Diana Surprenant joined Adams and Reese in 2011 as a Litigation Associate in the firm’s New Orleans office. Diana is a member of the firm’s Labor and Employment team, Appellate team, and Pharmaceutical and Medical Device team.
In her labor and employment practice, Diana represents employers in arbitration proceedings, in administrative proceedings before the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Louisiana Commission on Human Rights, and in the state and federal courts. Diana also assists clients in defending against retaliation claims, workers’ compensation claims, collective action claims under the Fair Labor Standards Act, and employment discrimination claims arising under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, the Family and Medical Leave Act, and the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act.
Diana’s appellate work includes active post-trial motion practice and the drafting of appellate briefs in the area of toxic tort litigation. Diana also is involved in the firm’s health care practice and represents health care providers in medical review panel hearings and in the state and federal courts.
Diana clerked for The Honorable Judge Jay C. Zainey in the United States District Court, Eastern District of Louisiana, where she researched and drafted opinions, prepared jury interrogatories, completed verdict forms and voir dire questions. She also corresponded with attorneys and attended status and pre-trial conferences.
Diana’s other accomplishments include:
Serving as Associate Editor of the Catholic University Law Review.
Authoring the publication: The Antithetical Definition of Personal Seizure: Filling the Supreme Court Gap in Analyzing Section 1983 Excessive-Force Claims Arising After Arrest and Before Pretrial Detention, 59 CATH. U. L. REV. 493 (2010).
Ranking fifth out of a class of 210 law students at The Catholic University of America, Columbus School of Law, and qualifying for the Dean’s List every semester as an undergraduate at Colby College.
Co-authoring the publication: The Emerging Battlefield: Should the Use of a Nonmonotonic, Non-Threshold Dose-Response Curve for Alleged Endocrine-Disrupting Chemicals Survive a Daubert/Frye Challenge?, 80 Def. Couns. J. 45 (2013).
Diana received her J.D., magna cum laude, from The Catholic University of America, Columbus School of Law, in 2010, and earned her B.A., magna cum laude, in Government, from Colby College, in Waterville, Maine, in 2007. She also participated in a foreign country study program, “Colby in Salamanca,” in Salamanca, Spain.
In the community, Diana is an active member of the Young Friends of St. Andrew’s Village and also SOLACE (Support for Lawyers/Legal Personnel - All Concern Encouraged). Diana also provides notary services and legal consultation through the HELP (Homeless Experience Legal Protection) program.
Among the people Diana admires is The Honorable Jay C. Zainey because he embraces what it means to be a lawyer by using his legal background and knowledge to improve the lives of those in the surrounding community and by demonstrating what a positive difference the power of an attorney can make.
In her spare time, Diana enjoys reading, playing sports, skiing, and spending time with her family and friends. Click for headshot