One Federal Place, Suite 900
1819 Fifth Avenue North
Birmingham, Alabama 35203T: 205.226.5464
Practice Areas
Practice Emphasis
- Employee Benefits/ERISA
- Executive Compensation
Bar & Court Admissions
- Alabama, 1989
- District of Columbia Bar, 1991
Education
Cumberland School of Law of Samford University, Birmingham, AL
- J.D., summa cum laude, 1989
- Editor - Cumberland Law Review; Curia Honoris; Cordell Hull Fellow
University of North Alabama, Florence, AL
- B.S.W., Summa Cum Laude, 1986
- Keller Key for Highest Academic Average in Graduating Class; Phi Alpha Delta Honorary
Blog
News
- Twenty-Eight Constangy, Brooks & Smith Attorneys Honored as Best Lawyers for 2012
- Dana L. Thrasher Selected for Inclusion in Alabama Super Lawyers
- Twenty-Three Constangy, Brooks & Smith Attorneys Honored as Best Lawyers for 2011
- Three Constangy Attorneys Selected for Inclusion in Alabama Super Lawyers
- Twenty Constangy, Brooks & Smith Attorneys Honored as Best Lawyers for 2010
- Constangy Attorneys Selected for Inclusion in Alabama Super Lawyers Magazine!
“Clients value a lawyer's ability to understand not just the question presented but the true issues of significance and implications of all available options. To be an effective advisor and to successfully and efficiently assist clients, I strive to fully understand all the facts involved and to present all possibilities to the client to help the client choose the most effective strategy. As Thomas J. Watson, former president of IBM, stated, ‘The ability to ask the right question is more than half the battle of finding the answer.’”
-- Dana Thrasher, Employee Benefits Lawyer
Dana Thrasher specializes in ERISA, regularly advising employers, trustees and service providers concerning qualified retirement plans, non-qualified plans, fringe benefits, welfare benefits and executive compensation issues. She has developed significant expertise in the ERISA/employee benefits practice area, representing a large and diverse client base. She regularly advises clients regarding planning and evaluating benefit programs, establishing and administering employee benefit plans, monitoring compliance with applicable laws, resolving compliance issues, corporate restructuring and severance issues, employee stock ownership and incentive programs, and plan issues in mergers and acquisitions.
Dana is actively involved in professional organizations and speaks at educational conferences on various employee benefit plan topics. She has successfully resolved issues for clients with the Internal Revenue Service, Department of Labor, and Pension and Benefit Guaranty Corporation.
Before joining Constangy, Dana was an attorney with the law firm of Maynard, Cooper & Gale, P.C.
- ERISA Strategist: Important 2010 Year-End Notices For Qualified Retirement Plan Sponsors
- ERISA Strategist: New Guidance on “Grandfathered Plans”
- ERISA Strategist: IRS Creates 401(k) Compliance Questionnaire
- ERISA Strategist: Regulations Clarify Adult Child Health Care Coverage Mandate
- ERISA Strategist: Retiree Reinsurance Program Regulations Issued
- ERISA Strategist: COBRA Subsidy Eligibility Period Extended to May 31, 2010
- ERISA Strategist: Department of Labor Issues Revised Model COBRA Notices
- ERISA Strategist: Expansion on Availability of Investment Advice
- ERISA Strategist: COBRA Subsidy Extended
- ERISA Strategist: Department of Labor Issues New Reporting Requirements for Multiemployer Plans
- ERISA Strategist: Department of Labor Issues Model CHIPRA Notices
- ERISA Strategist: 409A Relief For Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Plan Document Failures
- ERISA Strategist: Final ESPP Regulations Issued
- ERISA Strategist: The Pension Protection Act of 2006 - Major Changes For Employee Benefit Plans
- ERISA Strategist: Important Deadlines IRS-Assigned Cycles for EGTRRA Remedial Amendment Periods and IRS Determination Letter Submissions
Awards & Recognition
- Dana Thrasher has been recognized in the publication, Best Lawyers In America
- Selected as an Alabama “Super Lawyer”
Professional Activities/Associations
- Profit Sharing Council of Alabama
- Southern Employee Benefits Council
- Birmingham Bar Association
- Alabama State Bar Association
- District of Columbia Bar Association
Civic/Charitable Activities/Associations
- Glenwood, Inc. - Member of Board of Directors and Human Resources Committee for Mental Health Association
- Oak Mountain Youth Football and Cheerleading, Volunteer
Other Personal Background Information and Interests
- Dana is married to David Thrasher and they have three daughters and one son. She enjoys traveling, reading, and spending time with her family.
