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Holly 0, Whatley <br />Colantuono, Highsmith & Whatley, PC <br />(213) 542 -5704 <br />hwhatley @chwlaw.us <br />Holly Whatley is a Shareholder of the firm and serves as the Assistant City Attorney of <br />Sierra Madre and South Pasadena. She was previously City Attorney of La Habra <br />Heights and Assistant City Attorney of Calabasas. She heads the firm's Litigation <br />Department, focusing on public law disputes including post - redevelopment and other <br />municipal finance issues, matters involving Local Agency Formation Commissions <br />(LAFCOs), land use, CEQA, election, public works and employment law disputes. <br />'Holly has a particular expertise in litigating complex cases in a broad range of areas, <br />including class actions against public agencies. She has represented cities in municipal <br />finance litigation, including writ actions involving multi- million dollar claims. Recent <br />engagements include a constitutional challenge to A.B. 1484, the post - redevelopment <br />legislation now pending in the Third District Court on Appeal on behalf of four cities <br />and their successor agencies, a $10 million per year dispute between Los Angeles <br />County and 47 of its cities regarding property tax administration fees, a multi- million <br />dollar dispute between a telecommunications carrier and over 30 cities regarding <br />telecommunications user taxes, and a $24 million per year dispute between Chevron <br />and the City of Richmond regarding business license taxes, She has ample experience in <br />utility and other rate -making disputes including current matters involving water rates, <br />groundwater augmentation charges, a dispute with Southern California Gas Co. <br />regarding the cost to relocate mains in conjunction with a freeway interchange project, <br />and other municipal revenue disputes. She also has significant experience in land use <br />and election disputes. Holly has also represented state agencies in defending sexual <br />harassment and retaliation claims and defending their employees from civil rights <br />claims. She also has significant expertise in litigation regarding L AFCO law, including <br />suits challenging annexation decisions. <br />Holly leads our Elections Law practice and has litigated many elections disputes, <br />including initiative proposals, ballot argument disputes and the like, including recent <br />writ matters involving a voter- approved measure to increase business license taxes on <br />Richmond manufacturers and an initiative cap on a special property tax to fund a new <br />hospital for the Plumas Hospital District. <br />Education: Holly graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree cum laude from the <br />University of Texas at Austin in 1988. She received her J.D from the University of <br />97572.8 <br />25H -8 <br />