Maria Antonieta Sager (maiden name Grasso) learned the importance of hard work, responsibility, and humility from her parents, who immigrated to the United States with very little money and no possessions of any kind. She gives thanks to her father, born and raised in Italy, for encouraging her at a young age to attend law school, and to her Central American-born mother, whose unwavering support helped form her belief in attaining the American dream.
Maria achieved her goal of becoming an attorney after completing her undergraduate degree in social work, a field she believed would provide her with a good foundation for better understanding the complex human dynamics at play in the law.
In law school at Golden Gate University in San Francisco, she interned for the Women’s Employment Rights Clinic, the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights, and Battered Women’s Alternatives. Each of these experiences helped broaden her knowledge and deepen her commitment to a legal career that could make a true difference in helping to improve people’s lives.
Maria has dedicated her law practice entirely to litigation, representing injured workers as a certified workers’ compensation specialist since 2011. She represents a wide variety of workers such as janitors, housekeepers, gardeners, cooks, construction workers, nurses, and secretaries, with a particular focus on Spanish speakers, given her fluency in the Spanish language.
Maria did her undergraduate work at California State University, Sacramento, where she was a member of the Alpha Chi Omega sorority. Her longtime community involvement includes support for a variety of nonprofit and charitable causes. She has mentored students from Centro Legal de la Raza’s Youth Law Academy and the Oakland Mayor’s Summer Job Program through Boxer & Gerson’s Summer Internship Program. And with the support of Boxer & Gerson and the workers’ compensation community, she has helped the annual Oakland Mayor’s Toy Drive collect toys and donations for disadvantaged children for many years.
Maria also volunteers as a Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board Pro Tem Judge in Oakland. Finally, she takes great pride participating in the San Francisco Mexican Consulate’s Labor Rights Week, where she educates members of the Consulates of Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala, Nicaragua, and Honduras on workers’ compensation law.
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