Writing, Wonder, and Advocacy: Welcoming 826LA’s newest board members, Liane Ly Katzenstein and Mack Jenkins
From the courtroom to our creative writing labs, 826LA is proud to welcome our newest board members, Liane Ly Katzenstein and Mack Jenkins! Liane and Mack both bring an impressive background in law and a passion for supporting those who often feel voiceless in Los Angeles.
Read on to learn more about Liane and Mack and their involvement with 826LA.
Up first, Liane!
1. Liane, tell us a bit about yourself.
I am the founder of Liane Ly Law, APC, a California law firm dedicated to representing employees in matters of discrimination, harassment, retaliation, and wage claims. I have spent the last 15 years giving a voice to workers who often feel powerless. I am a mother to two elementary-age daughters, Eme and Quinn, and I spend my free time (when I can scrounge any up) doing crossword puzzles, running, and trying out new restaurants around the city.
2. What was your favorite book or story as a child?
The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin. The book is about a group of potential heirs who come together to solve the murder of an eccentric millionaire. To claim the $200 million inheritance, they have to solve an intricate puzzle game. Clearly, the love of puzzles for Liane started very young!
3. If you could time-travel with the 826LA Time Travel Mart, what era would you want to visit and why?
I think I’d travel back to New York in the 1920’s. You had jazz, speakeasies, writers, and artists everywhere. It just seems like a time when everything felt possible.
4. Do you remember the first piece of writing you felt proud of?
My twelfth-grade English teacher pressured me into entering an essay contest. I was really unhappy about the extra work, but I didn’t want to disappoint her. She was just one of those teachers who brought out the best in her students. I submitted my essay and won a trip to Germany with about 30 other high schoolers. I remember being equal parts shocked and proud.
5. What inspired you to get involved with 826LA?
I attended 826LA’s 20th anniversary birthday gala, Changing the Story, as a guest. When the student readers took the stage and read their pieces with so much pride, I was hooked. 826LA is a dose of goodness in a world that can feel perpetually unkind. I knew I had to get involved soon after. The following year, I took the leap to be one of two co-chairs for the annual Changing the Story celebration, and it felt like such a full-circle moment to be back, this time as a board member and co-chair alongside Sarah Rosenwald Varet.
Meet Mack!
1. Tell us about yourself
I am a partner at Hecker Fink LLP and lead our firm’s Los Angeles office, which I helped launch in 2025. Previously, I was the chief of the Criminal Division of the United States Attorney’s Office (USAO) for the Central District of California, the largest such office in the country. While serving as Criminal Chief, I supervised over 180 federal prosecutors and 10 criminal prosecution sections. At USAO, my cases focused on public corruption, including the prosecution of multiple Los Angeles City Council members and a deputy mayor for racketeering and civil rights crimes. In private practice, I focus on impact litigation and trials, including defending universities and non-profits, pursuing civil rights cases, and fighting government abuses of power. But my most meaningful (and often most stressful) position is father to Milu (10) and Makai (7).
Mack and his children, Milu and Makai.
2. What was your favorite book or story as a child?
Where the Wild Things are by Maurice Sendak, The Giving Tree, and anything else by Shel Silverstein!
3. If you could time-travel with the 826LA Time Travel Mart, what era would you want to visit and why?
The 1980s because it was the golden era of my childhood, whose influence still resonates in various aspects of my life today (music, fashion, sports, use of landlines, etc.). Or the WWII generation to see firsthand how otherwise ordinary people like my grandfather turned into superheroes and mustered up the courage to risk their lives for their belief in the dream of our country.
4. Do you remember the first piece of writing you ever felt proud of?
A mock trial closing argument in high school (very fitting, we might add).
5. What inspired you to get involved with 826LA?
Going with Sarah Varet to the Echo Park Writing Lab to see how passionately the volunteers engaged with eager and creative minds, many of whom were receiving genuine and meaningful support for their writing for the first time. Witnessing the results of their newfound opportunities and their gratefulness for them.
