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86 MELODY JONES RICKELS McCalla Raymer Leibert Pierce LLC, Managing Partner—NonJudicial Foreclosure Southeast Melody Jones Rickels said being a female in the legal field has graced her with both challenges and advantages. "Balancing expectations of 'female behavior' with the desire to be a zealous advocate for your clients, staff, and yourself is a delicate tightrope to walk," she said. Rickels added that women's "innate strength and complexity" are often understood, but with that comes the propensity of others to underestimate a woman's potential. "Proving those naysayers wrong has been one of my greatest joys," she said. Over the past five years, Rickels, with the help of her firm's leadership, has built two state foreclosure practices from the ground up. Both practices—in Alabama and Mississippi—are now "thriving beyond all initial expectations." She added that developing and mentoring others in their career is something she takes great joy in. Rickels explained that there is "nothing more rewarding" than building people up and helping them meet their full potential. For the challenges facing the mortgage industry over the next five years, she said, "Hope for the best, prepare for the worst." She cited one of the biggest challenges as operating responsibly for a thriving economy, but being prepared for the worst—specifically, an economic downturn. "In the face of an unpredictable economic outlook, we all want to be ready for what may come. It's challenging, however, to marry the two approaches," she said. NUMBER OF YEARS PRACTICING LAW: 14 KIM LEPORE-QUAM Managing Attorney, ZBS Law, LLP Kim Lepore-Quam said she has wanted to be a judge as long as she could remember, but knew she had to be an attorney first. "When I was seven, I made my own hand-written notepads with my name, my picture, and 'Attorney at Law' at the top," Lepore-Quam said. Lepore- Quam enjoys helping people find solutions to their problems. "Almost every day there is a new set of facts that have to be applied to the law to obtain the best possible result for our clients." Another enriching part of her job is "winning cases and appeals," she said. When asked about the challenges facing the industry in 2020, she cited the need for mortgage professionals to set themselves apart from the competition, especially during these times of low default rates. Lepore- Quam listed one of her career highlights as getting elected as the President of the Arizona Trustee Association for the second year. She is also proud that she has maintained a work-life balance, while still having a successful career and building a great reputation. As a female, Lepore- Quam said she has faced challenges that her male counterparts have not experienced. Lepore- Quam said, "I feel that male attorneys are automatically viewed as being more authoritative and more knowledgeable than a female attorney. I have experienced this in court and on conference calls. ‡is needs to be addressed and changed going forward." NUMBER OF YEARS PRACTICING LAW: 21 BONNI MANTOVANI Prober & Raphael, ALC, Senior Attorney Bonni Mantovani said challenges facing mortgage professionals in 2020 will be to timely comply with the requirements of the bankruptcy rules and being aware of local requirements. "Since different judges, even within the same district, may view the same law inconsistently, it is always a challenge to be prepared to argue in a way that will be most relevant," she said. Mantovani added that legal professionals need to be willing to take time to make "ever- changing laws" more understandable to lenders and servicers so they can manage and complete referrals to their lawyers. Looking back at how her career began, she said that studying law felt like a "natural match," especially when it was not popular at that time. "I always thought it was important to have a career that would be difficult to automate and would allow a decent income potential for me over my life," she said. Mantovani told DS News that "Over the decades, there has been a shift in the way that women are treated by the bench and bar as the number of female attorneys has grown. More women are on the bench than ever before and it is allowing the gender gap to narrow as women become more recognized." She added that nurturing relationships with clients is one of the most rewarding parts of her job, "ensuring that we are able to exceed expectations" for the firm's clients. She added that she has helped her firm prepare for today's legal challenges by being a part of local professional organizations that specialize in bankruptcy. "†is helps gain an understanding and focus about developments in the law and how they are being applied," she said. NUMBER OF YEARS PRACTICING LAW: 37 Top 25 Women of Law

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