As the calendar turns to 2022, Manning & Kass, Ellrod, Ramirez, Trester LLP has its eyes on the future as it strengthens its Government Entity Defense team with the addition of five renowned industry veterans. With more than 20 years of experience representing city, county, state and federal clients, Manning & Kass’s Government Entity Defense team, led by Founding Partner Eugene P. Ramirez and Los Angeles Partner Mildred K. O’Linn, secures its leadership position through its expanded team’s deep expertise, track record and patriotic ties to America’s public entities. 

 

The new team members include: 

 

• Kayleigh Andersen: With a focus on government entities and law enforcement members in state and federal court, Andersen has extensive experience dealing with high-profile cases, including allegations of wrongful death, excessive force, dangerous condition of public property, medical malpractice and other public entity matters. 

 

• Michael Brave: A former Department of Justice (DOJ) official and renowned law enforcement attorney, Brave’s more than 25 years experience in complex civil and criminal law enforcement actions and litigations, includes serving as Chief of the Intelligence and Investigative Operations Unit of the Department of Justice’s Office of Enforcement Operations, Criminal Division. He has reviewed 600+ arrest-related deaths and served as a litigation consultant and expert witness in 250+ cases involving state and federal civil rights issues. 

 

• Anita K. Clarke: A former prosecutor turned litigator, Clarke has extensive experience in both public prosecution and public entity defense. Previously, she served as Deputy District Attorney for Multnomah County in Portland, OR, and was also lead prosecutor for the Burbank City Attorney’s Office. Clarke brings to the team a passion for defending public entities, backed by her civil law defense experience in cases alleging constitutional rights violations, wrongful death, employment discrimination, medical malpractice, premises liability and negligence.  

 

• Deann R. Rivard: Former Deputy District Attorney with the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office, Rivard brings 25+ years of law enforcement and public service to the team. Her distinguished career as a trial attorney with extensive experience prosecuting high-profile cases also includes serving as a member of the Justice System Integrity Division, and over eight years of service as a City of Los Angeles police officer.

 

• Carol Ann Rohr: Few individuals bring as much knowledge and experience in law enforcement and government entity defense as Rohr. Her 40 years includes 18 years in private sector law enforcement/entity defense, and 18 years as a Deputy City Attorney for the City of Santa Monica, where she also participated in training, including presenting a Civil Liability Training Course for the Police Department.  She did crowd management training for the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympics, and has served on multiple POST Crowd Management Guidelines Committees. Rohr has been a guest lecturer for police and sheriff's departments, and law enforcement organizations.  She is a member of ABOTA, since 1998, with the majority of her trials in federal court. 

 

Manning & Kass’s Government Entity Defense team is frequently called upon to handle a wide variety of specialized government entity liability matters — dangerous condition cases, educational law, internal affairs investigations, law enforcement officer liability, municipal liability, policy review and public entity defense and audits. The new team members, many who have served in the public sector, bring specialized knowledge of the public entity space and the procedural and substantive defenses afforded by governmental defendants. 

 

“Manning & Kass is thrilled to welcome these respected and renowned attorneys to our Government Entity Defense team. Each brings a strong government background with unique specialties – from complex criminal law enforcement actions to civil disorder – to immediately bolster our client services,” said Ramirez. “They deepen our commitment to expanding Manning & Kass’s capabilities and providing clients with unparalleled, industry-leading expertise in 2022 and beyond.” 

 

To learn more about Manning & Kass’s Government Entity Defense team or connect with our attorneys, visit https://www.manningllp.com/.