Diane Waters

Partner

Diane.Waters@lewisbrisbois.com

Diane Waters is the Administrative Partner of the Dallas office of Lewis Brisbois, Co-Chair of the firm’s Employment Advice & Counseling Practice, and a member of the Labor & Employment Practice. Her practice focuses on providing general employment counseling and advice on a broad array of issues impacting the employer/employee relationship as well as representing employers before federal and state administrative agencies including the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, U.S. Department of Labor, Texas Workforce Commission Civil Rights Division, Colorado Civil Rights Division, and Colorado Department of Labor and Employment.

With over 20 years of experience, Ms. Waters serves as a trusted advisor to employers of all sizes, from small family businesses to national multi-state employers. By taking the time to understand the unique needs and organizational goals of each client, Ms. Waters is able to effectively partner with human resource professionals, management, and C-Suite leadership to develop effective solutions to protect against legal liability and costly litigation. Ms. Waters has extensive experience providing employers with day-to day or ongoing counseling regarding all aspects of the employee life cycle, including pre-employment screening, interviewing and hiring, onboarding, performance management, wage/hour compliance, leaves of absence management, disability accommodations, discrimination, harassment and retaliation claims, HIPAA, COBRA, and health care reform (ACA) compliance, reductions in force, discipline and termination counseling, and separation agreements. Ms. Waters also counsels employers on workplace privacy matters including workplace searches, surveillance of employee communications, use of location tracking and GPS-enabled devices, and compliance with state data protection laws which increasingly require employers to implement reasonable information security procedures to protect employee data.

Central to litigation avoidance is the development of sound policies and procedures that reflect current law and best practices. Ms. Waters’ practice also involves preparing or updating employee handbooks, non-compete, non-solicitation, and non-disclosure agreements, general employment policies and procedures, and the review of performance documentation. She also develops policies and procedures to address compliance with workplace privacy requirements including breach notification, secure data disposal, electronic monitoring of employee communications, BYOD policies, and social media guidelines.

In addition to her counseling practice, Ms. Waters has extensive experience providing presentations and customized training on a variety of topics including employment law updates, harassment prevention, workplace respect, performance management, compliance with complex leave and accommodation laws, wage/hour compliance, and workplace privacy.

Ms. Waters is licensed to practice in Texas and Colorado.

Primary Area(s) of Practice

  • Labor & Employment
  • Employment Advice & Counseling
  • COVID-19: Labor & Employment
  • COVID-19 Response Resource Center

Additional Experience

Admissions

Texas

Associations

Denver Bar Association

Education

Tulane Law School

Juris Doctor, cum laude, 1998

  • Moot Court Board - Interschool Appellate Chair
  • Coach - National Appellate Team
  • Phillip C. Jessup Appellate Moot Court Team
  • Environmental Law Journal - Note and Comment Editor

American University

  • Bachelor of Arts, Law and Society, 1994
  • Bachelor of Arts, International Studies, 1994