Candidate for
Member of the State Assembly; District 41

Heather Peters Bonhach, Esq.

Heather is a professional mediator trained to efficiently resolve conflicts involving complex legal and emotionally charged issues without the need for court intervention. She has the ideal skill set to become an Assemblymember.
- She will methodically analyze the multifaceted problems facing the State.
- She will set realistic and responsible goals, and
- She will work with people on all sides of the issues to do what is best for California.

After ten years of practice as a litigation attorney Heather realized that no one ever "wins" when precious financial and personal resources are drained to pursue a fight when they could be much better spent resolving whatever issue is at hand and moving forward. She now runs a private mediation practice in Los Angeles County and also volunteers her time at the Los Angeles Superior Court to assist people and organizations in choosing to resolve their differences on their own terms instead of clogging the courts and draining their own resources as well as those of the taxpaying public. http://www.petersmediation.com

EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND: Heather has been educated in the arts and business, as well as law and mediation.
- The product of public education throughout most of her childhood, she majored in art at the High School of Music and Art in New York City where she enjoyed sculpting and art history. She graduated in the top 3% of her class. Now the Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music and Art and Performing Arts - "The Fame School"
- She next attended Hunter College, part of the City College of New York, City before transferring to Nova University, a small private college in southern Florida where she obtained her bachelors degree in business administration with distinction.
- After scoring very well on her LSAT's she obtained two offers of full scholarships to law schools in California. She accepted the Paul W. Wildman scholarship and attended Southwestern University School of Law in Los Angeles where she was a member of the law review. She also studied at Temple University's School of Law in Philadelphia during her third year. She obtained her Juris Doctorate from Southwestern in 1990 graduating in the top 10% of the class.
- She also completed the basic and advanced mediation training courses at UCLA's Extension Program obtaining her Certification as a mediator pursuant to California Dispute Resolution Programs Act.

PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUND: Like her educational background, Heather's professional background is also well rounded.
- At the age of 16 she got her first job working the retail floor at Bloomingdale's flagship store in New York City.
- By the age of 18 she was managing models at a small agency in New York City. One year later, at the age of 19, she was hired by another small modeling agency to manage the booking agents of approximately 50 models.
- Her legal career goes, literally started in the mailroom working for Holland & Knight, one of the largest law firms in Florida while she attended college. It was this experience that led her to law school after completing her business degree.
- As a second year law student she was offered a clerkship with the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office, and accepted an clerkship with Barger & Wolen, a law firm founded by Richards D. Barger, the former California Insurance Commissioner.
- After obtaining her J.D. at the age of 24 and passing the Pennsylania bar, she was a litigation associate for one year at Philadelphia law firm of LaBrum & Doak. At LaBrum she represented the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority in several high profile mass casualty accidents including the 1990 derailment of a subway that killed four passengers. In her first year of practice she also had primary responsibility for coordinating approximately 35 separate lawsuits arising out of a head-on collision between a transit bus and a school bus and was counsel in several trials and arbitrations.
- In 1991 she returned to California and re-joined Barger & Wolen as a litigation associate. Upon her return she designed and implemented a legal skills training program for litigation associates at the firm, headed the associate mentoring program and was named hiring attorney responsible for all recruiting for the Los Angeles office. In 1998 she made partner and stayed with the firm until 2000 when she stopped actively practicing law.
- She is currently has her own mediation practice in Los Angeles County, Peters Mediation and also receives appointments as a mediator from the Los Angeles County Superior Court. She is also a member of the Association for Conflict Resolution.

PERSONAL BACKGROUND: Heather is 38 years old and married to Jeff Bonhach with no children. Heather and Jeff have been together since 1989. They have a passion for remodeling early modern homes. Heather has made 99 skydives. Accordingly, she has a keen understanding of fear and risk that has enhanced her skills as a litigator and mediator in a most unique way and will serve her well as a legislator.