Dawn M. Knepper

Dawn Knepper is licensed in both California and Texas and she is Board Certified in Labor and Employment Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization.  She represents employers in all aspects of employment law, including employment litigation and counseling.

Dawn advises and defends clients in federal and state employment-related lawsuits and agency claims, including actions alleging discrimination, harassment, retaliation, and wrongful termination.  Dawn’s experience includes successfully defending employers in both jury and bench trials and in arbitration proceedings. She also draws on her background in commercial litigation to represent employers in cases that involve employee theft of trade secrets, non-compete agreements, defamation, fraud, business interference and violations of the fiduciary duties owed by an employee to his/her employer. 

Along with her litigation practice, Dawn provides advice to employers concerning litigation avoidance, wage and hour laws, leaves of absence, employee discipline, hiring and termination issues, privacy claims, reductions in force, and other issues arising in the human resources context. 

Dawn also has extensive experience reviewing and creating employee handbooks and policies of all types; drafting and negotiating employment agreements (including independent contractor, non-competition, non-disclosure, and non-solicitation agreements) and severance agreements; and providing training for employers on employment-related issues.

Dawn served as a Staff Attorney with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit from 2000 to 2001.