Faculty & Program Team

Mark Chinen is a Professor of Law at Seattle University School of Law and a Fellow of the Fred T. Korematsu Center for Law and Equality. He was educated at Pomona College and Yale Divinity School before receiving his law degree from Harvard Law School. Before he began law teaching, Professor Chinen practiced in the areas of international trade, banking and corporate and securities law in Washington D.C. with the firm Covington & Burling. Professor Chinen teaches contracts and courses in international law and writes on various aspects of international law, particularly international governance, theology and international law, and the relationship between domestic and international law. He was the inaugural William C. Oltman Professor of Teaching Excellence from 2007 to 2010.

Adam Star, graduate from the class of 2016, has held a number of positions in corporate management throughout his career. Adam has been employed at Amazon since 2012 and worked concurrently to complete his JD as a student in Seattle University School of Law’s evening program. Adam’s current position is at Amazon Web Services on the Security Obligations and Contracts team. The team’s mission is to lead security- and compliance-focused contractual negotiations (globally across the public and private sector) and serve as liaisons between the AWS Security and Legal teams. His daily focus involves working with customers and their regulators within the Finance, Healthcare, Energy, and Media industries to drive adoption of the AWS Cloud for regulated workloads.

Adam has experience with numerous international regulations and standards pertaining to cloud compliance, including SOC, ISO, PCI, HIPAA, FedRAMP, PIPEDA (Canada), IRAP (Australia), the GDPR, and the European Banking Authority’s Guidelines on Outsourcing.

Adam is an active member of the Washington State Bar. While at Seattle University, Adam graduated Magna Cum Laude and was awarded the full tuition Adolf A. Berle, Jr. scholarship in Corporations, Law & Society, He served as the Business and Marketing Editor of the Seattle University Law Review and published an article, Getting a Handle on Growler Laws, 39 SEATTLE U. L. REV. 1079 (2016), He was also elected graduation class speaker. Adam holds a BS in Industrial and Labor Relations from Cornell University.

Adam says, “Seattle University School of Law has a close-knit campus community that understands professionals’ schedules and allows you to work while earning your degree. In addition, faculty have experience with and connections to major local corporations such as Microsoft and Starbucks.”

Rashelle Tanner, graduate from the class of 1998, leads Microsoft’s global anti-corruption and business conduct training programs designed to empower employees to make decisions with integrity. Her award-winning Standards of Business Conduct course is delivered annually, has been translated into 17 languages, and is required learning for Microsoft’s 130,000 employees, subsidiaries, and board of directors.

Previously, Rashelle was SVP, General Counsel, and Chief Compliance Officer for CRISTA, operating in long-term care, international relief and development, media broadcasting, and education. Rashelle began her practice at Williams Kastner as an employment defense litigator and interned at the Washington State Court of Appeals.

Rashelle is a Momentum A.C.E.S. advisory board member, exploring anti-bribery, anti-corruption, international trade, and sanctions compliance, and earned the Inaugural Faces of A.C.E.S. Award for Championing Diversity in Compliance Innovation. Rashelle earned her JD from Seattle University School of Law and her BA from Howard University. She is a graduate of Leadership Tomorrow and has been admitted to practice before the Supreme Court of the United States.

Rashelle says, “People who work in compliance and risk management are the guardians of their organizations. These roles will always be needed, especially in the uncharted technological landscape.”

Stephanie Wilson is the head of Reference Services in the Seattle University School of Law Library. Prior to coming to Seattle University, Ms. Wilson was a reference librarian at Willkie, Farr and Gallagher, New York; a staff attorney with the Legal Aid Juvenile Rights Division in New York City; and an attorney in the Legal Counsel’s Office of New York City. She teaches legal research in numerous settings, including her own legal research course for upper division law students and her course for MLS students. Ms. Wilson frequently speaks at national conferences about integrating legal research instruction into existing experiential courses. She was an associate editor of Sexual Orientation and the Law: A Research Bibliography Selectively Annotating the Legal Literature Through 2005, published by Hein in 2006. Ms. Wilson joined the faculty in 2001.

Stephanie says, “SU Law faculty are deeply engaged in their areas of expertise and deeply committed to teaching. Their commitment allows our teaching to move past traditional legal education and instead integrate theory and doctrine with skills to teach law the way it is encountered in practice.”

Frank DiMarino has served as an adjunct professor in law and legal studies for 22 years, with 14 years developing and teaching online graduate courses. At the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, he taught the investigation and prosecution of economic crimes.

He served as an Assistant United States Attorney for 18 years presenting cases before U.S. District and Appeals Courts prosecuting corporations and individuals for such crimes as wire and bank fraud, money laundering, embezzlement, and tax evasion. He also oversaw corporate compliance programs as part of criminal sentences under the United States Sentencing Guidelines.

While in the military, he served as an Army Judge Advocate General prosecutor. He also was a trial attorney at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission enforcing antifraud regulations against brokers and corporations.

