Ms. Pennington is the Managing Partner of the firm’s Houston office. She previously served on the firm’s Policy Committee and for six years served as the Coordinator of the Houston Labor and Employment practice.
Ms. Pennington recently achieved a favorable result in an $8 million wage and hour class action. She has also tried numerous cases in state and federal courts and has handled appeals to state appellate courts, the Fifth Circuit and the U.S. Supreme Court. The focus of her practice has been representing management in employment cases involving trade secrets, noncompetes, wrongful termination, sexual harassment, employee benefits and discrimination (age, race, sex and disability). She also has significant experience in OSHA matters, wage and hour laws, collective bargaining and matters before the NLRB.
Ms. Pennington’s cases included a multimillion-dollar jury trial for a large computer corporation, involving allegations of race and sex discrimination. In two other cases, she won judgments in an age discrimination case and a disabilities discrimination case, with an award of lawyers’ fees and sanctions against the plaintiffs. Ms. Pennington also successfully handled the appeal of a class action involving claims of more than $1 billion against a major heavy equipment manufacturer.
Ms. Pennington has been named to Best Lawyers in America since 2007. She has been recognized as a “Texas Super Lawyer,” as one of the “Top 50 Female Lawyers in Texas,” as well as one of the “Top 100 Lawyers in Houston” by Law & Politics and Texas Monthly magazine. She has also been named one of the “Best Lawyers in Houston” by H Texas magazine.
Ms. Pennington is a frequent speaker and writer on a number of litigation and employment topics.
Ms. Pennington is a founder of the University of Texas Center for Women in Law and is a member of the Texas and Houston Bar Foundations, where she previously served on the Board of Directors and as Vice-Chair of the Houston Bar Foundation. She has received the HBA President’s Award for outstanding service as Chair of the Adopt-a-School Committee. She also has served as Chair of the HBA’s Membership Committee and served on the Board of Directors for the HBA’s Lawyer Referral Service. Ms. Pennington is a past member of the Corporate Counsel Board for the Alley Theatre and the Leukemia Society’s Board of Directors.
4/2/2012 - Pennington Honored as Inaugural Recipient of AWA’s Premier Woman in the Law Award
12/31/2011 - 2011 Super Lawyers Announced
11/1/2011 - “Best Lawyers in America” Recognizes 111 Baker Hostetler Attorneys