Bolaños is the first Latina to serve as board president of 39-year-old organization
Concord, Calif. – July 26, 2024 – The Board of the National Employment Lawyers Association (NELA), the nation’s largest bar association whose members exclusively or primarily represent workers, has elected its officers for 2024-2025. The NELA Board is composed of 24 member attorneys from around the country. M. Nieves Bolaños, the first Latina to serve as NELA’s president, assumes the role from Carla D. Brown, the first Black woman leader of the organization. This transition represents a significant milestone for NELA, highlighting the importance of diverse representation in leadership roles within the organization and the legal community as a whole.
NELA Board:
President
M. Nieves Bolaños
Hawks Quindel, SC, Chicago, IL
First Vice President
Ben Lebsack
Lowrey Parady Lebsack, LLC, Denver, CO
Vice President of Public Policy
Mark Hanna
Murphy Anderson PLLC, Washington, DC
Vice President of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Accessibility
Bryce W. Ashby
Donati Law, PLLC, Memphis, TN
Vice President of Affiliate Relations
Deborah H. Karpatkin
Law Office of Deborah H. Karpatkin, New York, NY
Immediate Past President
Carla D. Brown
Charlson Bredehoft Cohen Brown & Nadelhaft, P.C., Reston, VA
Secretary
Summer H. Murshid
Hawks Quindel, SC, Milwaukee WI
Treasurer
Christopher Houk
Houk Law Firm, PLLC, Tempe, AZ
Board Members:
Bernard Alexander, Alexander Morrison + Fehr, LLP, CA
Maria G. Diaz, Allred, Maroko & Goldberg, CA
Christine T. Elzer, Elzer Law Firm, LLC, PA
Amanda A. Farahany, Barrett & Farahany, GA
Jamie S. Franklin, Chicago-Kent College of Law, IL
Maureen T. Holland, Holland & Associates, PC, TN
Toni J. Jaramilla, Toni Jaramilla, A Professional Law Corporation, CA
Shelby Leighton, Public Justice, DC
Heather Newsom Leonard, Heather Leonard, PC, AL
Nina Therese Pirrotti, Garrison Law, CT
Scott M. Pollins, Pollins Law, PA
Donna Williams Rucker, Tully Rinckey, PLLC, DC
Robert W. Schmidt, Robert W. Schmidt Law Firm, TX
Adria Lynn Silva, Sass Law Firm, FL
Jeffrey Neil Young, Solidarity Law, ME
“NELA welcomes the incoming board officers and members and looks forward to building on NELA’s legacy of empowering workers’ rights advocates,” said NELA Interim Executive Director Karen Maoki. “Our sincere gratitude to Carla Brown for her service as president, and special congratulations to Nieves Bolaños on her new appointment. NELA is honored to reap the benefits of their incredible leadership.”
