Julie Y. Park

Park got multiple degrees in science, and at one time, she wanted to pursue pharmaceutical research to help better people’s lives. She spent time at Pfizer researching cancer treatment drugs, but she felt that it wasn’t quite the right fit for her.

“I realized I didn’t want to just solve problems in the lab,” Park said. “I really wanted to help people solve problems, and as a lawyer, that’s what I do every day, and I love it.”

Having a fundamental and technical knowledge helps Park solve problems efficiently, whether through advising clients on risk mitigation or taking them through litigation. She said it’s important to make sure all the pieces fit together as a case progresses so that her clients’ goals are reached in alignment with the big picture of their businesses.

Her experience paid off while working with pharmaceutical distributor McKesson Corp. when she defended the company against allegations that McKesson failed to warn consumers of possible side effects from a breast cancer treatment drug. She won a preemption motion in the case, the first of its kind in California.

“It feels really good because I feel like my client was right and that they have finally been vindicated by a court,” Park said, adding it was rewarding “to get that outcome for a client that I really value and I have a great relationship with.”

In addition to her experience with pharmaceutical research, Park is also an accomplished violinist, which draws parallels to her job as a lawyer.

“You have to be a good listener and you have to figure out what’s most important,” Park said. “Everything we do is an iterative process, so you’re constantly evaluating what’s good and what can be better, whether that’s in the scientific method or playing a piece of music or solving a legal problem.”

— Nicole Tyau