Alka Sagar

U.S. Attorney’s Office

Specialty: White-collar crime

Law School: UCLA, 1984

Alka Sagar is on a roll.

In the past three years, she has had numerous convictions, including a number of lawyers, in insurance fraud cases involving staged car accidents and faked injuries.

And there’s plenty more work to be done: L.A. is ranked by the FBI as the insurance fraud capital of America. “The schemes just get more sophisticated and the stakes get higher,” said Sagar.

The deputy chief of the major crime section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office handles everything from murders to interstate fraud. Two years ago, she successfully prosecuted three gang members charged with robbing a bank and then shooting at an FBI agent who was chasing them.

Her decision to work for the U.S. Department of Justice, rather than make substantially more money at a private firm, was influenced by a sense of purpose.

“This job is very rewarding because you can follow your conscience,” she said. “If you don’t believe in a prosecution you can turn it down. The United States is a good client in that way.”

Working for the government has other benefits. She said her average work week is just 50 to 60 hours, much less than the 80 hours often racked up by corporate attorneys.

Jason Booth