Alison Alpert Alison D. Alpert is a partner and practice

23 Pages·2015·0.62 MB·English

by  Brian Sanders

Alison Alpert
Alison D. Alpert is a partner and practice group leader of the Labor & Employment group at
Best Best & Krieger LLP. Ms. Alpert represents private and public employers in a broad
range of employment litigation including harassment, wrongful termination, retaliation and
discrimination based upon gender, race, national origin, age and disability. Ms. Alpert also
frequently advises clients concerning employee handbooks and employment policies related
to harassment, wage and hour issues, workplace violence, drug and alcohol testing, privacy,
discipline and termination. Ms. Alpert additionally has significant experience in representing
and advising clients on issues related to public access and accommodation under the
Americans with Disabilities Act. Ms. Alpert also regularly participates as a speaker in labor
and employment seminars, speaking on issues of family and medical leave, drug and alcohol
policies and disability issues. Ms. Alpert graduated from Pomona College with a degree in
Government in 1995. She received her law degree from the University of California at Davis,
King Hall in 1998. While attending UC Davis, she was an intern for the United States
Attorney's Office Eastern District of California and participated in a civil rights clinic.
485
Michael Colantuono
Michael G. Colantuono is a shareholder in Colantuono, Highsmith & Whatley, a municipal
law firm with offices in Los Angeles and Nevada County. Chief Justice Ronald M. George
presented him with the 2010 Public Lawyer of the Year award on behalf of the California
State Bar Association. The Los Angeles Daily Journal named him one of “California’s Top
Municipal Lawyers” every year since its list began in 2011. He is Treasurer and a Trustee of
the State Bar of California, the agency responsible for regulating the practice of law in our
State. The State Bar has certified him as an Appellate Specialist and he is a member of the
California Academy of Appellate Lawyers, a prestigious association of fewer than 100 of
California’s most distinguished appellate advocates. Michael is one of California’s leading
experts on municipal revenues and has appeared in all six Courts of Appeal in California. In
addition, he has argued five recent public finance cases in the California Supreme Court:
Richmond v. Shasta Community Services District (2004), Bonander v. Town of Tiburon
(2009), Greene v. Marin County Flood Control & Water Conservation District (2010) and
Alhambra v. County of Los Angeles (2012) and McWilliams v. City of Long Beach (2013). He
helped brief a sixth: Ardon v. City of Los Angeles (2011). Michael served on the committee
that drafted the League of California Cities’ Proposition 218 Implementation Guide and
chaired the subcommittee that drafted what became the “Proposition 218 Omnibus
Implementation Act of 1997.” He also chaired the League Committee which drafted the
Proposition 26 Implementation Guide (April 2011) and is now participating in the first
appeals under that measure. Michael is City Attorney of Auburn and Grass Valley; General
Counsel of the North Yuba Water District and of a number of special districts. He previously
served as City Attorney of six other cities and as general counsel of several special districts
and other local government agencies. He serves as special counsel to counties, cities and
special districts around California. Michael served as President of the City Attorneys
Department of the League of California Cities in 2003–2004 and established its first Ethics
Committee. He served on the Commission on Local Governance in the 21st Century, the
recommendations of which led to substantial revisions of the Cortese-Knox-Hertzberg Local
Government Reorganization Act. Michael is General Counsel of the Calaveras, San Diego and
Yuba LAFCOs and serves as outside counsel to the Nevada, Orange, and Yolo County LAFCOs.
Michael graduated magna cum laude from Harvard College with a degree in Government
and received his law degree from the Boalt Hall School of Law of the University of California
at Berkeley. He frequently posts comments on local government and municipal finance
topics to Twitter ( @Mcolantuono ) and LinkedIn ( Michael Colantuono ).
486
Derek Cole
Derek Cole is a co-founder and partner of Cota Cole LLP and specializes in municipal law. Mr.
Cole is a city attorney for three cities and regularly advises his firm's other public agency
clients. Mr. Cole also specializes in municipal litigation and has represented public clients in a
wide range of matters in judicial and administrative forums.
487
Timothy Davis
Mr. Davis is chairman of the firm's Labor and Employment Law and a partner in our Trial and
Advocacy Practice Groups. Mr. Davis has negotiated numerous labor agreements between
cities and their employee groups, including police, fire, general employees, and
management groups. Additionally, his practice includes internal investigations of
employment complaints involving discrimination and harassment as well as the presentation
of seminars on how to prevent discrimination and harassment and investigate allegations of
discrimination and harassment. He also trains Human Resource professionals and managers
regarding proper investigation techniques. His practice also includes development of
personnel rules and policies including discipline and grievance procedures, and the
investigation of grievances. Mr. Davis is also an experienced litigator who has tried to verdict
several employment cases in federal and state courts and conducted over 60 employment
arbitrations. Mr. Davis routinely defends employers in litigation matters in actions involving
state and federal law, including but not limited to Title VII, California Fair Employment and
Housing Act, Americans with Disability Act, Age Discrimination and Employment Act, Family
and Medical Leave Act, California Family Rights Act, California Pregnancy Disability Act,
Public Safety Officers Procedural Bill of Rights, and wage and hour issues. His practice also
includes the representation of public employers before state, federal, and local
administrative proceedings, including Department of Labor, local civil service commissions,
PERB, EEOC, and OSHA. His litigation practice, with substantial emphasis and experience in
labor and employment, encompasses all aspects of litigation, including trial, all phases of
trial preparation, arguing law and motion matters, taking depositions, preparing and
