Attorneys

Efrem Grail

Efrem M. Grail is a former prosecutor and big firm partner who defends entities and individuals in white collar criminal matters and regulatory proceedings, and represents clients in key litigation matters. Efrem also conducts internal investigations, litigates complex business disputes in federal and state courts, and advises on compliance and regulatory matters. Efrem has been named a “Super Lawyer” and “Best Lawyer” for over a decade.

Emily Kinkead

The Hon. Emily Kinkead joined the Grail Law Firm in 2019, three years after graduating from Pitt Law School. In addition to enforcement defense and litigation matters for Firm clients, Emily serves as a Member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, elected from District 20, which includes Pittsburgh’s historic North Side. Before joining the firm, Emily served as a law clerk for Judge Michael H. Wojcik of the PA Commonwealth Court.

During law school, Emily interned at the Legal Aid Centre of Eldoret, Kenya, providing comprehensive legal assistance to HIV+ individuals and victims of gender and domestic violence. She also has experience working for Neighborhood Legal Services in Pittsburgh and Allegheny County’s Office of Conflict Counsel. Prior to law school, Emily worked in various policy roles in Washington, DC, including at Common Cause and the National Institutes of Health.

Julia M. Gitelman

Julia Gitelman joined the Grail Law Firm in September of 2021. Since graduating from Pitt Law in 2019, Julia has dedicated her career to defending the rights of her clients as a criminal defense attorney in high-stakes matters, primarily focusing on White Collar criminal defense. Most recently, Ms. Gitelman second-chaired a six-week felony health care fraud trial in federal court, where her closing argument to the jury resulted in a “Not Guilty” verdict on the lead count of Conspiracy. She has handled all types of state and federal criminal matters, including pre-charging investigations, witness appearances before the Grand Jury, internal investigations, jury and non-jury criminal trials, and parallel administrative professional license defense actions. Julia is a member of the Western District federal court’s indigent defense “CJA” Panel and regularly appears as court-appointed counsel in Allegheny County criminal court as well. She currently serves as the Reporter for the American Bar Association’s Prosecutorial Independence Task Force and was recognized by Best Lawyers “Ones to Watch” for White Collar defense, criminal defense, and corporate governance and compliance law, as well as Super Lawyers “Rising Stars” in the area of “White Collar Crimes.”

Rachel T. Sleiman

Rachel Sleiman joined Grail Law to practice White Collar criminal defense and civil litigation in 2025, after clerking for the Honorable U.S. Magistrate Judge Mitchel Neurock in the Southern District of Texas and then working as an associate at a small commercial litigation firm in Pittsburgh. Before law school, Rachel was a litigation paralegal serving the Department of Justice’s Criminal Fraud Section, assisting trial attorneys prosecute healthcare fraud cases nationwide. During law school, she interned for the Honorable J. Michelle Childs, now of the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, and the Honorable Sherri A. Lydon in the District of South Carolina, as well as the Federal Public Defender’s Office for the District of South Carolina and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Rachel earned her Juris Doctor from William & Mary Law School and received her Bachelor of Arts cum laude in International Studies and Anthropology from Case Western Reserve University. In law school, she worked supporting international human rights and criminal law research, and also worked with a Columbia Law School professor, organizing a 2021 Global Conference for Media Freedom symposium. In addition, Rachel was the Editor-in-Chief of the international law blog The Comparative Jurist, competed on the Moot Court team, held leadership roles in William & Mary’s Human Security Law Center and Student Bar Association, and served on the law school’s Bill of Rights Journal. Rachel is admitted to practice in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the federal district court for the Western District of Pennsylvania. In her free time, Rachel enjoys practicing yoga and teaching as a Registered Yoga Teacher (RYT-200).