Associate Attorney
Paola Maldonado is an Associate Attorney at Flaherty & Hood, practicing municipal and labor and employment law with a primary focus on litigation. Specifically, she provides legal services in the areas of:
- Labor contract negotiations, grievances, strikes, and unionization efforts
- Personnel performance and conduct, fitness-for-duty, and employment data practices and open meeting matters
- Mediation, arbitration, public employment agency, administrative, civil service, veterans preference, unemployment, and court proceedings
- Employment policies and procedures
- Wage, hour, pay equity, Fair Labor Standards Act, and benefit analysis, systems, and compliance
- Workplace investigations, management trainings, and organizational reviews
- Advice on complying with labor and employment and data practices laws
Paola joined the firm in 2023 and her extensive and diverse background in civil litigation make her a fierce advocate for the firm’s clients and their interests. She is a current member of the Minnesota Bar Association, Minnesota Hispanic Bar Association, and Warren E. Burger Inn of Court.
Before joining the firm in 2023, Paola earned her B.A. in Political Science with a minor in Communications from the University of Northern Colorado. She obtained her J.D. at Mitchell Hamline School of Law, where she served as an officer in the Student Bar Association and an editor for the Journal of Public Policy and Practice. During her last year of law school, she participated in the Phillip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition, where she placed in the top 50 oralists in the United States. She also completed the Law School Public Service Program by volunteering for more than 50 hours of pro bono service.
Originally from Mexico, Paola now calls Saint Paul home and would not trade the snowy winters for anything else. Outside of her passion for law, Paola enjoys traveling, baseball, and spending time with her family and friends.