responding to pleadings, drafting and responding to written discovery, and research. Mr.
Davis’ reported decisions include Alhambra Police Officers Association v. City of Alhambra,
(2003) 113 Cal.App.4th, 413. Mr. Davis received his B.A. degree cum laude in Integral Studies
from Saint Mary's College of California in 1992 and his J.D. degree from the University of the
Pacific, McGeorge School of Law in 1995. Mr. Davis’ commitment and experience in public
law began in law school, where he co-authored the article Does a Public Law Attorney Owe a
Duty to Third Parties, which appeared in the summer 1994 issue of the Public Law Journal.
488
Sean D. De Burgh
Sean De Burgh is an attorney with Cota Cole LLP, servicing clients out of both the Roseville
and Ontario offices. Mr. De Burgh represents public and private clients in a wide array of
matters in both state and federal courts. Mr. De Burgh’s practice includes litigation,
non-litigation advice and general counsel work for numerous public agencies and private
clients. His litigation experience has emphasized employment, general liability defense, civil
rights, and commercial matters. Mr. De Burgh currently serves as District Counsel for the
Olivehurst Public Utility District, Deputy City Attorney for the City of Oroville, and Deputy
General Counsel for the San Bernardino International Airport Authority for which he
provides the full range of general counsel and litigation services. Mr. De Burgh also serves as
Special Counsel for the City of Ontario and was recently appointed as special counsel to the
West San Gabriel Joint Powers Authority, a school insurance pool serving school districts
located in the San Gabriel area of Los Angeles County. Upon graduating from Brigham Young
University, Mr. De Burgh received his law degree from the University of the Pacific,
McGeorge School of Law. At McGeorge, he was a finalist in regional Client Counseling
competitions, and earned honors in Persuasive Legal Writing. He was also on the Dean’s
Honor Roll. Mr. De Burgh is dedicated to the diligent, cost-efficient, service oriented practice
of law with the highest standards of ethical responsibility. He excels in achieving positive
results for his clients faced with complex legal issues and disputes. Mr. De Burgh is a
member of the State Bar of California, and is admitted to practice before all California courts
and the U.S. District Courts for the Central, Eastern and Northern Districts.
489
Steven L. Dorsey
Steven L. Dorsey is a shareholder in the Public Law Department at Richards, Watson &
Gershon. Since joining the Firm in 1973, Mr. Dorsey has specialized in public agency law. He
currently is City Attorney for the Cities of Buena Park, Norwalk and San Marino. He also
serves as counsel for several joint powers authorities. Mr. Dorsey is very active in the League
of California Cities and has served as a member of the League's Board of Directors. He also
has been President of the City Attorneys' Department, chair of the Department's Legal
Advocacy Committee, a member of the Department's Legislative Committee and chair of the
City Attorneys' Department Fair Political Practices Commission committee. He currently
serves as the League Parliamentarian. Mr. Dorsey was a member of the editorial board that
wrote the first edition of the League's Municipal Law Handbook, and personally edited the
chapters on Public Property, Public Works and Public Utilities. Mr. Dorsey was also a
member of the City Attorneys' Department committee that authored Practicing Ethics: A
Handbook for Municipal Lawyers and chaired the committee that updated this publication in
2014. Previously, he chaired the committee that drafted the Ethical Principles for City
Attorneys. Mr. Dorsey's practice emphasizes representation of public agencies on conflict of
interests and ethics issues. Mr. Dorsey has lectured on these topics on many occasions,
including providing a series of presentations with members of the Los Angeles County
District Attorney's Public Integrity Division.
490
David Gehrig
David assists public agency clients with legal issues related to public works construction
projects. His clients include cities, transit districts, health care districts and water districts.
He has worked on numerous large-scale infrastructure projects from the drafting of the
contract specifications, through the bid process, to contract completion and claims
resolution. He has considerable experience with contract award disputes, prevailing wage
laws, subcontractor substitution issues and bidder pre-qualification. He has also successfully
resolved several stop notice lawsuits for public agency clients. David is also well versed in
design-build construction, and other alternative project delivery methods. He has prepared
contract documents for three high profile public design-build project, each with unique
approaches and challenges. David also assists public agency clients with a wide variety of
other legal issues. He works on Public Records Act compliance, record retention issues, open
meeting laws, and professional service agreements and communication site leases. He
serves as general counsel to the Purissima Hills Water District
491
Clare M. Gibson
Clare Gibson has been advising clients on bid protests for her entire career. She is the
immediate past chapter chair of Chapter 7, Public Contracting, of the The California
Municipal Law Handbook. Clare recently submitted an amicus brief and successful request
for publication on behalf of the League in the Bay Cities Paving case, which upheld a city’s
broad discretion to waive immaterial bidding errors. She is a partner of the law firm of Jarvis
Fay Doporto & Gibson in Oakland, where her practice is focused on public contracting and
construction law. Clare also serves as Assistant City Attorney for the City of Hercules. She is a
graduate of U.C. Berkeley’s Boalt Hall.
492
Eugene Gordon
Eugene P. Gordon is a Deputy City Attorney in the San Diego City Attorney's Office. Since
February 2008 when he retired from the City, he has been working as a volunteer on a
part-time basis in the City Attorney’s Office. He is assigned to the Trial Unit in the Civil
Division where he specializes in the defense of personal injury cases brought against the City
and its employees. Such litigation involves alleged dangerous conditions of public property,
such as highway design and trip-and-fall cases, police K-9 bite cases, false arrest and
excessive force cases, including section 1983 cases, and City vehicular accidents.

