Former Director of MIOSHA Appeals Joins Miller Canfield
Miller, Canfield, Paddock and Stone, P.L.C. announced today that Diane K. Phelps has joined the firm’s Environmental and Regulatory Practice Group as an attorney in its Lansing office, focusing on occupational health and safety.
Phelps worked for the Michigan Occupational Safety & Health Administration (MIOSHA) for 28 years and held various positions within the organization, including most recently, Division Director/Chief of Appeals Division, a position she held for nine years until her retirement in March 2005. At MIOSHA, she organized and directed the activities of the Appeals Division to ensure that contested cases were properly litigated within the administrative law process.
Her experience includes training MIOSHA compliance officers, consulting with department officials on issuance of complex citations involving large monetary penalties or possible criminal prosecution. She also served as a technical expert and liaison to the state attorney general’s criminal division for MIOSHA-related felony cases arising from worker fatality citations.
At Miller Canfield, she will assist clients in all aspects of workplace health and safety matters, including compliance counseling and litigation.
“Her experience at MIOSHA and knowledge of its legal proceedings and industry standards make her a great complement to our team of regulatory lawyers,” said Thomas C. Phillips, leader of the firm’s Environmental and Regulatory Practice Group.
Phelps is a member of the State Bar of Michigan. She received her J.D. in 1993 from the Thomas M. Cooley Law School, and her B.A. from Northwood Institute.
The 350-attorney law firm of Miller, Canfield, Paddock and Stone, P.L.C. was established in Detroit in 1852 and has offices in Ann Arbor, Detroit, Grand Rapids, Howell, Kalamazoo, Lansing, Monroe, Saginaw, and Troy, Michigan. Other offices are located in New York City, Pensacola, Florida, Washington, D.C., Windsor, Ontario, and in Gdynia, Wroclaw, and Warsaw, Poland.