The Cold War shaped the life path of Victoria Harvey in ways she couldn’t have imagined as a child. It motivated her parents—both scientists with Ph.D.s—to leave Russia when she was nine and move to Orange County. It stoked her father’s interest in politics, a passion Harvey came to share as she grew up, which ultimately fueled her interest in political science and law.
Her legal trajectory eventually took her to Whittier Law School, stops at a couple firms, and then in-house. On Nov. 2 she was one of the honorees at the Business Journal’s General Counsel Awards dinner at Hotel Irvine, earning recognition in the private company category for her work at Irvine-based Smile Brands Inc.
Russia to OC
Harvey’s parents emigrated from St. Petersburg to OC in 1980. The school she attended provided a translator since she didn’t speak any English. But the translator spoke only German, “because [the school] thought Russian and German were so similar,” Harvey said.
Dealing with her peers wasn’t easy, either.
“The kids would ask me if polar bears walked down the street in Russia,” she said. “I had to bite my tongue because we came from St. Petersburg, one of the most culturally sophisticated cities in the world.”
The challenges of acclimating left her very shy, and she often would let her friends “dictate what was going to happen,” she said.
She eventually outgrew her shyness, developing traits such as determination and decisiveness, which would serve her in leading a legal team.
It wasn’t a straight path to law. Harvey thought about working for the CIA, given her undergrad degree in political science, a minor in criminal justice and fluency in Russian, but she knew she wanted a family and didn’t want to put her or her future family at risk. She also considered medical school and a career in dermatology.
She eventually chose employment law because she wanted to be proactive in identifying issues before they arose, and be a counselor, as well as have the skills to resolve any problems that might arise during a case.
Early Experience
She always knew she wanted to go in-house but started her career practicing at the law firms of Loeb & Loeb LLP in Los Angeles and Theodora Oringher PC in Costa Mesa.
The first company she worked for internally was Cypress-based Real Mex Restaurants, serving as its first in-house attorney. She started as the chain’s corporate counsel and was told that if she expanded her skills, she would become general counsel down the road. The marketing division of the company became her first client, and Harvey immersed herself in reviewing its materials and contracts.
“I took on that challenge and rolled up my sleeves, learning the skills of a transactional attorney,” she said. “I just tried to soak in as much as I could on every single aspect and started working with every department within the company.”
Three years later she was promoted to general counsel.
Harvey helped guide Real Mex through Chapter 11 debt restructuring. Her position was eliminated 18 months after the restructuring.
She joined Smile Brands in 2014, first as its interim compliance officer, and then as associate general counsel. Harvey was promoted to senior vice president, chief legal officer and corporate secretary last year.
Smile Brands is one of the largest providers of support services to general and multi specialty dental groups in the U.S., based on the number of dental offices, Harvey said. She oversees compliance, risk management and all legal affairs. Harvey says she continues to enjoy working with various departments as a GC.
“I enjoy being challenged every day because there are new issues every day,” she said. “I enjoy my colleagues. They’re very collaborative. We work very closely together on various issues. I appreciate we can be proactive versus reactive. And I absolutely adore my team.”
She describes her style as a “business-savvy, in-house counsel.”
“I know how to focus on balancing business goals while minimizing legal exposure,” she said. “I know how to triage multiple and complex legal issues and deal with them in a fast-moving environment.”
Teamwork and supporting her internal clients are also important to her.
“I want everyone in the legal department to be responsive, friendly and make sure that we are seen by the business as support,” she said. “We’re not a ‘No’ department. We’re here to support and figure out how to get the business moving in the direction [the organization] wants to move and, at the same time, make sure we’re protecting the assets.”
Quarterback
One of her recent significant accomplishments as a GC was being part of the senior leadership team that guided Smile Brands through a recent acquisition. OneSmile LLC in Laguna Hills acquired Smile Brands in August, backed by San Francisco-based Gryphon Investors.
The OneSmile and Smile Brands business models are similar—both handle front-office functions for affiliated dental groups.
Smile Brands has about $500 million in revenue from some 350 affiliated dental practices, and OneSmile takes in an estimated $10 million from three affiliated practices.
“It was a very fast transaction with multiple bidders and a confidential transaction, which I had to quarterback from the due diligence and legal side,” she said.
