MEET PAUL
Paul Seo is a husband, father, U.S. Army veteran, and Deputy Attorney General who serves as Mayor Pro Tem of Rancho Palos Verdes. Raised by hardworking immigrant parents, Paul learned the value of selfless service and has dedicated his career to delivering results that lift up others and improve lives.
Paul’s parents came to the United States from South Korea in the late 1970s without much. Paul’s dad was an electrician and found work at the shipyards in San Pedro thanks to a Veteran of the Korean War who gave him an opportunity. Paul’s mom worked at Seiko Instruments in Torrance while the strength of his dad’s union, IBEW, made a difference for the family and allowed them to save enough to open their own liquor store in Inglewood.
Paul was born in Harbor City and his family moved from Lomita to Gardena before settling in Torrance. Growing up, Paul spent his vacation days from school at his family’s liquor store, where his parents showed him how to foster community ownership and how to treat everyone with respect. He also developed a strong work ethic and deep appreciation for others from watching how his parents carried themselves with their customers, employees, and other community members.
After the family store burned down during the 1992 civil unrest that followed the Rodney King beating verdict, Paul's parents didn’t blame anyone in the community. They just worked hard to rebuild and invest more in the community, including buying the building to be able to protect other local small businesses from greedy developers.
Always appreciative of the opportunities afforded them in this country, Paul’s parents told him from an early age to “be someone this country needs” and give back to his community. Paul’s journey in public service began in high school when he chaired the Torrance Youth Council and helped establish a teen center for afterschool programs. He also became involved in the Torrance YMCA’s Youth and Government program, which included legislative trips to Sacramento.
Driven to serve his country, Paul went to the United States Military Academy at West Point and developed strong leadership skills and dedication to selfless service. He also learned how to think outside the box and make decisions under duress, always with an eye toward making soldiers more effective, while he earned his degree in economics. Paul went on to serve as a U.S. Army officer overseas in the demilitarized zone between South Korea and North Korea.
Paul completed his active-duty service with the rank of Captain and went on to earn his law degree from Loyola Law School while interning for then-Congressman Adam Schiff. Paul also clerked for Judge Michael Pastor during the televised Conrad Murray trial for the involuntary manslaughter of Michael Jackson that resulted in a guilty verdict.
Motivated to administer justice in a fair and balanced way, Paul served as a Deputy District Attorney for Los Angeles County where he spent seven years prosecuting complex serious and violent felonies, from misdemeanors to murder trials. He focused on accountability with an emphasis on corrective programs to get offenders on the right track and prevent recidivism.
Paul then joined the California Department of Justice as a Deputy Attorney General, Special Prosecutions Section. He leads a team to investigate and prosecute political corruption, corporate fraud, and other white-collar crimes along with investigating cold case murders.
Paul led the effort to force accountability for the 2021 Huntington Beach oil spill, prosecuting the oil company responsible for the spill. He is also leading the prosecution of the defendants in the California City case, which was the feature of a 2021 podcast by LAist.
Paul has always made his service about improving the lives of others, not about accolades or self-gratification. He stepped up to make a difference and serve his community on the Rancho Palos Verdes City Council with a focus on problem-solving to improve quality of life. Paul has delivered results that have improved the reliability of electricity, improved public safety, strengthened mobile phone reception, and secured funds from the county to support residents impacted by landslides and find solutions to stabilize landslide areas.
Paul now serves as Mayor Pro Tem in Rancho Palos Verdes while also serving in leadership for the Los Angeles County Democratic Party. He and his wife, Hannah, live near Silver Spur Elementary School and are proud parents of two, a six-year-old son and three-year-old daughter.