Alana Yakovlev is an attorney at law and of counsel to the Blanch Law Firm. Ms. Yakovlev is a criminal defense attorney based in Los Angeles and practices in the L.A. County Superior Courts and Orange County. Alana works primarily out of the firm’s Los Angeles office where she works closely with attorneys in L.A. as well as the rest of the defense team in the firm’s New York and Texas offices. She handles federal and state cases involving Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act, Internet Crimes, Wire Fraud, Enterprise Corruption, Mortgage Fraud, breach of fiduciary duties, violent crimes and drug crimes.
Ms. Yakovlev is a successful white collar criminal defense attorney who was selected as a Rising Star in 2013 by Super Lawyers, a respected legal ratings service. She will be featured as a Rising Star in the Los Angeles edition of Super Lawyers magazine. To become a Rising Star, Super Lawyers asks legal professionals to nominate fellow lawyers. According to Super Lawyers, no more than 2.5 percent of a state’s applicants are chosen as Rising Stars.
Ms. Yakovlev has extensive motion practice and legal research experience in state and federal proceedings. She is familiar with and has successfully obtained favorable sentences, plea agreements and dismissals. Her practice also extends from white collar crimes and includes administrative licensing reinstatement, expungements and immigration hearings.
Ms. Yakovlev also has ample experience in sentencing litigation. In many cases, she was retained by clients during sentencing phases of trials to obtain more favorable outcomes. In one instance, Ms. Yakovlev was able to secure the release of a client who was facing six years in state prison after being charged with first degree burglary. In another case, Ms. Yakovlev secured the release of a client facing four years in prison for possession of crystal meth and receiving stolen property. After Ms. Yakovlev’s intervention, the client was allowed to serve the remainder of her sentence in rehab.
Representative Cases
Case: Client charged with Enterprise Corruption
Result: No jail time
Case: Client charged with RICO, Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud and four counts of Wire Fraud.
Result: Four counts of wire fraud dismissed and sentenced to one year and four months.
Case: Client investigated for Cyber Stalking
Result: Convinced district attorney not to file charges
Case: Client charged with First Degree Burglary facing six years in state prison
Result: Convicted of second degree commercial burglary and sentenced to 90 days time served
Case: Prior attorney’s client sentenced to four- and two-year concurrent prison terms for possession of crystal meth and receiving stolen property.
Result: Filed petition that got client out of jail and allowed client to serve remaining prison sentence in rehab.
Case: Client charged with annoying and molesting a child facing four years in state prison
Result: Sentenced to time served and released
Prior Experience
Supervising/Lead Trail Attorney at Liberty Bell Law Group, P.C. in Burbank, Calif.
Counsel for State Farm Insurance at Melli Guerin Wall, P.C. in New York, NY.
Legal Analyst at Bloomberg, L.P. in New York, NY
Education
New York Law School, Juris Doctor
University of California, Los Angeles; Bachelor of Arts, Political Science
Admissions
Federal – U.S. District Courts: Central District of California, Eastern District of California, Southern District of New York, Eastern District of New York.
States — California, New York, New Jersey
Awards & Recognition
Top 40 Under 40 – National Trial Lawyers 2014
2015 AIOCLA’s 10 Best Criminal Law Attorneys for Client Satisfaction in California
Top 10 Under 40 National Academy of Criminal Defense Lawyers 2015
2013 through 2016 Southern California Rising Star ( featured in Super Lawyers and Los Angeles Magazine) – an honor reserved for those lawyers who exhibit excellence in practice. Only 2.5 percent of the attorneys in California are named to the Rising Stars list each year.
Top Female Attorney in Southern California 2013 – 2016- Los Angeles Magazine
Admitted to Practice in the following jurisdictions:
(1) California State Court;
(2) Central District of California;
(3) Eastern District of California;
(4) Northern District of California;
(5) New York State Court;
(6) Southern District of New York;
(7) Eastern District of New York;
(8) New Jersey State Court.
Specialties: Criminal Defense, Civil and Commercial Litigation, Administrative Licensing.
Fluent in Russian and Spanish, Proficient in Italian