Introduced to the law field in her teenage years, Los Angeles native Arpi Galstian, JD ‘16, knew she had to follow her dreams to help others as an attorney. And now, as a successful attorney, she is set on becoming a trial lawyer. It seems setting a goal and achieving it is just what Arpi does.

Her passion and journey in law began at Yepremyan Law Firm, at age 16 and continues today. She started working as a file clerk while in high school. She worked after classes for 2 hours each day and even longer hours during holidays and summer breaks. At Yepremyan Law Firm, Arpi’s interest and passion for law developed and provided the impetus and inspiration to pursue an education and professional career in law.

At 18 years old, Arpi’s role transitioned to full-time status. She continued to work during the day while attending college classes at the University of Phoenix at night. Although she would later leave the firm to explore the job market, Yepremyan Law Firm is her first work family, both a job and a place where she knew she belonged.

Arpi shared a story from ten years ago when she worked as a paralegal helping a young newlywed couple, expecting their first child, who was in an accident. The clients were injured on their way home from the Doctor’s office, where they heard the baby’s heartbeat for the first time. Unfortunately, because of the injuries, the mother suffered a miscarriage. Initially, the insurance company tendered the policy limits for the expecting mother but not for her husband. The opposing lawyer claimed that because the husband was not carrying the baby, he could not have possibly experienced the same emotional trauma as the mother.

“This infuriated me,” said Arpi. “I had met with the clients several times and watched this young man cry at every meeting. I saw how distraught and heartbroken he was. How excited he was to become a father, and how it was instantly ripped away from him. I was determined to help them, and I fought for more than a year until they eventually tendered their limits for the father too.”

Driven by that experience and many others, Arpi continues to advocate for her clients at Yepremyan Law Firm in North Hollywood, as an Associate Attorney handling pre-litigation work. In addition to leading the Litigation Department, she handles lemon-law matters and dealer-fraud cases. She never forgets that early case in her career, which taught her always to remember the richly human side of the law.

Arpi is most proud of several of her recent successful cases in which she reached settlements in solid six-figure amounts. This contrasted with when they started negotiations, where the original offers were much less, or even none at all. This kind of client advocacy drives Arpi’s motivation to continue positively impacting people’s lives.

However, it hasn’t always been easy getting here. As a student, she worked full-time at the Wilshire Law Firm alongside a full course load at UWLA, which created serious challenges.

“It wasn’t a walk in the park,” said Arpi. “As much as I enjoyed and loved law school, I probably drove home every week in tears due to the pressures of maintaining my job and school successfully. Fortunately, attending a school that supports and understands the importance of balance was tremendously helpful,” she added.

To make it all attainable, Arpi sought out a law school that would care about her and would prioritize her needs as a working student.

“Balancing a life outside of law school with work responsibilities and a family to care for was more manageable with UWLA’s flexible hours and professors who made themselves available even during their work hours to ensure that their students succeed,” Arpi added.

“I absolutely loved my time in law school and have the fondest memories of being there. UWLA provides students with an intimate, supportive, and family-like atmosphere with knowledgeable and understanding professors who continually show up for their students. I met some of my closest friends and colleagues at UWLA, many of whom I will keep in touch with for years to come,” she said. She fondly looks back and credits some of her successful experiences at UWLA to her study buddies and good friends, Jade Chen and Marianna Sinanyan.

To those considering law school, Arpi encourages all by saying there is no such thing as too old, too young, or too late.

“My first law school professor at UWLA was already a lawyer at age 25, and my eldest classmate was in her 60s. The furthest traveling student was a hybrid (online/in-class) student traveling and studying from London, U.K.”

Arpi added: “Our mind is the only thing that creates barriers. Break down your own mind’s barriers and move forward. The most challenging is taking the first step, you will figure out everything else along the way. Your days, months, and years will pass anyway, and you will arrive…the only difference is where you will arrive.”

Today, Arpi and her husband Ken, who served in the U.S. Army, live in Los Angeles. However, during the early years of their relationship and marriage, they lived in Lawton, OK, near Ken’s army base, while Arpi worked remotely as an LA-based attorney. They have one son, Alexander, who, as Arpi said, “has added abundant joy and love” to their lives.

Arpi has always had a great deal of empathy and understanding for people’s struggles, and she is determined to leverage her role as an attorney to make a difference in the lives of others.