From 1971 to 1978, Mr. Gordon was Legal Advisor to the San Diego Police Department
where he was instrumental in providing legal in-service training programs, including the
publication of legal training bulletins for police officers. He provided on-the-scene legal
advice to police supervisors in the proper handling of civil demonstrations and disturbances,
was available to supervisors and officers in the field for consultation on legal matters, and
played an important role in drafting legal policies and procedures. While Police Legal
Advisor, Mr. Gordon was a member of the Legal Officers Section of the International
Association of Chiefs of Police, and in 1976 he was General Chairman of the section. He was
also a contributor to the “Chief's Counsel,” a legal column in the “Police Chief Magazine,” a
monthly publication of the International Association of Chiefs of Police.

Mr. Gordon was a prosecutor in the Criminal Division of the City Attorney's Office from 1969
- 1971 where he prosecuted a variety of misdemeanor cases. He served as Assistant Chief
Criminal Deputy for one year prior to becoming Police Legal Advisor in May 1971. Mr.
Gordon has taught extensively at the San Diego Regional Public Safety Training Institute at
Miramar College in San Diego on the subjects of civil and criminal liability of law
enforcement officers, constitutional law, and use of force to police recruits, advanced
officers and Field Training Officers. He was an instructor in the San Diego Sheriff's
Department Academy at Southwestern College on the subject of civil and criminal liability of
law enforcement officers, and he taught the sixteen-hour course on search and seizure at
the San Diego Police Academy from 1972-1979.

