About
At Ryder Smith we are devoted to finding our clients qualified attorney candidates quickly, our focus is also on making the right placement.
Our diligence, professionalism, and knowledge of the legal market are unmatched, and we are dedicated to making the placement process a seamless one, for clients and candidates alike.
Ryder Smith Legal Search believes in giving back to the community, and a portion of the Company’s profits are donated to philanthropic organizations.
Get in touch
If you’re an attorney looking for a new opportunity or a law firm or company looking for the right attorney to grow your practice then please get in touch, we can help.
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Recruiters
Founder
Lee Kuhn
Lee Kuhn founded Ryder Smith Legal Search after working at a reputable California legal placement agency for many years. There, she headed up the agency's San Francisco office, and placed attorneys in-house and with law firms -- both nationally and internationally. Prior to entering the search business, she practiced employment law at two large international law firms in California. She earned her J.D. from the Duke University School of Law, and graduated cum laude from Dartmouth College.
During her free time, Lee works as a volunteer Court Appointed Special Advocate (SFCASA) for a child in the foster care system and is a director of a local animal rescue organization.
Education
Duke University School of Law
Juris Doctor, 2002
Dartmouth College
B.A., Psychology, 1998
Recruiter
Katie Wharton (CC Wharton Search)
Katie is a recruiter with CC Wharton Search, one of Ryder Smith Legal Search’s affiliate agencies.
Katie assists attorney candidates with searches in the major markets of both Northern and Southern California including the San Francisco Bay Area, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Orange County, and San Diego. She is also available for searches in out-of-state markets. Prior to legal recruiting, Katie had a career in investment management with firms in New York City and San Francisco where she worked with both institutional and private clients. She also spent two seasons with the U.S. Forest Service as a helitack wildland firefighter. She received her B.A. from UC Berkeley. In her free time, she enjoys bicycle touring, cross-training, watching Scandal, and visiting her niece and nephews on the east coast.
Education
University of California, Berkeley
B.A., Mass Communications
Recruiter
Namita Dilawri
Namita began her legal career as a securities attorney while tutoring examinees for the California Bar Exam. Prior to handling permanent placements, Namita worked as a senior recruiter for a national legal staffing company, and has over 9 years of recruiting experience. Namita received her J.D. from Lewis and Clark School of Law, and B.A. from the University of California, San Diego (Honors). She speaks German and in her free-time, she enjoys practicing yoga, painting, traveling, and hospice volunteer work.
Education
Lewis & Clark Law School
Juris Doctor, 2003
University of California, San Diego
B.A., Political Science
Recruiter
Amanda Wharton
Amanda specializes in the placement of attorneys at law firms of all sizes in multiple practice areas. She also works on in-house searches, especially in the areas of employment, licensing and corporate law. Prior to joining Ryder Smith Legal Search, Amanda was a director at a national attorney search firm where she focused on attorney recruitment in all practice areas for the California market and a number of other U.S. markets, such as New York. Earlier, Amanda was an executive in the retail industry for over a decade at several top retail companies including Toys"R"Us and Barnes & Noble. Amanda holds an MBA in finance from Fordham University and a B.S. in biology from the University of Arizona where she was a member of the Alpha Epsilon Delta Honor Society.
In her free time, she enjoys giving back. She has served as a member of Monroe College's MBA advisory board. She has also volunteered in Kenya, Africa at Nairobi Hospital in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU).
Education
Fordham University
MBA, 2001
University of Arizona
B.S. in biology, 1996
Recruiter
Shawn Nichols (SLN Search)
Shawn is a recruiter with SLN Search, one of Ryder Smith Legal Search’s affiliate agencies.
In addition to legal recruiting, Shawn is a professor of Political Science and Legal Studies at UC Santa Cruz, where she has taught since 2014. She has published many peer-reviewed articles and book chapters and is a mentor to the many undergraduate students pursuing law degrees or post-graduate work in her department. She earned her Masters in International Policy Studies from the Middlebury Institute of International Studies and her Ph.D. in Politics from UC Santa Cruz.
In her free time, she enjoys cooking, traveling, hiking, immersive art, and writing.
Education
UC Santa Cruz
Ph.D. in Politics
Middlebury Institute of International Studies
M.A. International Policy Studies