M. Guadalupe (“Lupe”) Valencia is a trusted legal advisor with over 25 years of in-house employment law experience. Lupe handles sensitive internal investigations and advises clients on complex employment law challenges, including reductions in force, leaves and accommodations, discipline and termination, and developing legally compliant employment policies in light of business imperatives. She has shepherded large-scale employers through cutting-edge, multistate employment law issues that run the employee life cycle gamut from recruitment and hiring practices through end of employment challenges.

In her role as in-house counsel, Lupe directed and/or oversaw hundreds of internal investigations arising from a variety of employment-related claims, including harassment, discrimination, whistleblower retaliation, code of conduct violations, and alleged fraudulent business practices. Lupe also assisted clients in devising and implementing compliant leave and disability programs, robust payroll applications, and digestible wage and hour policies. Lupe managed single-plaintiff litigation as well as collective and class action litigation. She is respected for her deep understanding of business needs and for balancing them into strategies for business-savvy dispute resolution and complex compliance solutions.

Prior to her in-house counsel career, Lupe was an attorney with Bronson, Bronson & McKinnon, where she handled employment-related defense litigation on behalf of corporate employers. From there she transitioned to in-house advising at Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., where she was part of the employment legal team for 22 years. Lupe then served four years as Associate General Counsel with the employment legal team at Snap Inc., the parent company of Snapchat, before joining Sanchez & Amador.

Lupe is a sought after speaker due to her practical and engaging approach, and has been featured by the L.A. County Bar Association, California Bankers Association, National Employment Law Council, Defense Research Institute and the California Minority Counsel Program. She served on the Board of Trustees of the Santa Marta Hospital Foundation and is currently on the Board of Trustees of Catholic Charities of Los Angeles, Inc.

Lupe earned her JD from UC San Francisco College of Law (former Hastings College of Law), where she worked as a summer extern for the California Supreme Court. She is fluent in Spanish and an avid fan of the Los Angeles Lakers and the Los Angeles Kings.