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Ellen Moran Dwyer

Partner | She/Her/Hers

Overview

Corporate boards and client leaders trust Ellen to advise them in their most sensitive employment matters that generate significant risk for their organizations. Whether leading a high-profile sexual harassment investigation, litigating racial or gender equity issues, responding to activist shareholder demands, or advising on the myriad issues that impact her clients’ most productive talent, Ellen serves as a strategist and collaborative partner to her clients.

Ellen is a trusted advisor to clients across a range of industries, including technology, professional services, higher education, and professional services. Clients count on her judgment - based on her more than 30 years of experience counseling and litigating employment matters - in handling and resolving their most sensitive employment matters.  She appreciates the importance of listening, gaining an intimate understanding of her clients’ businesses, and developing holistic and creative solutions that align with their business objectives.  

Ellen’s substantive work extends to counseling clients across the full array of employment statutes and common law, including the Americans With Disabilities Act, the Family Medical Leave Act, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, among others. She litigates actions filed under federal and state anti-discrimination, retaliation, trade secret and related employment laws, and has extensive experience investigating Board-level issues, including sexual harassment, race and gender equity issues, code of conduct and conflict of interest issues.  

Ellen has been a champion of diversity, equity and inclusion efforts at the firm and within the broader legal industry as chair of the Leadership Council on Legal Diversity. 

Ellen has served in several senior leadership positions with Crowell, including as chair of the firm’s Executive Committee and a member of its Management Board.

Career & Education

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    • St. Lawrence University, B.A., summa cum laude, 1982
    • Cornell Law School, J.D., cum laude, 1985
    • St. Lawrence University, B.A., summa cum laude, 1982
    • Cornell Law School, J.D., cum laude, 1985
    • District of Columbia
    • Massachusetts (Inactive)
    • District of Columbia
    • Massachusetts (Inactive)

Ellen's Insights

Client Alert | 12 min read | 03.04.24

Implications for Private Employers of the Supreme Court’s Harvard Decision Banning Race-Based Affirmative Action in College Admissions

On June 29, 2023, the Supreme Court held that it is unconstitutional (under the Constitution’s Equal Protection Clause, as to public institutions) and a violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (as applicable to private institutions accepting federal financial assistance) for colleges and universities to consider race as a factor in the admissions process. See Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President & Fellows of Harvard Coll., No. 20-1199, 2023 WL 4239254 (U.S. June 29, 2023) (“Harvard”), a summary of which can be found here. This decision upended decades of precedent and has caused employers in the private sector to ask how the decision will impact diversity, equity, and inclusion (“DE&I”) initiatives and employment decisions. This article addresses the impact of Harvard, eight months later....

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Ellen's Insights

Client Alert | 12 min read | 03.04.24

Implications for Private Employers of the Supreme Court’s Harvard Decision Banning Race-Based Affirmative Action in College Admissions

On June 29, 2023, the Supreme Court held that it is unconstitutional (under the Constitution’s Equal Protection Clause, as to public institutions) and a violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (as applicable to private institutions accepting federal financial assistance) for colleges and universities to consider race as a factor in the admissions process. See Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President & Fellows of Harvard Coll., No. 20-1199, 2023 WL 4239254 (U.S. June 29, 2023) (“Harvard”), a summary of which can be found here. This decision upended decades of precedent and has caused employers in the private sector to ask how the decision will impact diversity, equity, and inclusion (“DE&I”) initiatives and employment decisions. This article addresses the impact of Harvard, eight months later....