Mr. Gordon has lectured at numerous seminars for police administrators sponsored by the
International Association of Chiefs of Police on the subjects of police discipline, civil liability
and discovery of police officers' personnel records. He has also lectured on municipal tort
liability at NIMLO and League of California Cities conferences. Mr. Gordon has provided legal
updates at numerous PRIMA and PARMA conferences.

In 1992, Mr. Gordon served on the California Commission on Peace Officer Standards and
Training (POST) Committee on “Police Use of Force,” Executive Report, July 1992. In 1996, he
assisted POST in revising the Police Supervisory Course curricula. Admitted to the
California State Bar in 1968, Mr. Gordon received his legal education at Hastings College of
Law in San Francisco. He received his B.A. degree from the University of
California, Riverside.
493
Gregory Hurley
Mr. Hurley is a member of the Attorney Settlement Officer Panel for the U. S. District Court
for the Central District of California, having first been continuously appointed to the Panel
every year since 2003. He holds a masters certificate from the National Institute of Trial
Advocacy, and has tried many national class actions alleging discrimination and violations of
the Fair Housing Act and the Americans With Disabilities Act. He has advised the California
Supreme Court (through the Administrative Office of the Courts), Covenant Care, Home
Depot, Intrawest, Ralph’s / Kroger’s Grocery Stores, Starbucks, Tarsadia Hotels, the Denver
Broncos, the San Diego Padres, the U.S. District Court for Eastern District of California, and,
the Superior Courts for the Counties of Riverside, Los Angeles, and Alameda on these claims.
He has represented the Los Angeles Superior Court System, Taco Bell, KFC, and Pizza Hut,
Little Caesar’s Pizza, Home Depot, The Irvine Company’s Retail, Office and Resort Properties,
23 Irvine Apartment Communities, Welk Resorts, Live Nation/TicketMaster, Winco,
Michaels/Aaron Brothers Craft Stores, Kroger & Ralphs Grocery Company, Regal
Entertainment Group, Landmark Theaters, the National Association of Theater Owners, The
National League of Cities, The California Hotel & Lodging Association, with respect to access
discrimination claims.

Greg’s trial experience includes trying state and nation wide class actions: He represented
California in the largest class action certified against the State, involving more than 10
Million claimants against 4000 miles of Caltrans pedestrian routes and 90 Park & Ride
facilities; He defended a class action brought by the ACLU against the entire Los Angeles
Superior Court System; A national action brought by the United States Department of Justice
against AMC Theaters; A national class action against 80 golf courses owned and operated
by Marriott; He is currently defending statewide class actions against Starbucks, In-N-Out
Burgers, Auto Club of Southern California, Ralphs Grocery Stores; Adir/La Curacao Store;
Sport Chalet; Regency Theaters; and The Irvine Company. In 2012, he successfully
de-certified a damage class action against more than 200 Taco Bell stores. Greg’s experience
includes substantial appellate work, where, against numerous amici and the US DOJ, he
argued and won landmark Ninth Circuit cases: Lonberg v. Sanborn Theaters; Oliver v Ralphs
Grocery Store; and Lonberg v. City of Riverside. He authored United States Supreme Court
briefs and Ninth Circuit Appellate briefs for the National Association of Theater Owners, The
California and National Restaurant Associations, the California and National League of Cities,
and more than 200 California cities. Greg is a nationally recognized attorney on disability
law, and the author of the Wiley Law Publications text, Defending Disabled Access Claims, a
comprehensive survey of state and federal laws relating to the rights of individuals with
disabilities. Greg sat on the committee advising the California State Legislature on revisions
to California’s discrimination laws and drafting of the new SB 1186 statute. In his 27 year
career, Greg has spoken at more than 100 conferences and written more than 30 articles on
access laws.
494