Meet The Attorneys

Attorneys - Jennifer, Crista & Jun

Crista Hermance

As an attorney with two young children, Crista has first hand knowledge and experience to understand how important planning is for young families. Estate planning can accomplish so many of your wishes to ensure that if something happened, your kids would be legally protected the way that we want. All families should have some sort of legal estate plan.

In speaking with several parents, most of them did not have an estate plan in place or anything to protect their children in case of incapacity or death. It’s scary to think that if a plan isn’t in place, the state would have a plan for you. Odds are, it’s not the plan you would want.

Estate Planning is NOT just for the wealthy, it’s for any parent wanting to put a plan in place to protect their family.

Crista Hermance
Crista with her daughters
Crista was born and raised in Ventura, California and lived there a majority of her life. She majored in business management at San Diego State University and soon thereafter started working for Citigroup in Jacksonville, Florida. She worked as a project manager for Citigroup and traveled extensively throughout the world. She even ended up relocating to the Philippines for a year which was an opportunity of a lifetime for her. After living in the Philippines, she moved back to Ventura and began her legal career.
She started by volunteering at the Ventura County District Attorney’s office and the Coalition to End Family Violence as a Victim Advocate. Next she started law school at the Southern California Institute of Law and was able to find a position as a law clerk with a firm in Westlake Village where the flexible schedule allowed her to finish law school and take the California bar exam. After passing the bar, she received a promotion to associate attorney and focused on estate planning, personal injury and bankruptcy cases. She really enjoyed helping families with their estate planning and decided to start her own practice after the birth of her first child. She decided to focus her practice solely on estate planning and ensuring that young families know how to protect their family. She enjoys helping families create a specific estate plan to fit their unique needs and providing parents with the peace-of-mind knowing they have a plan in place. Family dynamics are always evolving and she built this practice with growing families in mind. As Hermance Law has continued to serve clients, their area of practice has evolved to include acting as crisis planning attorneys. It is important that the Hermance Law team are able to help our clients not only with their estate planning needs but also if one of their family members passes away.

Her goal is to create lasting relationships with her clients and to always be available to help them in the future.

Crista is very passionate about helping children and is involved in the following charities:

Crista - Estate Planning Mom Graphic

On a personal note:

  • Crista has two daughters, Sara (six) and Sophia (four).
  • Her Favorite Mom Activity: Taking the girls to the Zoo and mom play dates.
  • Hobbies: Traveling, scuba diving, golf, crafting, and photography.
  • Dream Vacation: Fiji

Jennifer Romero

Jennifer achieved a Bachelors Degree in Philosophy from the University of California, Los Angeles. Worked at the Children’s Law Center of California, representing children who have been abused, neglected or abandoned that come under the protection of the Los Angeles Juvenile Dependency Court systems. Jennifer passed the California BAR Exam in July of 2016 and joined the Hermance Law team in August of 2018.
Jennifer Romero
Jennifer - Estate Planning Mom Graphic
Jennifer is involved in the following charity:

On a personal note:

  • Jennifer has one daughter, Penny (two).
  • Her Favorite Mom Activity: FitMom classes with Penny. Taking Penny for ice cream and watching her try new flavors!
  • Hobbies: Long-Distance Running. Piano.
  • Dream Vacation: Paris with Penny!
Jennifer with daughter

Jun Shim

Jun received his Bachelors Degree from the University of California, Riverside. During law school, he served as a judicial extern to Honorable Steven J. Kleifield at the Los Angeles Superior Court, Stanley Mosk Courthouse. In addition, Jun served at Loyola Law School Center for Conflict Resolution, conducting reconciliations, arranging mediations and helping the economically disadvantaged clients resolve complex disputes through mediation. Upon graduation and admittance to the State Bar, Jun served as an in-house counsel at an Energy Service Company handling various types of legal matters ranging from business, corporate to employment. Jun joined Hermance Law in July of 2019 with the desire to help more families with minor children create a safe, lasting plan and protect their important assets. Jun will be serving clients in the Santa Clarita Valley region while also assisting clients in both English and Korean.
Jun Shim
Jun - Estate Planning Dad Graphic
On a personal note:

  • Jun has one son, Benjamin (three).
  • Favorite Dad Activity: Visiting museums and riding rollercoasters (big and small) with Benjamin
  • Hobbies: Traveling and Playing video games
  • Dream Vacation: Ultimate World Cruise

Click here for more information for Korean speaking clients.

Hermance Law Korean

Jun and his son

Haylee Mihalick

Haylee was born and raised in Los Angeles, California.  She graduated from Duke University in three years, during which time she conducted an honors thesis in hydrogeochemistry, was a Varsity athlete, and had a leadership role in her sorority.

After Duke, Haylee returned to LA to earn her Juris Doctor degree from The UCLA School of Law.  While in law school, Haylee was the Managing Editor of the Law Review, and was the student representative for the Beverly Hills Bar Association.  After admittance to the CA Bar, Haylee began work at PricewaterhouseCoopers.  At PwC, she specialized in corporate international tax planning and transfer pricing.