As a government lawyer, he has litigated over 350 cases according to Westlaw Analytics. He has coauthored textbooks among which include An Introduction to Corporate and White Collar Crime.

Frank earned his LL.M. from George Washington University, his Juris Doctor from Case Western Reserve School of Law, and his Bachelor’s degree from Georgetown University.

An avid boater with his U.S. Coast Guard captain’s license, he teaches harbor and open water boat maneuvering. Read Faculty Spotlight Blog.

Tracy Kosa is a privacy advocate, practitioner and researcher. She’s currently a staff privacy engineer at Google, recently finished a post-doc at Stanford on predicting privacy regulation. Prior, Dr. Kosa ran the global privacy compliance program at Microsoft and served on the City of Seattle’s Privacy Advisory Committee. Originally from Canada, she focused on Canadian public sector privacy working in privacy across the Government of Ontario in education, health, social services while serving as a member for multiple groups and advisory committees, including the TAHSN research hospital network, the University of Toronto’s Research Ethics Board and Privacy Practitioners Community of Practice. She chaired the Program Advisory Committee for the Information Security diploma program for York University at Seneca College, taught Canadian political science labs at Ryerson University and information systems labs at UOIT.

Jared Carter graduated from Vermont Law School in 2009. In addition to serving as an articles editor on the Vermont Journal of Environmental Law, he received an Equal Justice Foundation Fellowship to litigate a constitutional challenge to U.S. Treasury Department Regulations prohibiting travel to Cuba. 

A veteran attorney and advocate for social, legal, and economic justice, Professor Carter spent a year as law clerk to Justices William Leaphart, Jim Rice, and Jim Nelson at the Montana Supreme Court. Professor Carter returned to Vermont in 2010 to teach and practice law, and teaches Natural Resources Law, Political Lawyering, Legal Writing II, Appellate Advocacy, and Climate Change and the Law. In addition, he has developed study away courses that take students to Cuba to learn about the Cuban legal system. An active member of the Vermont bar, Jared also directs the Vermont Community Law Center, litigating constitutional and consumer rights issues in state and federal court. Professor Carter has a wealth of relevant experience and is dedicated to bringing his diverse background to the classroom. 

Professor Carter is an avid outdoors-person—backpacking, canoeing, and fly-fishing in the warmer months, and cross-country skiing in the winter. Despite the fact that Vermont is landlocked, Professor Carter also enjoys surfing and does so in the frigid waters of the New England coastline.

Professor Marc Jones began his legal career as a Judge Advocate General (JAG) in the Air Force. As a JAG, he primarily practiced criminal law–both at the trial and appellate levels, and both as a prosecutor and criminal defense attorney. After leaving the Air Force, he briefly had his own criminal law practice, primarily handling DUI cases and other traffic offenses. He closed his private practice to accept a position as a trial attorney with the Department of Homeland Security. In this capacity, he represented the government in administrative hearings to determine whether non-citizens would be removed from the U.S. He is currently an administrative law judge with the Social Security Administration. Professor Jones has been teaching online courses since 2001, to include Contracts, Criminal Law, Criminal Procedure, Evidence, Immigration Law, and Legal Writing & Test Taking.

Tanya Karwaki has broad and extensive experience in healthcare law and policy. Her background includes serving as Counsel to the Washington State Senate Health and Long-Term Care Committee and as Risk Manager for Harborview Medical Center. Now in academia, Tanya teaches law and non-law students using an interdisciplinary and active learning approach. Her scholarship focuses on pharmacy law, medical tourism, healthcare professionalism, bioethics, and health policy. Primarily working at the intersection of law, healthcare, and ethics, major themes of her research include: the role of law in improving access to healthcare, the legal challenges created by the globalization of healthcare, and innovations in pharmacy law.

Tanya earned her J.D., LL.M., and Ph.D. in Law from the University of Washington in Seattle and a M.A. in Zoology from the University of California, Davis.

Melissa Racki teaches Introduction to the American Legal System at Seattle University School of Law. She specializes in legal writing and analysis, and has worked as an Assistant Dean, Adjunct Professor, and Advisor in 14 years as a legal educator. She practiced as a plaintiff’s attorney in Florida, representing clients with Social Security Disability, ERISA, personal injury, and workers’ compensation claims. She specialized in Social Security and ERISA administrative hearings and appeals, and assisted in the preparation of the ERISA course outline and materials taught at Stetson University College of Law. She also worked as a Social Security law clerk for the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida, drafting orders, and reports and recommendations for eight U.S. magistrates. She graduated cum laude from Stetson University College of Law and earned her Bachelor’s degree from University of Maryland – European Division. Melissa owns and operates a small online business selling hand knits and hand-spun yarns.

