Story & Lesson Highlights with Maryam Ardalan of Calabasas, CA

We recently had the chance to connect with Maryam Ardalan and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Maryam, thank you so much for taking time out of your busy day to share your story, experiences and insights with our readers. Let’s jump right in with an interesting one: What is a normal day like for you right now?
My mornings start early. I’m up at 6 AM to get myself and my two kids, ages 4 and 8, ready for school. It’s a choreographed routine: packing snacks, filling water bottles, and warming up the car on chilly mornings before we rush out the door by 7:15 or 7:30. After dropping them off, I treat myself to my non-negotiable morning ritual: an iced coffee from Starbucks.

Once I’m at the office, I dive into the work that matters. My days are filled with settlement negotiations, demand letter drafting, liability assessments, and client calls and conferences. I’m fortunate to work alongside an exceptional team consisting of one case manager who’s been with me for nine years and another for three—and we take real pride in the quality of our work and the relationships we build with our clients.

I always make time for lunch, usually ordering in so we can eat together as a team. It’s these moments that keep us connected and grounded in why we do this work.

At 2:30 PM, I typically leave the office to pick up my kids from school and some days after school we stop at the park so my oldest can spend time with friends. At home, we tackle homework, prepare dinner, and get through bath time. I’m a crafter at heart, so I carve out at least 30 minutes most evenings to make bracelets because it’s my creative outlet, and I love giving them to friends and family. Then it’s bedtime routines and we start all over again the next day.

Of course, urgent matters don’t stop at 5 PM, so I remain available for calls and time-sensitive client issues throughout the day and evening.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I’m Maryam Ardalan, founder and president of Swift Justice, Inc., a personal injury law firm based in California. I also run two complementary businesses; Ecasa Education, which provides consulting for law firms, and Ecasa Events, which handles event planning.

My journey to where I am now is something I’m proud of. I came to the U.S. as a child and worked my way up from a receptionist to owning and leading my own practice. That background shapes how I approach my work. I understand what it takes to build something from the ground up, and I bring that perspective to helping clients navigate complex personal injury cases.

My practice focuses on significant cases involving motor vehicle accidents, premises liability, and insurance disputes. What drives me is tackling the cases that need my expertise, the ones requiring sophisticated liability arguments, deep medical record analysis, and strategic positioning against major insurance carriers. I’ve developed particular expertise in California personal injury law and know how to make compelling arguments for our clients’ damages. I have been in the business for over 20 years now.

I’ve been fortunate to receive recognition including 2025 Law Firm of the Year and Rising Star designations, but what really motivates me is the work itself and the clients we serve. I work with an experienced team of case managers to deliver results on complex, high-stakes litigation.

Beyond the practice, I’m committed to giving back through education and professional development in the legal community, and I balance my professional life with family responsibilities and creative outlets.

Okay, so here’s a deep one: What’s a moment that really shaped how you see the world?
My stepson passed away in a car crash in 2021. It’s still difficult to fully explain the weight of that loss, but it fundamentally changed me.

Before that, I lived like most people do, caught up in the daily grind, worried about things that in the end don’t matter much. His death ripped away that fog. It made me see, with crystal clarity, that life is fragile and temporary. One day someone is here, and one day they can be forever gone. The permanency of never being able to talk to that person again, see what they’re up to, get advice from them, it’s gut-wrenching. It feels empty, like someone pulled your heart out.

That loss taught me to cherish time and relationships above almost everything else. It reminded me that life can end at any moment, so why not fill it with gratitude, joy, love, closeness, and trust? Why not choose to be present?
I also learned that I need to stay more intentional about my emotions and my thoughts. When I remind myself that everything is temporary and that the good and the bad both change, it shifts my perspective. It helps me let go of what I can’t control and focus on what I can: how I show up for people, whether I’m bringing comfort and joy, whether I’m helping.

I’m not perfect. I falter. But my aim is to use my time to love others, to help others, to bring joy and comfort where I can. That loss gave me clarity about what actually matters, and it’s guided how I live and work ever since.

What did suffering teach you that success never could?
Suffering taught me empathy that lives in my body, not just my mind. I came to the U.S. at six years old with my parents and younger brother, I didn’t speak English, and my parents were in their early twenties with nothing. I watched them struggle to provide a better life for me and my brother. Then at 17, when my parents divorced, I had to figure out how to survive on my own, living paycheck to paycheck, not knowing my own worth. And then I lost someone close to me, my stepson died in a car crash in 2021, and I learned what it means to lose someone you love forever.