Haylee has always been passionate about helping others, and feels that estate planning presents a unique opportunity to help others provide for and protect those they care about most.  She looks forward to delivering a highly personalized client experience coupled with a product individually tailored to each client.

Firasat Tar
Firasat and her kids
On a personal note:

  • Haylee has 3 children: Tucker (six), Emery (five), and Eliza (two)
  • Her favorite mom activity: creating crafting, sensory, and baking projects with the kids
  • Hobbies: cooking, swimming, HIIT classes, Duke Basketball, and all things Disney
  • Dream Vacation: anywhere with a beach, good food, and good people

Connie Lee 

 Connie was born and raised in Orange County. Connie received her Bachelors Degree from the University of California, Riverside. Connie majored in Economics with and emphasis in Law and Society. After graduating from Riverside, Connie went directly to Law school at Western State University. Connie then graduated and ventured into the world of Law. Connie would then go to practice criminal defense, personal injury and was second chair in civil litigation trials. Connie also dabbled into labor and bankruptcy law. As Connie began gaining more experience in different fields, she also started a family. Connie knew that she always wanted to practice an area of law that was meaningful and that could truly make a difference. Having children made Connie realize the importance of Estate Planning and how necessary it is for families. Connie is passionate about being able to help others and hopes to be able to extend her knowledge and help ensure that families are protected.  

Firasat Tar

On a personal note:

  • Connie has two children. Ethan (10) and Lauren (8)
  • Her favorite mom activity:  Traveling and trying new activities with my family.  Doing family workouts.  Eating our way through cities. 
  • Hobbies: Traveling, Golf, Crossfit, Weightlifting, Wine, Food, and cooking.
  • Dream Vacation: Traveling through Asia and Europe eating amazing food and enjoying wine! 

Firasat Tar – Of Counsel

Firasat Tar Bakali was raised in Santa Monica, California.  She earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Los Angeles before earning her Juris Doctorate from Loyola Law School.  She is passionate about educating her community on Estate Planning topics.  She now lives in Orange County with her husband and 3 children.

Firasat began her career in 2009.  Over the course of several years, she worked in multiple legal practice areas.  Her experience with estate planning was the turning point of her career.  She decided to leave the managing partner position and pursue her LLM in tax to further her goals of establishing herself as an estate planning and sophisticated planning attorney.

Firasat believes that estate planning is a very personal process.  She wants to ensure that her clients feel comfortable and empowered during this process.  Nothing is more important than the peace of mind that a client has when they have completed their estate planning.

Firasat Tar
Firasat and her kids
Firasat is involved in the following charity:

  • Involved in her children’s school planning giving committee
  • Various Bar Associations (Board Member of the Muslim Bar Association of Southern California)
On a personal note:

  • Firasat has 3 children, Alina (ten), Nuriya (six) & Hasan (two)
  • Her favorite mom activity: puzzle and game night!
  • Hobbies: Pilates, flower arranging and anything crafty!
  • Dream Vacation: Italy, Italy, Italy!

Heather Frimmer – Of Counsel

Heather Frimmer
Heather was raised and current lives in Calabasas, California.  She earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Santa Barbara before earning her Juris Doctorate from Southwestern University School of Law.  Heather’s early legal practice involved mostly insurance litigation.  After having twin boys and preparing her own estate plan, she realized how crucial it is to prepare for the future and decided to focus her practice on estate planning.  Her goal is to make the planning process as easy as possible and to help families achieve the peace of mind that comes with knowing loved ones and assets will be taken care of regardless of what the future holds.
On a personal note:

  • She currently serves as Secretary on the Board of Directors for her community’s Homeowners’ Association.
  • She is a Room Parent for her sons’ preschool classroom.
  • When she has free time, she loves to get cozy with a good book and glass of wine.
Heather and the Twins

Contact

(805) 518-9633

 

Locations

4476 Market Street, Suite 602
Ventura, CA 93003
(805) 518-9633

2829 Townsgate Road, Suite 100
Westlake Village, CA 91361
(805) 518-9633

28338 Constellation Road, Suite 900
Santa Clarita, CA 91355
(661) 669-8472

1055 E. Colorado Blvd., Suite 500
Pasadena, CA 91106
(626) 709-2847

15615 Alton Parkway, Suite 450
Irvine, CA 92618
(949) 676-6016

26565 West Agoura Rd., Suite 200
Calabasas, CA 91302
 (818) 626-3543

Serving clients throughout California Virtually 

Disclaimer: The attorneys at Hermance Law, A Professional Corporation, are licensed to practice law solely in California and meets with clients by appointment only. Nothing in this website should be taken as engaging, or offering to engage, in any activities in any jurisdiction where those activities would constitute the unauthorized practice of law or would otherwise be unlawful or improper. The materials appearing on this Website are provided for informational purposes only and do not constitute legal advice. You should not take action based upon this information without consulting legal counsel. This site is not intended to create an attorney-client relationship. The hiring of a lawyer is an important decision that should not be based solely upon any single source of information, including advertising on this Website.

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