Seyfarth Shaw Adds Labor & Employment Attorney Dana D. Howells in Los Angeles09/08/2010

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Elisa Marks, Senior Public Relations Associate
(212) 218-5273,emarks@seyfarth.com

LOS ANGELES (September 8, 2010)—  Seyfarth Shaw LLP, one of America’s leading full-service law firms, today announced that Dana D. Howells has joined its Labor & Employment department as of counsel. Howells, who is based in Los Angeles, also recently became chair of the Labor & Employment section of the Los Angeles County Bar Association.

Howells is the third notable addition to Seyfarth’s Labor & Employment practice in the past month. In August, the firm brought on new partners Marjorie R. Culver in New York and Eric M. Steinert in San Francisco. Seyfarth has one of the largest L&E practices in California and for the past 10 years has authored California Peculiarities, the definitive guide to employment law in the state.

Howells joins Seyfarth from The Capital Group Companies, a Los Angeles-based investment management firm, where she was vice president and senior counsel directing all aspects of human resource legal issues. She has extensive experience with employment law related to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), health care, immigration, compensation, benefits, the Family and Medical Leave Act, Americans with Disabilities Act, discrimination, and wage and hour issues. At The Capital Group Companies, she oversaw HR legal functions for North America and coordinated activities with local counsel in Europe and Asia. During her tenure, the company grew from 1,800 employees in 1993 to a high of more than 9,000.

Before The Capital Group, Howells was a partner at Musick, Peeler and Garrett, LLP. Howells focused on employment and labor litigation cases, working with companies in financial services, healthcare, technology, entertainment and retail.

“Dana brings more than two decades of experience working on employment matters at the state, national and international level,” noted Lisa J. Damon, chair of Seyfarth Shaw’s Labor & Employment department. “Her vast knowledge of the laws and regulations governing workers, in addition to her significant experience in employment litigation, particularly on ERISA cases, is a potent combination for an employment attorney.”

Long involved with the Los Angeles County Bar Association, Howells became chair of its Labor and Employment Section this past summer. With more than 1,400 members, Los Angeles’ L&E section is one of the largest local associations in the United States. She has been an executive committee member since 1994.

“We are excited to have an attorney of Dana’s caliber join our firm. She has superb private practice experience, but more importantly has spent more than 15 years working in-house on the client side, bringing invaluable inside experience that can only strengthen our already robust client service focus,” said Raymond R. Kepner, co-chair of Seyfarth’s California Labor & Employment Department and a member of the firm’s national Labor and Employment Steering Committee.

Seyfarth’s Labor & Employment department has more than 350 lawyers representing public and private companies, ranging from the largest Fortune 100 companies to the smallest start-ups, as well as not-for-profit organizations of all sizes. The firm’s labor and employment lawyers are organized to leverage their knowledge of specific industry experience and key workplace subspecialties.

“I’m thrilled to join a firm of this caliber,” said Howells. “I look forward to working with my new colleagues in Los Angeles and across the country to provide every client with exceptional service.”

Howells earned a B.A. with highest honors from the University of Texas. She received a J.D. from University of California, Los Angeles, where she was a member of the Order of the Coif and was the top woman graduate in her class. She is admitted to practice before all state and federal courts in California and the United States Supreme Court.

News Source : Seyfarth Shaw Adds Labor & Employment Attorney Dana D. Howells in Los Angeles09/08/2010