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Kathryn McMahon headshot
Kathryn M. McMahon
Partner, OSHA  Workplace Safety Practice Group 
kmcmahon@connmaciel.com
202.909.2733



5335 Wisconsin Avenue NW • Suite 660
Washington, DC 20015
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Representative Experience
  • Represented the major producer of beryllium in the United States in a negotiated rulemaking with OSHA.

  • Defended a steel industry client in a major multistate, nationally driven OSHA enforcement action.

  • Represented numerous clients in the metals production and hydraulic fracking industries in handling OSHA and EPA workplace fatality incident investigations.

  • Assisted the industrial laundry association in developing an interactive hazard assessment tool to identify and address risk in industrial laundry operations.

  • Represented a coalition of U.S. manufacturing interests, including chromium producers, in OSHA's hexavalent chromium administrative rulemaking process.

  • Represented a coalition of the leather, steel, convenience store, and soft drink industries in rulemaking proceedings on OSHA's ergonomics standard.

  • Assisted a chemical manufacturer in a process safety management applicability determination.

  • Defended a private manufacturing interest in a heat stress citation before a state occupational safety and health authority.

  • Represented a soft drink company in numerous administrative citations, including alleged general duty clause violations relating to ergonomics.

  • Defended the State of Nebraska in a lawsuit brought by regional utility companies over a licensing decision for a low-level radioactive waste disposal facility.

  • Represented a group of leather tannery potentially responsible parties (PRPs) in negotiating with other PRPs and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency over CERCLA responsibility and allocation issues for multiple Superfund Sites in New York.

  • Represented a traumatic brain injury plaintiff in a Rehabilitation Act claim against the U.S. Department of Defense.

Education

J.D., Cornell University Law School, 1992

  • Co founder, The Cornell Journal of Law & Public Policy

B.A., Syracuse University, 1988

Bar Admissions

District of Columbia

New York

McMahon Education
McMahon Admissions
McMahon Cases

Kathryn M. McMahon is a partner in Conn Maciel Carey's Washington, DC office. She focuses her practice in the areas of occupational safety and health (OSHA) law and environmental law.

 

In the OSHA area, Kate:

 

  • Helps clients manage incident and fatality inspections and a wide array of enforcement-related matters.

  • Represents industry stakeholders in all aspects of OSHA rulemaking, including proposed rules regarding silica, injury and illness recordkeeping, hexavalent chromium, and beryllium, among others.

  • Counsels manufacturers on a broad range of OSHA regulatory compliance issues, including GHS Hazard Communication, ergonomics, Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response (HAZWOPER), process safety management, lock-out/tag-out, machine guarding, personal protective equipment, hearing conservation, and injury and illness recordkeeping issues.

  • Assists clients in developing risk management and hazard assessment tools to identify and address workplace risks.

  • Defends her clients in state and federal administrative litigation related to alleged violations.

 

In addition to her OSHA practice, Kate is also an experienced environmental attorney, both in the regulatory and enforcement contexts. For more than two decades, she has provided compliance counseling under all major environmental statutes as well as representing clients in numerous Superfund contribution actions and PRP allocations, Department of Justice enforcement matters, and myriad other federal and state administrative actions.

 

Prior to joining Conn Maciel Carey, Kate was an OSHA and Environmental Partner in the Washington, DC offices of two large U.S.-based law firms. Before attending law school, Kate worked in the political arena, serving as a political assistant to Congressman Richard Gephardt, Senator Gary Hart, and Alabama Attorney General Charlie Graddick. She also served as Field Director of a political consulting firm.

 

Kate lives in the Washington, DC area with her three children.

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