CHRISTOPHER M.A. LUJAN operates his own solo legal practice, Empower P.C., where he specializes in representing plaintiffs in employment law cases. In addition, Mr. Lujan provides legal counsel to small businesses to assist them in navigating complex federal, state, and local employment laws. He served as the deputy director of Safety for the City and County of Denver from 2014 to 2017. Mr. Lujan was named as Denver’s first deputy director of the Office of Human Resources (OHR) in the 60-year history of the office where he served from 2010 through March, 2013. During his service in OHR, he developed and assisted in the implementation of an office wide reorganization which resulted in the improvement and delivery of human resources support to city agencies. Ever mindful of government’s financial responsibility to its' citizens, Mr. Lujan worked with his colleagues to return over $2.4 million to the city’s general fund without imposing layoffs or service disruptions to OHR’s clients. He also served in the Denver City Attorney’s Office from 2000 to 2010. In his decade of service to that office, Mr. Lujan served as an assistant director in the Litigation Section where he supervised the employment law unit. Before serving as a civil litigator, he worked as a prosecutor with the Denver City Attorney’s Office and the Weld County District Attorney’s Office, where his duties focused on the successful prosecution of drunken driving offenses and domestic violence crimes. As a civil litigator, Mr. Lujan successfully represented Denver city agencies and departments in career service appeals, administrative law hearings, EEOC complaints, personal injury claims filed in state court, and employment law cases filed in state and federal court. He earned his B.A. degree from the University of Northern Colorado and his J.D. degree from the Northeastern University School of Law.

MICHAEL C. SANTO is a partner in Bechtel Santo & Severn, where he and Betty Bechtel started the law firm in 2005. During his career, Mr. Santo focused his practice on defending companies in employment litigation, including race, sex, age, national origin, religious, and disability discrimination lawsuits; and wrongful discharge; as well as wage and hour matters. In addition, he regularly represents employers in prosecuting and defending claims of trade secret misappropriation, unfair competition, and employee raiding. Counseling companies on day-to-day employment issues also is an important part of Mr. Santo's practice. This includes counseling employers on hiring, discipline, and termination decisions; on leave and disability issues; and on preparing and revising employee handbooks. By helping employers develop sound personnel policies, Mr. Santo has assisted many Colorado companies, large and small, in minimizing the risk of employment-related litigation. In 2014, he was lead attorney in ICAO v. Softrock, which was the Supreme Court case that shaped how a company can establish whether a worker is an independent contractor in Colorado. Mr. Santo also is a frequent lecturer and writer on employment law issues.

EMILY TICHENOR is an attorney at Bechtel Santo & Severn. She earned her B.A. degree, summa cum laude, at Baylor University, where she majored in language and linguistics and was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa. Ms. Tichenor then earned her J.D. degree, magna cum laude, at Washington and Lee University. She was inducted into the Order of the Coif and received the National Association of Women Lawyers Award given to an outstanding woman law student. After graduating from law school, Ms. Tichenor moved home to Florida and clerked for the Honorable James A. Edwards at the Fifth District Court of Appeal in Daytona Beach, Florida before starting at Bechtel & Santo, LLP. She is licensed to practice law in Colorado, Florida, and North Dakota.