years in private practice. In 1975, he ascended to the Los Angeles Municipal Court, then the Los Angeles Superior Court, before becoming an Associate Justice of the Court of Appeal, Second District. He has received numerous awards, including the Beacon of Justice in 2008.