Legal Team
Attorney, Dion DiNome
Attorney Dion DiNome came to LACCEA in 2017 after a decade with the County of Los Angeles Probation Department. As a son to a parent in the County workforce, the husband to a wife in the County workforce, and a previous employee himself, Mr. DiNome has a strong understanding of the County, including both policy and politics. Mr. DiNome deals extensively with workplace investigations, discipline, IPMs, and more. Mr. DiNome carries a strong interest in ensuring our members are treated fairly and with the respect they deserve.
Attorney, Donna Wells
Donna Wells has been an attorney with the Los Angeles County Chicano Employees Association (LACCEA) since 2010. The legal services she provides include representation in disciplinary actions and discrimination matters to hearings before the Civil Service Commission.
Prior to joining LACCEA, Wells was in private practice, handling labor, employment and civil rights law litigation, as well as representing and counseling municipalities and public employees on labor issues.
Previously, she was also General Counsel at Film L.A., Inc., and Director of Government Relations for the Motion Picture Association of America.
Wells is a graduate of UCLA School of Law and serves on the UCLA Law School Alumni Board. She is a member of the California Employment Lawyers Association and the Labor & Employment Law sections of the California and L.A. County Bar associations. She also serves on the County Bar President’s Advisory Committee for the Status of Women in the Legal Profession.
Attorney, Robert Meneses
Mr. Robert Meneses has 34 years of operational and administrative experience in the County of Los Angeles. He served as a Student Professional Worker and rose through the ranks to become Administrative Deputy where he oversaw a $100 million dollar budget with 345 employees and was responsible for budget, payroll, personnel, management services, and facility services, and assisted in overseeing information technology. He has worked in the Community and Senior Services Department, the Treasurer-Tax Collector, the Chief Executive Office, and the Alternate Public Defender’s Office.
After graduating from Loyola High School, he was accepted at Loyola Marymount University, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in 1984. He then received a Master of Business Administration degree in finance and marketing from California State University at Los Angeles in 1988. While working at the Alternate Public Defender’s Office, he pursued his law degree at Whittier College of Law, where he graduated in 1998. In 1999, he passed the California State Bar examination and was sworn in by Chief Judge Terry Hatter at the Central District Federal Court. He has been a licensed attorney for over 20 years.
Legal Services
Do you need help on the job? We are here for you!
Our team of attorneys focuses on providing County-specific representation for many of the issues encountered by today’s County employees. You do not want to find yourself in the “hot seat” without one of our attorneys available to represent you.
Our services include:
- Representation at Interactive Process Meetings (IPM) to discuss your work restrictions and need for reasonable accommodation.
- Representation at Internal Affairs Interview for Law Enforcement and Safety Sensitive positions.
- Representation at Administrative Interviews/Investigations conducted by your Department’s Human Resources or Performance Management Section
- Representation at Equity Interviews (aka CPOE or CEOP)
- Representation at Skelly meetings
- Appeals of Major Disciplinary Actions (6+ Day Suspensions, Reductions, and Discharges)
- Department of Human Resources Appeals of Suspensions of 5 days or less, Examination Non-Qualification, Application Rejection, and Discrimination-based adverse action
- Grievances for Suspensions of 5 days or less, Letters of Warning, and Letters of Reprimand
- Consultations to discuss workplace issues such as difficult co-workers, supervisors, and managers
You must be a dues-paying member for 90 days before you are eligible for representation, so don’t delay submitting your application!
Legal Representation Highlights
- An Intent to Discharge was reduced to a 30-Day Suspension at a Department of Health Services Skelly
- A 20-Day Suspension was reduced to 10 Days prior to a Civil Service Hearing
- 2 Grievances regarding 5-Day Suspensions were reduced from 5 Days to 3 Days with Backpay
- A 15-day Suspension was reduced to 3 Days at a Probation Skelly
- A 25-Day was Settled to a 15-Day prior to a Civil Service Hearing
- A member who was denied a promotional opportunity had their eligibility reinstated after a DHR Appeal
- A 30-Day Suspension was reduced to 7 Days at a DACC Skelly
- The Civil Service Commission sustained our Objections to the Hearing Officer’s Report which Affirmed a Discharge, instead voting to reduce the Discharge to a Reduction without Suspension