Lawyers’ Biographies
© 2019 Richard Hurlburt
Cathy Mosbrucker
Present-day photo © 2019 Richard Hurlburt
During law school, Cathy began volunteering at the Tenderloin Housing Clinic beginning her specialization in landlord-tenant law. She also worked for the Bernal Heights Law Collective and San Francisco Neighborhood Legal Assistance Foundation. After law school Cathy did litigation in the area of employment discrimination and wrongful termination before returning to the Tenderloin Housing Clinic. She has been in a private practice specializing in tenants’ rights since 1996.
Cathy conducts trainings for other attorneys and provides expert advice for the Homeless Advocacy Project, the Volunteer Legal Services Program of the San Francisco Bar Association and the Aids Legal Referral Panel. She has written training manuals for a number of nonprofit groups in the area of landlord-tenant law. Cathy has served as a Judge Pro Tem for the San Francisco Superior Court and as a Homeless Shelter Arbitrator for the San Francisco Department of Human Services. She has served as a San Francisco Rent Board Commissioner since 2003. She was a member of the Board of Directors of the General Assistance Advocacy Project for over 25 years. Cathy has received a number of awards for her pro bono work including the President’s Pro Bono Service Award by the State Bar of California in 2000.
Cathy Mosbrucker moved to San Francisco in 1981 to attend U.C. Hastings College of the Law. She intended to return to her home in the upper mid-west after obtaining her degree. Instead, she fell in love with San Francisco and returns to North Dakota only under extreme duress.
Mary Jane Foran
Present-day photo © 2019 Richard Hurlburt
Originally from New England, Mary Jane Foran has lived in the Bay Area since 1979. She is a graduate (B.A., Philosophy) of Wesleyan University in Connecticut and San Francisco’s New College School of Law. Prior to graduating from Law School, Mary worked for Ralph Nader’s Center for the Study of Responsive Law, Nolo Press, the Shanti Project, and for private attorneys in the areas of police misconduct and housing issues. She also worked as a volunteer for the Tenant’s Union, the Haight Ashbury Switchboard, and St Mary’s Housing Committee. Mary has specialized in civil litigation focusing on tenants’ rights since becoming a member of the California Bar in 1983, first as a supervising attorney at the Tenderloin Housing Clinic’s citywide Eviction Defense Office, and then in private practice since 1996. She has served as a Judge Pro Tem for the San Francisco Superior Court, and as a member of the Landlord/Tenant Expert Panel of the Bar Association of San Francisco. She is currently a member of the Board of Directors of Legal Assistance to the Elderly.
Present-day photos © 2019 Richard Hurlburt