Our People

Melanie represents and regularly advises cities, counties, community college districts, school districts, public safety departments and special districts regarding employee and labor relations matters.  The breadth of her experience as both a negotiator and a litigator informs her practical approach to the myriad of labor and employment issues faced by public entities.

Kevin Chicas is an Associate in Liebert Cassidy Whitmore's Los Angeles office where he provides advice and representation to the firm's clients in employment and litigation matters. Kevin has experience in litigation from the initial pleading stages, through discovery, and in filing pre-trial motions, including motions for summary judgment.  In addition to his work on litigation matters, Kevin also has experience advising employers during all stages of the disciplinary process, from investigation, to review of notices, attending Skelly reviews, and handling appeals.  Kevin has appeared before panels and administrative law judges, and he has handled administrative hearings for appeals of discipline.  Kevin has experience preparing witnesses for hearing and performing direct and cross-examination.  He has secured favorable settlements and administrative decisions.  Kevin also has drafted position statements in response to charges by the NLRB, EEOC, and DFEH.  He has further advised public agencies on compliance with disability laws and state and federal leave laws. 

Ryan Church has over a decade of experience in the areas of employment law, federal Indian law and civil litigation. He has litigated extensively in state and federal courts as well as before administrative bodies and tribal courts. Ryan has obtained several favorable rulings on behalf of clients by prevailing on dispositive motions such as motions for summary judgment, Anti-SLAPP motions, and other pleadings. Ryan represents K-12 school districts, community college districts, and cities throughout California. Ryan also represents Native American tribes on issues regarding civil jurisdiction and sovereign immunity.

As Executive Director, Gary Connally manages the day-to-day business affairs of Liebert Cassidy Whitmore, including finance and administration, human resources and firm-wide operations.  In this role he provides daily guidance to the firm on the myriad of issues a small business faces, and in addition helps to formulate and implement our long-range strategic plans. Since Gary joined the firm in 2001, LCW has more than doubled in size.

Heather DeBlanc is the Chair of the firm's Business & Facilities Practice Group. She practices education, construction, business, and employment law, representing both public and private sector clients in transactional and litigation matters, as well as administrative hearings.

Jenny Denny, an associate at Liebert Cassidy Whitmore’s Los Angeles Office, provides assistance to clients in matters pertaining to employment law, litigation services, private education and public education law.

As Litigation Technology Manager, Jay manages eDiscovery and document review technology for the firm’s litigation matters.  He is responsible for managing the security, storage and organization of client-provided records and documents used in litigation cases.  This includes overseeing the import of documents and emails into the firm’s document review platform, CaseLogistix, as well as document production requests. Working closely with the firm’s Litigation Manager, Jay has established the firm’s policies, procedures and best practices for document review and conducts training for all legal staff on litigation technology applications.  Jay also provides technical support at trial and is often present in the courtroom, working directly with attorneys in the presentation of trial exhibits. 

With almost 40 years of experience in labor, employment, and education law, Mary Dowell has assisted clients in a myriad of employment and education-related issues.  Her primary area of expertise is representing and advising community college districts in a general counsel role, specifically in education, labor and employment-related matters.

Christopher provides representation and legal counsel to school and community college district, special districts, and independent schools.  His practice focuses on matters pertaining to business and facilities including general business contracts, construction contracts and litigation.

Jenny-Anne Flores is an associate in Liebert Cassidy Whitmore’s Los Angeles Office where she provides representation and legal counsel to the Firm’s education and public agency clients. An experienced litigator, Jenny-Anne has extensive experience in all aspects of the litigation process including pleadings, discovery, dispositive motion practice, settlement/mediation and trials.