Voice From the Chair

By Kia Myers Holsey
Chairwoman, Executive Committee of the California Lawyers Association, Workers’ Compensation Section

The mission statement of the California Lawyers Association (CLA) is to “Promote excellence, diversity and inclusion in the legal profession and fairness in the administration of justice and the rule of law.”   The members of the executive committee of the CLA Workers’ Compensation section take the CLA mission statement to heart in all that we do. 

I am proud of the hard work our committee members put in to organize our fabulous annual awards dinner which was held at the Loews Hollywood Hotel on the evening of September 27, 2025.   This premier event of the year spotlights excellence in the field of workers’ compensation law and practice by celebrating the outstanding career achievements of our honorees:  The Honorable Judge Adoralida “Dora” Padilla who received this year’s Lifetime Achievement Award, the Honorable Judge Paul Maynard DeWeese who was awarded the Judge of the Year honor, Maria Antonieta Grasso of Boxer Gerson who was recognized as our Applicant’s Attorney of the Year, John Kamin of Bradford Barthel who received the Defense Attorney of the Year award and Alicia Villanueva of Viadro Law who was conferred as the New Lawyer of the Year.   It was such a special evening for our honorees and all those in attendance.  We hope you will join us for our next year’s star-studded awards dinner.  Look out for future announcements. 

At a recent meeting, our executive committee elected new members representing a diverse cross-section of our profession.   Our newest executive committee members include the Honorable Judge Heidi Hengel of the Santa Rosa District Office of the WCAB, the Honorable Judge James P. Finete of the Anaheim District Office of the WCAB, James Cotter of Boxer Gerson, Oakland, Michael Misa of Misa, Stefan, Koller & Ward of Westminster, California, Zachary Kweller of the Law Offices of Zachary Kweller, Concord, California and Porscha Guasch of the Law offfices of Michael Sullivan in San Diego, CA will serve as the New Lawyer Section Liaison to the Executive Committee.

I am excited to welcome our new members to the committee and look forward to their participation in our activities.  Their terms begin at the long-range planning meeting taking place in October in Pismo Beach, California. 

Our Education Subcommittee continues to provide a robust schedule of CLE events throughout the state.  Most recently, we featured our Legal Specialization Boot Camp which provided a two-day intensive live Zoom conference covering topics likely to be tested on the legal specialization examination.   We also had another fantastic edition of our live Tech Talk CLE event in Glendale, California where dozens of guests had a chance to learn the latest in technological features being used at the WCAB.  Our presenters included the Honorable Presiding Judge Sharon Velzy, the Honorable Presiding Judge Sussanah Burge, the Honorable Judge Jamie Louie, the Honorable Judge Jeff Marrone, the Honorable Judge Troy Slaten, and the Honorable Judge Todd Kelly from the Van Nuys WCAB.   Our committee is planning another live event for the San Diego area, so please keep a look out for the announcements in the near future. 

In this issue of the Enews, we highlight special interest articles discussing hot topics and the latest developments in our state’s workers’ compensation system.  We also feature information on the activities of our various subcommittees.

I would be so thrilled to welcome you to one of our many live events throughout the coming year.  Please check out the CLA social media pages for updates on the latest events. 

This is my last Voice from the Chair article as Chairwoman.  It has been a great honor serving as Chairwoman of the CLA WC Section Executive Committee and working shoulder-to-shoulder with the dedicated and hard-working members and advisors of the committee.  I am pleased to announce that Viviana Santiago is our new incoming Chairwoman.