The good lawyer is not the man who has an eye to every side and angle of contingency, and qualifies all his qualifications, but who throws himself on your part so heartily, that he can get you out of a scrape.
      – Ralph Waldo Emerson

Appleton, Blady & Magnanimo, LLP’s attorneys are:

Heather Appleton ()
Ms. Appleton is a 1992 graduate of Loyola Law School. She earned Dean’s List Honors for the academic year 1991-1992. Since 1992, Ms. Appleton has focused her practice on labor and employment law, employment litigation and business litigation. She has practiced at the firms of Goldstein & Kennedy; Appleton, Pasternak & Pasternak; Peter M. Appleton, A Law Corporation; and Landegger & Baron. Ms. Appleton also worked for the Mediation Office of Linda E. Meyer, assisting in all stages of the mediation process. She has successfully litigated numerous cases, obtaining favorable results for her clients. Ms. Appleton is a member of the California State Bar and is licensed to practice before the courts of California; the U.S. District Court for the Central, Northern, Eastern and Southern Districts of California; and the U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Judicial Circuit.

Ms. Appleton is also a member of the Beverly Hills, Century City and Los Angeles County Bar Associations and the Labor and Employment Law Section of the State Bar of California. Ms. Appleton attended college at the University of California at Davis, where she obtained her degree in Linguistics, with minor degrees in English and Japanese.

I. Benjamin Blady ()
Mr. Blady is a 1992 graduate of Loyola Law School. He earned Dean’s List Honors in 1992. Mr. Blady began his legal career clerking as an attorney for the Los Angeles Superior Court, including Judge Daniel Curry and Judge Fredrick Lower, Jr. Since 1994, Mr. Blady has focused his practice on employment litigation and business litigation. Mr. Blady has represented clients in individual employee, collective action, and representative and class action litigation. He has practiced at the national law firm of Epstein Becker & Green, P.C., as well as Goldstein, Kennedy & Petito and Gartner & Young. Mr. Blady has successfully litigated numerous cases to judgment on behalf of his clients. He has also given seminars on civil litigation, wage and hour law, and wrongful termination. Mr. Blady is also a member of the Los Angeles Superior Court's Mediation and Early Neutral Evaluation panels. Mr. Blady is a member of the California State Bar and is licensed to practice before the courts of California; the U.S. District Court for the Central, Eastern, Northern, Southern Districts of California; and the U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Judicial Circuit.

Mr. Blady is also a member of the Los Angeles County Bar Association and the Labor and Employment Law and Business Law sections of the State Bar of California. Mr. Blady attended college at the University of California at Los Angeles, where he obtained his degree in Economics/Business.

Frank A. Magnanimo ()
Mr. Magnanimo is a 1994 graduate of the University of Arizona College of Law. Mr. Magnanimo was a member of the Arizona Journal of International and Comparative Law, where he served as a Note and Comment Editor in 1993. Since 1996, Mr. Magnanimo has focused his practice on labor and employment law, employment litigation and business litigation. Mr. Magnanimo has represented clients in individual, representative and class action litigation. Mr. Magnanimo has practiced at the firms of Goldstein, Kennedy & Petito, Landegger & Baron and Bragg Serota & Kuluva. He has successfully litigated numerous employment cases to judgment on behalf of his clients, including both jury and bench trials. Mr. Magnanimo is a member of the California State Bar and is licensed to practice before the courts of California; the U.S. District Court for the Central, Eastern, Northern, Southern Districts of California; and the U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Judicial Circuit. Mr. Magnanimo served on the Editorial Advisory Board for Litigating Sexual Harassment and Sex Discrimination Cases: A Task Outline, Dolores Y. Leal (1996).

Mr. Magnanimo is a member of the Labor and Employment Section of the State Bar of California, the Los Angeles County Bar Association and the Italian-American Lawyers Association. Mr. Magnanimo attended college at the University of Southern California, where he double majored and obtained his degree in Political Science and Classics.

Lauren A. Dean ()
Ms. Dean is a 1994 graduate of the University of Arizona College of Law. Since 1995, Ms. Dean has focused her practice on employment law and litigation. Her practice has included litigation in the areas of wrongful termination, discrimination, harassment, retaliation and related employment matters in state and federal courts and before administrative agencies. Prior to joining Appleton, Blady & Magnanimo, LLP, Ms. Dean was with the national law firm, Epstein Becker & Green, P.C.; the national law firm, Jackson Lewis, and, the labor and employment boutique, Goldstein, Kennedy & Petito. Ms. Dean has successfully litigated numerous employment cases, obtaining favorable results for her clients. Ms. Dean has successfully represented clients before the Department of Fair Employment and Housing and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. She has also obtained summary judgment in favor of various clients on claims of disability discrimination, sex discrimination and retaliation.

Ms. Dean is a member of the Labor and Employment Section of the State Bar of California and the Los Angeles County Bar Association. Ms. Dean is licensed to practice before the courts of California; the U.S. District Court for the Central, Eastern, Northern and Southern Districts of California; and the U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Judicial Circuit. Ms. Dean graduated cum laude from the University of California, Los Angeles, where she received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science.

Rebecca L. Gombos ()
Ms. Gombos is a 1995 graduate of California Western School of Law. Since 1995, Ms. Gombos has focused her practice on labor and employment law and litigation. Her practice has included litigation in the areas of wrongful termination, discrimination, harassment, retaliation and related employment matters in state and federal courts and before administrative agencies. Prior to joining Appleton, Blady & Magnanimo, LLP, Ms. Gombos practiced at the employment law firms of Goldstein, Kennedy & Petito and Landegger & Baron. Ms. Gombos has successfully litigated numerous employment cases,obtaining favorable results for her clients. Ms. Gombos is a member of the California and Washington State Bars and is licensed to practice before the courts of California; and the U.S. District Court for the Central, Eastern, Northern, and Southern Districts of California.

Ms. Gombos is a member of the Labor and Employment Section of the State Bar of California and the Los Angeles County Bar Association. Ms. Gombos graduated from Loyola Marymount University, where she received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Humanities with an emphasis in English Literature.

Cherryl F. Cercado ()
Ms. Cercado is a 2006 graduate of California Western School of Law in San Diego. Ms. Cercado represents clients in employment litigation and has experience in cases for wrongful termination, harassment, retaliation, wage and hour, overtime and class action.

Ms. Cercado’s prior experience includes clerking for the Employee Rights’ Center in San Diego, representing low and middle income employees with employment related problems such as unemployment insurance appeals, wage and hour claims and unfair labor practices. Ms. Cercado also clerked for the Torrance City Attorney’s Office and obtained trial experience on various types of matters.

Ms. Cercado is a member of the Labor and Employment Section of the State Bar of California and the Los Angeles County Bar Association. She graduated from the University of La Verne, in La Verne, California, where she received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications, an emphasis in journalism and a minor in political science.