These experiences didn’t just teach me about hardship as a concept. They taught me what it feels like in your bones. That’s different from anything success could teach me.

Suffering taught me to appreciate the smaller things, the ones that actually matter. Someone who’s never struggled can hit a win and think they deserve it. But when you’ve lived paycheck to paycheck, when you’ve had to rebuild yourself more than once, when you’ve lost someone you’ll never talk to again, you understand how fragile everything is. A conversation with your kids. Time with loved ones. The ability to provide for yourself and your family. These aren’t things you take for granted. They’re gifts you consciously recognize every day.

Suffering taught me what my own worth actually is and not what others tell me it should be, but what I’ve proven through survival and persistence. I didn’t inherit success. I built it from nothing because I had to. That taught me something no diploma or achievement could: I’m capable. I’m resilient. I matter.

Suffering taught me humility. Success can make you think you have the answers. But when you’ve been broken by loss, by uncertainty, by the weight of having to figure things out alone you understand how much you don’t know. You stay open. You stay human.

And maybe most importantly, suffering taught me why my work matters. I’m not just handling cases or building a law firm. I’m working with people living their own versions of that gut-wrenching permanence. People who’ve lost something they can never get back. People who are struggling to find their worth. I see them because I’ve been them. And that understanding, that connection, is what makes everything I do purposeful.

Someone who’s never known failure can’t truly appreciate success. Someone who’s never struggled can’t genuinely help others through theirs. My suffering didn’t break me. It gave me clarity about what actually matters, and it’s guided everything I’ve built since.

So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. What’s a belief or project you’re committed to, no matter how long it takes?
Ever since I was a teenager, I’ve wanted to help women and children in need—whether they’re escaping domestic violence or simply don’t have the resources to succeed. It’s a dream that’s stayed with me through everything.
My vision is to start a nonprofit organization, by women for women. It would provide resources, grants, education, and community for any woman who needs it. Real support for real problems. A place where women know they’re not alone and that help is actually available.

What drives this is something I see over and over: many women don’t know their own power and worth. They don’t stand up for what is just for themselves. Or they put on too strong of a face, trying to handle everything alone, and they don’t get the actual support they need. I grew up here with no extended family—no grandparents to run to, no aunts or uncles or cousins. I understand what it’s like to navigate the world without that safety net. I want to be that for other women.

I know this will take time. I’m running multiple businesses, handling complex cases that demand my attention, and I have two children who need me right now. That’s not something I’m rushing past or treating as an obstacle to work around. My kids are my priority, and being present for them matters deeply. I’m staying patient with myself and understanding that everything has its season.

In the meantime, I help in whatever way I’m able on a smaller scale. Whenever I personally come across someone who needs it, I show up. It’s not the full vision yet, but it’s honoring that commitment in real time, with real people, right now.

I’m committed to this vision in a way that doesn’t fade. It’s not something I’m putting aside and hoping to get to someday. It’s something I’m building toward intentionally, knowing that when my children are older and more on their own path, I’ll have the space and energy to give this mission the full attention it deserves.

Okay, so let’s keep going with one more question that means a lot to us: If you retired tomorrow, what would your customers miss most?
My genuineness and the level of care I have for my clients.

I don’t treat cases as files. I treat them as people going through some of the worst moments of their lives. My clients know that I see them, that I understand the weight of what they’re dealing with, and that I’m genuinely invested in their outcome, not just as a legal matter, but as their advocate.

That care shows up in how I work: in the time I take to understand their story, in the strategic approach I bring to their case, in how I fight for them against insurance companies that would rather deny their claims than pay what’s owed. It shows up in going above and beyond when we hit obstacles, because I don’t give up just because the road gets difficult. I work through the challenges, find solutions, and keep pushing for what my clients deserve.

It shows up in the fact that I remember who they are and what they’ve been through, not just the details of their lawsuit.
Genuineness is harder to find in this industry than it should be. There are plenty of lawyers who can argue a case. But clients come to me because they know I actually care about helping them navigate one of the most difficult periods of their lives. That’s not something you can fake, and it’s not something another lawyer could simply step in and replace.

That relationship, the trust, the commitment to going the distance for them, is what I’d hope they’d miss most.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.swiftjusticelaw.com
• Instagram: @swiftjusticelaw
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maryam-ardalan-1847619b/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61556539672151