Nhien received her Juris Doctor in 1998 from Stanford Law School, where she first became acquainted with the practice and principles of mediation. She also has undergone extensive professional mediation training from noted mediator/trainers such as Dana Curtis at Stanford Law School, and Nancy Foster, Esq., and Jessica Notini, Esq., of the Northern California Mediation Center. Nhien’s mediation training has included specialized training in the areas of family law and divorce mediation.

Nhien has a broad range of legal experience. She has served as a judicial law clerk for Justice Bryner of the Alaska Supreme Court, where she researched and advised the Court on issues ranging from the constitutionality of a legislative veto to the propriety of a child custody and support order.

Nhien has practiced litigation for over seven years at prestigious firms such as Pillsbury Winthrop LLP and Tucker Ellis & West LLP, both in San Francisco. Areas in which Nhien has practiced law include antitrust, securities, commercial, landlord-tenant, education, and family law. She is admitted to practice before the United States District Court for the Northern, Eastern, Central, and Southern Districts of California and all California courts.

In recent years, Nhien stepped down from her position as a full-time associate with Tucker Ellis & West’s business litigation practice group in order to spend more of her time helping people to find more creative and satisfying means of handling conflict and resolving disputes.