Coreen Sweeney is a shareholder and member of the firm's LitigationDepartment, handling both general litigation and workers' compensation matters. Coreen has practiced in the areas of workers' compensation and insurance defense litigation since 1991.
Coreen has actively participated in professional organizations for workers' compensation attorneys in the State of Iowa. She has been a member of Iowa Association of Workers' Compensation Attorneys since 1996, currently serving on its Board of Governors as Past President (October 2007 - September 2008 term). She is currently serving as Co-Chair for the Iowa Self-Insurers Association seminar (2009-present). She has also served a two-year term as Co-Chair for the Iowa Workers' Compensation Advisory Committee Symposium in 2003-2004 and as Co-Chair for the IAWC seminars in 1999 and 2000. Coreen has been a member of the Iowa Bar Association Workers' Compensation Legislation Section, which proposes new workers' compensation legislation each year to the Iowa legislature, and has also been involved with the Iowa Bar committee responsible for the Workers' Compensation Newsletter. Coreen also belongs to the Polk County, Iowa State, and American Bar Associations, as well as the Defense Research Institute, Inc.
Coreen has lectured on a number of different workers' compensation topics, which include:
Workers' Compensation Update, Lincoln Inn of Court (October 21, 1996).
In the Course of Employment, 1997 Workers' Compensation Symposium (June 12, 1997).
Practical Suggestions for Presenting Your Case to the Deputy, ITLA 8th Annual Workers' Compensation Seminar (February 18, 1999).
Workers' Compensation in Iowa, Lorman Seminar: Compensability and Case Resolution (November 9, 1999).
Hot Topics in Workers' Compensation, 2000 Workers' Compensation Symposium (June 8, 2000).
Claims Procedure, Iowa State Bar Association 2001 Seminar (April 18, 2001).
Claims Procedure, 30th Annual Iowa Governor's Safety Conference (October 30, 2001).
Medical vs. Legal Causation - A Defense and Claimant Perspective, 40th Annual Workers' Compensation Symposium (2002).
Termination Notices and Other Claim Procedures, Iowa State Bar Workers' Compensation Seminar (2003).
Apportionment, Successive Injuries and Other Emerging Issues in Workers' Compensation, Iowa Defense Counsel Association, 41st Annual Meeting and Seminar (2005).
Mandated Record Keeping Requirements for Injuries and Illnesses, Allen Memorial Hospital Occupational Health Seminar for Employers (April, 2006).
Worker's Compensation Update: Perspectives from an Employer & Medical Provider Standpoint, Iowa Hospital Association (October 2007).
Claims Investigation 101, Iowa Self-Insurers Association, First Annual Work Comp Conference (2009).
Section 85.39 Evaluation Issues, Iowa Association of Workers' Compensation Lawyers Seminar (2009).
Publications authored by Coreen include:
AIDS in the Workplace: A Handicap Under the Rehabilitation Act?, 39 Drake L. Rev. 141 (1989).
Establishment Clause -- Adolescent Family Life Act Upheld as Facially Valid after First Amendment Constitutional Attack on the Right of Religious Organizations to Receive Federal Funding to Counsel and Teach Adolescents, 38 Drake Law Rev. 783 (1990).
Iowa Legal Research Guide, Workers' Compensation section (2003) (J. D. Edwards, Editor 2003) (Co-Author with Joseph Quinn).
Coreen is admitted to practice law in the State of Iowa, as well as the United States District Courts for the Northern and Southern Districts of Iowa.
Martindale-Hubbell Rating
AV® Preeminent
Academic Achievements
Casenote Editor, Drake Law Review, 1989-1990
Associations & Affiliations
American Bar Association
Iowa State Bar Association
Workers' Compensation Newsletter Committee, 1998-1999
Workers' Compensation Legislative Committee, 1999-2001
Seminar Chair, Iowa Association of Workers' Compensation Lawyers, 1999-2000
Symposium Chair, Iowa Workers' Compensation Advisory Committee, 2003-2004
Polk County Bar Association
Iowa Defense Counsel Association
Executive Committee, Board of Governors, Iowa Association of Workers' Compensation Lawyers
Iowa Self-Insurers Association
Seminar Co-Chair, 2009-2012
Community Involvement
100+ Women Who Care, 2012
Board of Directors, Riverfront YMCA, 2004-2011
Board of Directors, Des Moines Triathlon Club, 2007-2009
Girls on the Run ©, YMCA Youth Program