Jerry comes to Seattle University from his own private law practice, after a cybersecurity career trajectory that has included both hands-on technical work as well as IT audit responsibilities. Jerry has held significant IT Security roles at Starbucks, Anitian Enterprise Security, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and Premera Blue Cross. Jerry’s law education has focused on security and compliance practices, though he also does pro-bono legal work as a service to his community. Jerry has CISSP (Certified Information Systems Security Professional) and CISA (Certified Information Systems Auditor) certifications, and is a veteran, having served in the Air Force for five years, including a role as a Cryptologic Linguist. Jerry’s other interests include spending time with his family, taking day trips on his motorcycle, stream fishing, and reading (just not all at the same time). For a creative outlet, Jerry enjoys writing.

Alanna Kroeker is the Compliance & Privacy Manager at Swedish Health Services in Seattle, WA. She received her JD from Loyola University Chicago School of Law with a certificate in Health Law and concentration in Healthcare Compliance. Since law school, Alanna has obtained certification by the Healthcare Compliance Association in Healthcare Compliance and Healthcare Privacy Compliance. Prior to her time at Swedish, Alanna served in various compliance/legal positions at a children’s hospital, academic medical center, specialty hospital, and a healthcare professional association.

Ali currently works at Compliance Services Group, LLC, in the role of Senior Compliance Consultant. In her role, Ali provides operational and regulatory compliance services to financial institutions including: trust companies, credit unions, banks, and non-depository institutions of all sizes.

Both as a lawyer and a regulator, Ali has extensive experience working in bank regulation and the financial services industry. Ali worked for the Washington Department of Financial Institutions (DFI) in various positions, including Chief of Regulatory and Trust Affairs, where she provided legal assistance and advice relating to bank and trust company matters.

Ali has presented at several continuing legal education seminars and has taught at professional trust schools, including the CSBS Trust Examination School. Ali has developed examiner training curriculum as well as developed curriculum for Seattle University’s Compliance and Risk Management L.L.M. program. Ali received both her B.A. in Business Administration and JD from Seattle University. She is a member of the Washington State Bar Association.

David has over a decade of experience as a General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer. David began his legal career in civil litigation representing employees and citizens in employment discrimination and police misconduct claims. After moving into a role as corporate counsel for a multi-national not-for-profit organization,

David designed and implemented the organization’s compliance and ethics program, which covers more than 2,000 employees across 27 countries. He is passionate about social justice and serves on the boards of the Greater Seattle YMCA, Compass Housing Alliance, and the Seattle Sounders RAVE Foundation.

David lives in Shoreline, WA with his family including his three children. David volunteers his time with King County Legal Clinics and serves as pro-bono counsel to several not-for-profit organizations. 

David received his J.D. from Seattle University School of Law. Read Faculty Spotlight Blog.

I am the Director of Compliance Programs and Training at Compliance Week with experience in the financial services regulatory compliance arena and as a creator of compliance training courses. I’m a contributing editor for the FCPA Blog, co-chair of the corporate governance committee of the Financial Women’s Association, and a lecturer on third-party risk management at Pace University’s Lubin School of Business. I am the co-author of a textbook chapter on white-collar crime and a licensed attorney. I live in New York City and am an avid runner and spin instructor. Read Faculty Spotlight Blog.

Lisa Estrada is a nationally recognized expert in health care compliance and enforcement. She currently serves as Senior Vice President and Chief Compliance Officer at LifePoint Health, a leading health care company that owns and operates hospitals and other health care provider entities in 80 communities throughout the United States.

In this role, Professor Estrada leads a team responsible for driving a culture focused on ethical business practices and compliance with laws and regulations and working with key stakeholders to enable the company to succeed in a rapidly changing healthcare industry, while maintaining the company’s strong commitment to honesty and integrity.

Prior to her current role, Professor Estrada served as senior vice president and chief compliance officer at Fresenius Medical Care North America, the world’s leading supplier of renal care products and services. Before transitioning to a compliance executive, she was a private practice attorney, providing counsel on a broad range of compliance-related issues as a partner at the law firms of Foley & Lardner LLP and Arent Fox LLP.

Professor Estrada earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism and Political Science from Indiana University of Pennsylvania in Indiana, Pennsylvania, and a Juris Doctorate degree magna cum laude from the George Mason University School of Law in Arlington, Virginia. She has been admitted to the bar in Virginia, New York, and the District of Columbia, and has been a frequent conference speaker for the Health Care Compliance Association and the American Health Lawyers Association.

Jeannette Eicks is the Director of the Center for Legal Innovation and teaches eLawyering and eDiscovery at Vermont Law School. She facilitates collaborative projects between students, faculty and industry partners on behalf of the Center for Legal Innovation. Her published work includes “Evidence Challenge,” published by LexisNexis in 2014, and a chapter in “Educating the Digital Lawyer,” an eBook co-edited by Professor Oliver Goodenough and published by LexisNexis in 2012.

Professor Eicks’ past experience includes serving as CEO of an application development and Internet consulting firm, managing information technology for Vermont Law School, and establishing several degree programs during her tenure as a professor at Vermont Technical College.

Professor Eicks received a B.A. from Washington University in St. Louis, Mo., a J.D. from Vermont Law School, and a master’s in internet strategy management from Marlboro College.