Real Estate Assistant

Kezia O. L. Taylor

**** *** ******** ****, ***** 3AR Office: 412-***-****

Pittsburgh, PA 15238 ***********@*****.*** Mobile: 412-***-****

EDUCATION

University of Pittsburgh School of Law, Pittsburgh, PA

Juris Doctor May 2006

University of Pittsburgh Law Review, Staff Editor

Activities:

• 31st Annual Honors Convocation, Student Honoree

• Pitt Law Women’s Association, Treasurer

• Moot Court Appellate Competition, Semi-finalist

• Student Bar Association, Class Representative

Howard University, Washington, D.C.

B.A. in Political Science and English May 2001, Cumulative G.P.A.: 3.3

Honors:

• National Dean’s List

• Golden Key National Honor Society

• Academic Trustee Scholarship

• Howard University’s Dean’s List, Six Semesters

University of West Indies, Kingston, Jamaica, Study Abroad, Summer 2000

• Participated in academic seminars and field excursions to advance understanding and complement cultural and classroom learning

LEGAL EXPERIENCE

Taylor Law Firm, Attorney at Law, Pittsburgh, PA October 2009 – Present

Solo Practitioner

• Negotiated and drafted a construction and design contract for a client’s $2.3 Million commercial development

• Developed, successfully, a strategy for representing an entertainment corporation before the City of Pittsburgh, Zoning Board of Adjustment to obtain zoning variances for construction and project development

• Litigated, successfully, on behalf of a local business operator in a business operating license renewal appeal the issue of whether the Department of Public Welfare put forth sufficient evidence proving that the business operator was in violation of mandatory regulations before the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Department of Public Welfare, Bureau of Hearings and Appeals

• Represented and counseled clients on an array of litigation matters including analyzing and solving problems concerning commercial contracts with subcontractors and suppliers, commercial and residential real estate purchasing and developments, and labor & employment issues

• Developed management, employee and business training modules and curriculum for retail businesses

• Drafted employee handbooks for employee governance in retail industries

Pepper Hamilton LLP, Pittsburgh, PA September 2007 – October 2009

Commercial Real Estate Associate

• Obtained a favorable result defending the statutory right of a national retailer to develop a supercenter pursuant to local land development and zoning laws before a local municipal board and the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas

• Represented, successfully, a local university in a zoning dispute against a local government body seeking to rezone and historically preserve portions of the university’s property without regard for the university’s growth and need for expansion

• Represented, successfully, as second chair, a national convenience and pharmacy store in an ad valorem tax assessment appeal before the Delaware County Court of Common Pleas

• Drafted purchase land sale agreements, leases, subleases and lease abstracts for commercial entities

• Completed legal research regarding the drafting of a Community Benefits Agreement on behalf of a commercial real estate developer building a local sports arena

• Completed all pre-trial discovery and motions practice in an international cell tower company’s ad valorem tax assessment appeal challenging the manner of taxing its telecommunication property before the Beaver County Court of Common Pleas

• Successfully represented several nonprofit organizations with obtaining tax exempt status

• Represented many commercial clients before the local Board of Assessment Appeals and Revisions of Taxes regarding the proper valuation and taxation of commercial property

• Drafted legal briefs for court submission, and memoranda analyzing statutory and federal regulations

The Honorable Mary Jane Bowes, Superior Court of Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh, PA October 2006 – August 2007

Judicial Law Clerk –Rotating Clerkship

• Researched and drafted opinions in all areas of the law, including civil and criminal matters, and critically reviewed appeals analyzing the standard of review applied by lower courts and administrative tribunals

• Analyzed court records, transcripts and researched applicable case law to draft bench memoranda and provide judicial recommendations for judicial votes

Judicial Law Extern Summer 2005

• Drafted memorandum for the dissent in a criminal case involving evidence suppression and police tampering

• Drafted memorandum for a judicial vote and majority opinion involving testimony given by an expert witness

Council on Legal Education Opportunity (CLEO) Summer Institute, Pittsburgh, PA Summer 2005

Teaching Assistant

• Taught students the components of a legal memorandum and brief, and the elements of an oral argument

Neighborhood Legal Services Association, Pittsburgh, PA Summer 2004

Legal Extern

• Drafted memorandum analyzing case law governing affirmative defenses and rules of evidence for a civil lawsuit

• Conducted witness investigations and negotiated Protection From Abuse Orders

• Attended client interviews, depositions, and unemployment hearings

University of Pittsburgh School of Law, Pittsburgh, PA Summer 2004

Research Assistant for Dean Kevin Deasy

• Researched and wrote the first academic and informational resource handbook for all incoming law students to use to acclimate to the Socratic method, understand case briefing, develop final examination outlines, and draft memoranda

Research Assistant for Professor Jules Lobel

• Researched and drafted a non-partisan memorandum analyzing the UN Charter, the National Security Strategy and the President’s Preemption Doctrine for a law review article regarding the legality of the Iraqi war

ADDITIONAL EXPERIENCE

Pittsburgh Public School Teaching Institute, Pittsburgh, PA July 2011 – Present

Leadership Development Facilitator

• Empowered effective teachers using a strategically designed leadership curriculum

• Trained master classroom teachers in mentoring and developing novice teachers

Montgomery County Public Schools, Rockville, MD August 2001 – June 2002

Eighth Grade English Teacher

• Taught Eighth Grade English students the advanced William and Mary curriculum and illustrated how education and literature comprehension are instrumental in personal and professional development

• Coached the Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School Step Team and served on the School Planning Committee

BAR ADMISSION, AWARDS AND PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS

• Admitted, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

• Awardee: Pittsburgh Magazine and PUMP 40 under 40; New Pittsburgh Courier Fab 40

• Organized the First Pennsylvania Minority Pre-Law Conference at the David Lawrence Convention Center

• Board Member: Kelly Strayhorn Theater; Young Leaders Board of the YWCA of Greater Pittsburgh

• Advisory Committee Member: The Bartko Foundation – assisting single minority mothers with becoming self-sufficient

• Member: Homer S. Brown Law Association; Allegheny County Bar Association, Young Lawyers Division and Real Estate Property Group; Pennsylvania Bar Association, Minority Bar Division

• Volunteer Panelist: Color of Justice Program founded by the Honorable Mary Jane Bowes which exposes young girls to a legal career; Pennsylvania Bar Association’s Minority Law Day Program; Pitt Engineering Career Access Program – Career Awareness; Federal Courthouse Summer Legal Intern Program – guiding law students’ career trajectory

• Mentor: 6th Grade Mentor, United Way, The Mentoring Partnership of Southwestern Pennsylvania

• Coach: Pittsburgh Social Venture Partners – improving the economic viability of non-profits in Pittsburgh

• Participant: Duquesne University’s Nonprofit Leadership Institute, Boarding School

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