ABOUT US
Experienced Excellence
Founded in 2023, Alifanz & Westlind provide the Pacific Northwest and beyond the highest level of labor and employment legal services.
The two of us met nearly 20 years ago while working at Portland's largest full-service firm, and sustained our friendship even after we both moved to other work adventures in 2011. On weekend hikes, we would regale each other with stories of the crazy stuff that happened at work. Feeling the need to share the craziness that is employment law, in 2017 we started the Hostile Work Environment Podcast, the first generation of which lasted for over 50 episodes. Dennis joined Bullard Law in 2017, eventually becoming its Managing Partner, and in 2020 convinced Marc to join the firm despite his longstanding commitment to never work at another law firm. When the shareholders of Bullard Law made the difficult decision to close the firm, this next step – starting a new firm – seemed an obvious extension of our long-standing personal and professional friendship.
We have both been lawyers and clients, and we know from experience that the best value proposition is with small firms. Our goal is to be lean and mean and focus on those areas of labor and employment law that really motivate us. Marc is continuing his practice of advising employers on employment law subjects, managing claims pre-litigation, conducting trainings for employers, and also conducting outside investigations. Dennis’s practice covers both labor and employment law advice, but with a particular focus on labor, including collective bargaining, labor strategy, union organizing, and much more! (And, it hopefully goes without saying, if you need assistance with any of these issues, please reach out to us at the contact information below!)
We offer frequent half day training seminars on employment and labor law. Unlike other firms that have junior associates give low-level overviews of basic subjects, our seminars have two experienced partners deliver master-class caliber training approved for SHRM, HRCI and CLE credit. Our email list is be our primary way of informing you about those opportunities. We also use this email list to blog or write occasional articles about the big ones when they happen.
We are so excited to continue serving our former Bullard clients while we develop new relationships with employers looking for an alternative to large, stodgy law firms. We look forward to working with all of you going forward!