Nationally Recognized Employment Law Group Joins Mintz Levin's Expanding Washington, D.C. Office
8/10/2005
Washington, D.C. - Edmund Cooke, a nationally recognized expert in diversity counseling and audits, and six other prominent employment law attorneys have come together to join the Washington, D.C. office of Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo, P.C.
Mr. Cooke, formerly a partner in the labor and employment practice at Venable, LLP is joined by Robert Clayton former partner at Epstein, Becker & Green and Associate Dean of Tulane Law School; Singleton McAllister, formerly of Sonnenschein, Nath & Rosenthal where she chaired its National Corporate Diversity Counseling Group; O'Kelly E. McWilliams III, formerly a partner with Pepper Hamilton; Gilbert Casellas, former Chairman of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and former general counsel for the United States Air Force; Randall Robertson, former associate general counsel at MCI WorldCom, Inc.; Darlene Smith, formerly at McNamee, Hosea, Jernigan, Kim, Greenan and Walker; and Sheila Owsley most recently with Jackson Lewis, LLP. In addition, R. Wesley Alexander, Jennifer Persico, Karen Vossler and Tyrone Thomas have joined the Washington, D.C. office as associates in the employment, labor and benefits section.
Mintz Levin has added a total of 10 new Members (partners) and four Of-Counsel to its offices in the greater Washington area in the last 12 months adding to its Business and Finance, Health Care, Communications, Federal and Employment, Labor and Benefits Sections.
The D.C. employment group's practice will focus on preventative law involving company-wide diversity audits, internal investigations involving workplace discrimination and harassment, advice and counseling on EEO-related employment issues, arbitration, mediation and employment litigation and counsel to universities on NCAA, Title IX and Title XI compliance issues. In addition, the strong government relations backgrounds of Mr. Cooke who served as eight years as staff counsel to the U.S. House of Representatives and as Deputy Director of the EEOC's Office of Field Service, Ms. McAllister, who was the general counsel of USAID and Mr. Casellas with his experience at EEOC and the US Air Force, will benefit clients needing assistance with government procurement and appropriations.
"This is a dynamic group of people," said Cherie Kiser, Managing Member of the firm's Washington, D.C. office, Chair of the Communications and Technology Section and Chair of the Diversity Committee. "They bring distinct expertise in employment law generally, and specifically as it relates to diversity issues. In addition, their deep commitment to creating a lasting legacy for future generations of minority attorneys is an integral part of this firm's mission and tradition with regard to providing an environment of opportunity for all of our employees."
"Mintz Levin's international client base and excellent reputation not only in employment law, but across a number of practice areas, provides us with the opportunity to build a vibrant and sustainable practice," added Mr. Cooke.
Mintz Levin's commitment to diversity dates back to its beginnings in1933 when three Jewish lawyers who themselves, felt disenfranchised from the Boston legal community, joined together to start a firm. Since then, Mintz Levin has continued its efforts in this area including being one of the founding firms who, in 1986, created the Boston Lawyers Group (BLG). The BLG is a nonprofit organization founded by a consortium of major Boston firms committed to improving the hiring and retention of attorneys of color.
Mintz Levin elected its first female partner in 1966. Today, Mintz Levin's women partners leader numerous practice groups within the Firm and serve on the firm's Policy Committee. Nearly half of all attorneys at the firm are women. Since 1993, the Firm has offered employee benefits to same-sex partners.
Mintz Levin's employment, labor and employee benefits attorneys are joined together as one group to provide clients with a consolidated approach to human resources issues. They provide clients with informed advice on not only the most recent developments in the law but also current trends in employment and compensation practices. Mintz Levin' s objective is to assist clients in meeting their business goals while minimizing employee-related conflicts. The firm's clients represent a broad cross-section of the community, encompassing a spectrum of industries including manufacturing, retail, high technology, biotechnology, health care, education, hospitality, finance, construction, agriculture, and professional services.
Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo, PC is a multidisciplinary law firm with over 450 attorneys and senior professionals in Boston, Washington D.C., Reston, VA, New York, Stamford, CT, Los Angeles and London.
Mintz Levin is distinguished by its reputation for responsive client service and expertise in the areas of bankruptcy; business and finance; communications; employment; environmental; antitrust and federal regulatory; health care; immigration; intellectual property; litigation; public finance; real estate; tax; and trusts and estates. Mintz Levin's international clientele range from privately held start-ups to Fortune 100 companies in a wide array of industries including biotechnology, venture capital, telecommunications, health care and high technology.
Mintz Levin was one of the first law firms to develop complementary consulting capabilities to provide complete solutions to clients? problems, including investment/wealth management, government and public affairs and transactional insurance.
