Today we’d like to introduce you to Arman Demirjian.
Hi Arman, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
Mine is just another story of a human being. I was born in Armenia when it was still part of the Soviet Union. After the tragic 1988 earthquake, my family emigrated to the United States as refugees. I grew up in east Hollywood, California during the 1990s. For most of my early childhood and teenage years, I was passionately involved in drawing and painting. I also had a passion for history from early on. Confused at what I was supposed to do, I went to Pasadena City College with a major in history. I subsequently transferred to UCLA. For reasons that are still unknown to me, I did not pursue the arts or history. Instead, I made my way to law school, which captivated my attention. Law school transformed my ability to think and analyze. It fostered a way of critical thinking that I had never known.
During law school, I was fortunate to work with a criminal defense attorney who was my first mentor. He was passionate about his craft and zealous in his advocacy for indigent rights. After law school, I worked at the Kern County Public Defender’s office. At the time, I felt that was my calling. It was one of the most humbling experiences of my life. First, it gave me perspective about the world out there which most of us are shielded from – a world of lack of privilege, of crime, and poverty. Second, it humbled me because I had a front-row seat to witness the human condition. After serving as a Public Defender, I moved back to L.A. and spent about 10 years as a ‘company man,’ representing and defending insurance companies in employment and workers’ compensation matters. It was not until a series of synchronistic events that led me to work alongside my wife and founder of RK Legal, PC. Once again, I found my calling and passion to represent individuals.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I don’t think anyone’s road is smooth. By mere virtue of being alive and self-aware, we’re all subject to the test of adversity. Mine is no better or different than any other person. The only thing I can say about this is that I am incredibly grateful for those uneven roads, sudden turns, and dips in the road. Some of the greatest gifts and insights were gained from moments of tumult and tragedy. I’m grateful to have had the awareness to recognize when those moments were. As an example, I suffered a broken ankle in 2021. My wife and I were hiking in the deep forests of Idaho, isolated from civilization. That unfortunate tragedy resulted in me being off work. At the time, I worked at a law firm representing insurance companies. Arguably, it was that event that made me pause and assess my road. My wife Romina had to take a lot of time off from running the law office to tend to me and help me. During this time, after a lot of soul-searching, I decided to make the leap and join the practice.
We’ve been impressed with RK Legal PC, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
At RK Legal, PC, we are a full-service employee law firm that caters to workers’ rights. We represent clients in a wide array of issues in all matters of employment including discrimination, harassment, wrongful termination, retaliation, individual wage and hour violations, wage and hour class actions, injuries on the job related to accidents, repetitive trauma injuries, catastrophic injuries, and all workers’ compensation benefits. We pride ourselves on our patience and attention to detail. We like to take our time to engage our clients and potential clients. We speak with each one before we represent them so we can learn about them, their unique situation and how best to remedy their concerns. Throughout the litigation process we stay engaged with our clients so they hear from an attorney and not just support staff. We are aggressive yet compassionate. We pride ourselves on our bedside manners with our clients and our aggressive and enthusiastic approach to litigation.
Have you learned any interesting or important lessons due to the Covid-19 Crisis?
Yes. First, I’ve learned the importance of technology. Due to COVID, technology had a significant impact both on our industry and on our practice specifically. For example, prior to COVID we would always have clients visit our office for an intake or to sign a retainer agreement. As a result of COVID, the consultation and retainer process became increasingly digitized. Instead of meeting a lot of clients in-person, we met via Zoom or telephonically. Instead of signing a retainer in person, we had clients sign retainers electronically or via mail for certain clients. Instead of having in-person depositions, we proceeded via Zoom.
Second, whether on a microscopic or macroscopic level, tragedy can occur at any time. In the case of COVID, it certainly affected everyone, but especially the workers. While COVID may have been unprecedented, unfortunately, it revealed a lot of unresolved issues. From an employment perspective, a lot of workers suffered. Unfortunately, many workers contracted COVID on the job. Workers suffered disastrous health consequences but were also entitled to workers’ compensation benefits. Others contracted COVID, were laid off and were still entitled to workers’ compensation benefits. Yet others were laid off because of mandatory layoffs or plant closures. To what extent were mass layoffs necessary? To what extent were mass layoffs a smokescreen to terminate specific individuals, but were done so under the cover of mass layoffs because of COVID? What I can tell you from specific clients we represent is that they were targeted under the guise of COVID.
Ultimately, the COVID-19 pandemic, though a tragedy, provided a strangely unique moment in time for people to pause and practice introspection and make difficult decisions about their lives they would likely never have been confronted with (or perhaps even avoided). These decisions ran the gamut of issues on what to do with health and financial decisions, but also a leap of faith to assert their rights as current and former employees when it mattered.
Contact Info:
- Website: rklegalpc.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/rklegalpc
- Facebook: facebook.com/rklegalpc
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/rk-legal-glendale
