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Darren C. Kameya is senior counsel in the firm's Los Angeles office. For many years, Mr. Kameya has advised school district clients in both the northern and southern California regions.
The breadth of Mr. Kameya's legal experience extends to issues of board governance, public meetings laws, charter schools, facilities use agreements, student rights and discipline, tort liability, insurance coverage issues, public records and privacy rights. Mr. Kameya's background covers other public agencies as well, including cities and special districts. As a litigator, Mr. Kameya has represented clients in federal and state courts, including the representation of the City of Carson during trial and on appeal in a case involving public financing issues. City of Carson v. City of La Mirada (2004) 125 Cal.App.4th 532.
However, Mr. Kameya's day-to-day expertise lies in providing counsel to school districts on labor and employment issues. Mr. Kameya advises superintendents and their cabinet members regarding individual employee discipline and dismissals, leaves and benefits, compensation, and privacy rights. He has represented districts before hearing officers in classified discipline hearings, and before commissions on professional competence in teacher discipline hearings. Human resource administrators frequently seek Mr. Kameya's assistance when defending against a DFEH Complaint or an EEOC Charge of Discrimination, responding to a contract grievance, or compliance with the district's public complaint procedures. Mr. Kameya has negotiated superintendent and cabinet position multi-year contracts and buyouts on behalf of school boards.
Mr. Kameya is also well versed in public sector labor relations. He advises school administrators on handling contract grievances from the Level I response to the Level IV arbitration. Mr. Kameya is constantly called upon to advise districts regarding the EERA and alleged unfair labor practice charges, and has successfully defended against union charges before PERB administrative law judges and on appeal to PERB itself. Mr. Kameya sits at the negotiating table as the chief negotiator for some clients and provides advice to administrators during collective bargaining for other districts. Mr. Kameya has also served as lead attorney regarding management, certificated and classified employee layoffs.
Mr. Kameya frequently lectures at educational conferences and other gatherings, including California School Board Association (CSBA), Latino School Board Members Association, Association of California School Administrators (ACSA), School Employers Association of California (SEAC), Community College League of California (CCLC), Leadership Association for Asian Pacifics (LEAP), and at the firm's Labor & Employment Consortia in the Los Angeles and Bay Areas.
Mr. Kameya earned a bachelor's degree in Political Science from UCLA and a juris doctorate degree from Fordham Law School in New York City. Mr. Kameya earned a seat on Fordham's Mulligan Moot Court Board and, during a visiting year at the UC Davis School of Law, Mr. Kameya served as a Senior Articles Editor for the UC Davis Journal of International Law and Policy.
For many years, Mr. Kameya has served as a pro bono arbitrator for the Los Angeles Superior Court and volunteers for UCLA in various capacities, including Alumni Association Governing Board Subcommittees, the Government Relations Alumni Advocacy Committee, the Alumni Academy, and the Asian Pacific Alumni of UCLA. Mr. Kameya is a member of the District of Columbia Bar and the Los Angeles County Bar Association, and is also one of the select group of attorneys admitted to the bar of the Supreme Court of the United States. | 