Blando, Mark J.

Steven J. Blanco was born and raised in El Paso, Texas. He attended El Paso public schools and graduated from Eastwood High School in 1987.  Mr. Blanco attended the University of Texas at El Paso where he received a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration. Following his graduation from UTEP, Mr. Blanco attended law school at Baylor University where he graduated cum laude in 1996. At Baylor, he was a member of the Baylor Order of Barristers and served as Notes and Comments Editor and Assistant Executive Editor of the Baylor Law Review.

Mr. Blanco is licensed to practice law in both Texas and New Mexico. He was admitted to the State Bar of Texas in 1996 and the State Bar of New Mexico in 1997.

Mr. Blanco is a shareholder and Chair of the Labor and Employment Practice Group at the Firm. He is Board Certified in Labor & Employment Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. His practice is focused on representing employers and local government entities in labor and employment law matters, including defense of wrongful discharge and discrimination claims, managing employee relations, representing employers before state and federal agencies and related employment law matters.   Mr. Blanco is a member of the State Bar of Texas Labor and Employment Law Section, the El Paso and American Bar Associations and the El Paso Society for Human Resource Management. Mr. Blanco currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Upper Rio Grande Workforce Development Board and is a former member of the Board of Directors of the American Lung Association of Texas. He is the past president for the American Lung Association of Texas Western Region Advisory Board, and past chairman of the Legislative Committee for the El Paso Society for Human Resource Management.

Mr. Blanco is a frequent author and speaker on labor and employment law topics for both regional and national human resource management training companies. He has authored articles for the State Bar of Texas Advanced Employment Law Course and the Texas Labor Letter. Mr. Blanco has served as a faculty member for the Human Resources Management: PHR/SPHR Review Course presented by the University of Texas at El Paso Division of Professional and Continuing Education.

In 2007 and 2008, Mr. Blanco was named a Texas "Rising Star" by the publishers of Texas Monthly and Law & Politics magazines. "Rising Stars" are considered among the best in their profession. Those receiving the honor represent the top 2.5% of up and coming Texas lawyers who are 40 years of age and younger or have practiced law less than 10 years.  The Texas "Rising Stars" were selected from the results of an extensive nomination and polling process conducted by Law & Politics and published in the Texas Monthly and the Rising Stars edition of Texas Super Lawyers magazine.  Since 2009 and through 2012, he has been selected for inclusion in the Texas Super Lawyers list published in Texas Monthly Magazine.

He is a member of the Texas Council of School Attorneys, the National School Boards Association Council of School Attorneys and is a Graduate of Leadership El Paso, Silver Anniversary Class of 2003. 

Mr. Blanco practices in the Firm’s Labor & Employment, Litigation and Local Government & School Law Practice Groups.