Our Team
Laura L. Horton
Attorney at Law
Laura Horton is a seasoned advocate, dedicated to social justice. With nearly three decades of experience, she represents employees from all walks of life – from factory workers to highly compensated executives. Helping to right wrongs is her passion.
Ms. Horton is the current Chair of the Executive Board for the California Employment Lawyers Association (CELA). She began her two-year term on December 1, 2021.
Ms. Horton’s extensive experience ranges from her early years as a defense attorney, acquiring a national reputation for litigating sports and recreational liability. She litigated cases across the United States and internationally.
In April 2001, Ms. Horton opened her own firm, practicing exclusively in civil rights, labor and employment law and serious personal injury.
Ms. Horton is admitted to practice by the State Bar of California; United States Supreme Court; United States District Court, Central District; District of Hawaii; and the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. She is a member of the American Bar Association, the State Bar of California, Los Angeles County Bar Association, American Association of Justice, San Fernando Valley Bar Association, California Employment Lawyers Association, National Employment Lawyers Association, LEFTJAW, Consumer Attorneys Association of Los Angeles, Consumer Attorneys of California and she is an Alumni of Gerry Spence’s Trial Lawyers College.
Ms. Horton is also a member of the Executive Board for the California Employment Lawyers Association and Chair of CELA’s Technology Committee. Ms. Horton is also on the 38th Assembly District Advisory Committee on the Status of Women & Girls.
Ms. Horton is an instructor for the California Employment Lawyers Association’s Trial Lawyers College and received CELA’s Torch Award.
In July 2006 Ms. Horton participated in the prestigious Trial Lawyers College, created by Gerry Spence. The Trial Lawyers College is a three-week program held on Mr. Spence’s ranch in Wyoming. She was one of 50 lawyers chosen, and she successfully completed the college in July 2006.
Reported cases include Faust v. California Portland Cement Co., (Cal.App. 2 Dist. May 10, 2007) 150 Cal.App.4th 864, 58 Cal.Rptr.3d 729, 154 Lab.Cas. P 35,291, rehearing denied (May 30, 2007). The Faust case resulted in an expansion of employee rights under the California Family Rights Act. The Faust case established that a strict liability cause of action existed in California for an employer’s interference with an employee’s California Family Rights Act rights.
Ms. Horton earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Finance from Arizona State University in 1987 and her Juris Doctor degree from Pepperdine University School of Law in 1991.
Ms. Horton is a frequent presenter for numerous organizations. Laura L. Horton and Horton Law Firm, APC are AV® rated in Martindale-Hubbell. She has been named a “Super Lawyer” by Southern California Super Lawyers Magazine since 2010. Ms. Horton received training in mediation at Pepperdine’s Strauss Institute of Dispute Resolution and through the Los Angeles County Bar Association. Ms. Horton has trial experience in Superior State Courts and extensive litigation experience in many of the District Courts.
Ms. Horton has a passion for all animals, including all of her rescued crew. She also enjoys scuba diving, gardening, hiking and home interior design.
Flor C. Dery
Attorney at Law
Flor comes from an artistic immigrant family and is an illustrator herself. Flor brought her creative eye and analytical mind to the Horton Law Firm, APC in 2011, where she uses her background and skills to effectively represent employees in employee-side employment litigation.
Flor primarily handles employment discrimination, harassment, retaliation, whistleblower, breach of contract, CFRA violations, labor code, and wrongful termination actions. Flor assists employees with reviewing and negotiating favorable severance packages. Flor has appeared with clients before the Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board to assist employees in getting the unemployment benefits they deserve. Flor has extensive civil trial and litigation experience representing clients in several successful arbitrations, appeals, and high-profile cases.
Flor also has experience working on the “dark side” as a civil litigation defense attorney at a downtown Los Angeles insurance defense firm where she represented public entities in premises liability, product liability, and personal injury cases.
Flor was also a Judicial Extern for the Honorable Debre Katz Weintraub, Judge of the Los Angeles Superior Court. Working on all sides of the litigation process gives Flor a unique perspective to analyze and advise clients on how best to strategically move forward and avoid litigation land mines. While she is analytic, she is a sympathetic advocate for employees..
Flor is an active member in the legal community. Flor is a member of the California Employment Lawyers Association (CELA), LEFTJAW, Los Angeles County Bar Association, and San Fernando Valley Bar Association. Flor serves as the Chair of the CELA Barrister’s Committee (2019 – 2021) and is a member of the CELA Law Practice Management Committee. Flor recently spoke at the CELA Barristers Committee Kickoff Talk Show and ABA National Symposium on Technology in Labor & Employment Law. Flor received the CELA Technology Committee Service Award (2017), CELA Barristers Committee Service Award (2019) and was selected as one of Southern California’s Rising Stars by Super Lawyers Magazine. Each year Flor and other CELA members participate in Lobby Day to passionately advocate for new and improved employment laws that improve the working lives of everyday Americans.
Flor graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles in 2007 with a Bachelor of Arts in Business Economics and Minor in East Asian Languages. Flor earned her Juris Doctor degree from Loyola Law School Los Angeles in 2010. Flor is admitted to practice by the State Bar of California; United States District Court, Central District; and Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.
Flor is fluent in Japanese and understands Tagalog.
While not working, Flor enjoys soccer, comic books, science fiction/fantasy TV series and movies, video games, making jewelry, and drawing.
Mariah Prendergast
Paralegal
Mariah hopes to dispel the notion that people are either right-brained or left-brained. Combining her artistic inklings and with a passion for developing the analytical skills required in the legal field, Mariah has become proficient in supporting organizations like Horton Law Firm, APC and their diverse clientele.
Mariah is a recent graduate from the UCLA Extension Paralegal Training program, learning the ins and outs of civil procedure. Her work at Horton Law Firm helps support the attorneys in handling employment law cases, including claims of harassment and discrimination, retaliation, wrongful termination, and more.
Mariah grew up as a bit of an American nomad. With most of her family still on the East Coast, Mariah has lived in Colorado, Iowa, and various parts of Southern California, moving seven times before landing in Winnetka. She came to Los Angeles in the Spring of 2018 after her undergraduate education and joined the team at Horton Law firm in 2021 while training to become a Certified Paralegal.
Mariah has several years of administrative experience working with a variety of executives in different fields, beginning her senior year in high school in 2015. She has supported executive partners at a public relations firm, board directors and editors for non-profit news organizations, and film producers on studio projects. Now, she uses her repertoire of organizational and interpersonal skills to help the attorneys at Horton Law Firm bring justice to California employees.
Mariah is actively continuing her education in the legal field, hoping to attend law school by fall 2023. Mariah graduated from the University of Iowa with a dual B.A. in Political Science/Journalism and Mass Communication in 2018. While at UIOWA, Mariah was a member of the University Honors Program, maintained a Senate seat in the UI Student Government, belonged to the professional fraternities Phi Beta Kappa and Kappa Tau Alpha, and worked as an Honors Writing Fellow helping fellow students complete and perfect writing assignments for their respective courses.
Mariah is proficient in Spanish.
Aside from legal work, Mariah is passionate about the entertainment industry and her writing. She also plans to continue travelling, adding to her list of 20 states and 10 countries she has visited so far.
Get Justice!
laura@horton-law.com
(818) 407-0700
9045 Corbin Ave, Ste 260
Northridge, CA 91324