Ed Thoits

ethoits@hmglaw.com
P: (805) 962-0524 x5
F: (805) 962-0534

Retired 2021

Retired 2021

Ed Thoits began his legal career as an associate at the Santa Barbara firm of Schramm & Raddue.  He practiced there with Joe Howell, Brian Gough, and Ed Moore, among others, and became a partner in 1990.  In 1996, Ed moved his growing employment law practice to Mullen & Henzell.  Ed was a partner at Mullen & Henzell for 13 years, and served as the senior member of the firm’s Employment Law Group and Chair of the firm’s Litigation Department for several years.  In 2000, Ed rejoined his former partners at Howell Moore & Gough.

Ed is a fourth generation Californian, born and raised in the Palo Alto area.  He attended Stanford University, where he received his BA, with distinction. He earned his law degree at UCLA, where he was awarded the Order of the Coif. Ed enjoyed an AV rating from Martindale-Hubble, the highest rating given practicing attorneys in terms of both professional competence and ethics.  Ed retired in 2021.

Ed and his wife, Sandy, have two daughters, Shannon (who received both her BS degree and her Master’s in Environmental Management degree from Duke University and works as a sustainability analyst) and Kelly (who works in equestrian management and instruction).  Sandy, a former litigation attorney, is an active member of St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church and serves as Stated Clerk for the Presbytery of Santa Barbara.  Ed’s outside interests include sailing and annual backpack trips in the Sierra (highlights include hiking the 220-mile John Muir Trail from Yosemite to Mt. Whitney with his daughters, and a 300-mile solo trek along the PCT from Yosemite, past Lake Tahoe and on to the Sierra Buttes).

Education

Stanford University (B.A. 1980), with distinction
University of California at Los Angeles (J.D. 1984), Order of the Coif

Memberships - Legal

State Bar of California (Admitted 1984)
Employment Law Section State Bar of California
Santa Barbara County Bar Association
Admitted to practice before the United States District Court

Community Activities / Positions

South Coast Business & Technology Awards Steering Committee 2005-2012
University of California at Santa Barbara Extension
– Instructor on Employment Law 1999-2013