About Leonard
Leonard Manalo built his legal career through steady courtroom work and early exposure to public defense. He earned a J.D. from Loyola Law School, Los Angeles in 2011 after completing a B.A. in Economics at San Francisco State University in 2007. He moved quickly from law school into roles that paired advocacy with investigation.
His first legal internship was in 2007 at the San Diego Public Defender's Office. That early placement put him inside misdemeanor and felony dockets and introduced him to trial preparation. After law school he served as a legal assistant at the Disability Rights Legal Center in 2011. That role involved research and case support on civil rights and disability-related matters and provided practical litigation experience behind the scenes.
In 2011 Manalo took on a frontline defense role at Margolin & Lawrence. He worked as a criminal defense lawyer there, representing clients in arraignments and pretrial proceedings. The position sharpened his courtroom skills and expanded his experience handling client interviews, motion practice, and plea negotiations. In 2014 he joined Shouse Law Group as a criminal defense lawyer, where he continued to handle criminal matters at various stages of litigation.
Manalo is licensed to practice in California and holds admissions to federal courts, including the United States District Court for the Central District of California and the Ninth Circuit. He is a current member of The State Bar of California. Over the years he has balanced investigative work, research, and direct courtroom advocacy. Colleagues and courtroom partners note that his trajectory reflects steady involvement in criminal defense from internship through trial-level practice.
Today Manalo practices at Shouse Law Group. His work centers on criminal defense matters in state and federal courts. He maintains a caseload that includes pretrial litigation and courtroom appearances, and he continues to handle client representation in criminal proceedings in California and in the federal venues to which he is admitted. His current practice focuses on criminal defense in both state and federal courts.
