Alyson Foster

Partner

A smiling woman with shoulder-length gray hair, wearing glasses, a beige blazer, and a colorful patterned shirt.

​alyson@dempseyfoster.com

(208) 248-7594

Alyson Foster is a seasoned litigator and trusted legal strategist with over two decades of experience representing clients in complex disputes across the Mountain West and beyond. As a founding partner at Dempsey Foster, Alyson leads high-stakes litigation in commercial, employment, and nonprofit matters—bringing clarity, tenacity, and courtroom precision to every case. 

Known for her ability to distill complexity into actionable strategy, Alyson represents businesses, boards, and individuals in litigation and at trial. She has secured trial verdicts and favorable outcomes for her clients in a range of industries, such as commercial real estate, investment advisors, food & hospitality, secured lending, insurance brokers, insurance carriers (general liability, D&O, E&O, cyber, business), medical providers, trucking, and the legal industry. Alyson is known for navigating high-conflict matters with rigor and insight, always grounded in the practical realities her clients face. 

In addition to her courtroom work, Alyson serves as outside counsel to mission-driven organizations, advising on governance, compliance, and operational resilience. She has helped structure and advise numerous nonprofit entities, developed workplace violence and safety policies for national companies, and supported boards and leadership teams navigating complex internal transitions. 

Alyson’s community leadership is as deeply rooted as her legal practice. She serves as board president for Idaho Business for the Outdoors and vice president for City of Good, and is a past president of the Idaho Chapter of the Federal Bar Association. Recognized as a Leader in Law by the Idaho Business Review, Alyson brings a litigator’s clarity and a steward’s mindset to every engagement—resolute, strategic, and anchored in client outcomes.  

EDUCATION 

  • University of Michigan Law School, 2000, cum laude 

  • Michigan Law Review, Executive Articles Editor 

  • Women Law Students' Association, Co-President 

  • University of California, Berkeley, B.A., German (Highest Honors) & Mathematics, 1995  

  • Georg-August University, Goettingen, Germany,

JUDICIAL CLERKSHIP  

  • Honorable Sidney R. Thomas, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, 2000-2001 

ADMITTED TO PRACTICE 

  • Idaho 

  • Utah 

  • Washington 

  • District of Columbia (inactive) 

  • U.S. District Court, Idaho 

  • U.S. District Court, Utah 

  • U.S. District Court, District of Columbia (inactive) 

  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit

COMMUNITY & AWARDS 

  • Idaho State Bar, Litigation Section, Past Chair 

  • Idaho Volunteer Lawyers Program (IVLP), Former Chair of Policy Council  

PRESENTATIONS AND PUBLICATIONS  

  • Idaho and Fourth District Rules: Recent Amendments, Idaho State Bar Litigation Section, April 16,  2021 

  • Employment Discrimination, Guest Lecturer, Boise State University, MBA Program, March 24, 2021 

  • Business Law: Issues in Employment Law, Guest Co-lecturer, Boise State University, MBA Program, April 2019 

  • Judges’ Panel – Federal Practice: Tips & Trends, Moderator, Federal Bar Association Tri-State Seminar, September 2018 

  • “Gaslighting in Litigation,” The Woman Advocate, Spring 2017, Vol. 22, Issue 3, May 25, 2017 

  • Liability Insurance Issues for Litigators, Alyson Foster & Haley Krug, Idaho Bar Employment Section, May 2017 

  • Marijuana in the Workplace, Idaho Bar Litigation Section, May 2017 

  • The Impact of Legal Marijuana Use on the Workplace: Should employers hire marijuana users?, Jennifer Schrack Dempsey & Alyson Foster, Federal Bar Association Annual Meeting and Convention, September 2015 

  • Overview of Written Discovery from a Lawyer’s Perspective, Idaho Association of Paralegals Spring Meeting, April 2015 

  • How to Look Good in a Derivative Suit, Tom Banducci & Alyson Foster, Idaho Trial Lawyers’ Association Seminar, February 2015 

  • Current Issues in Discovery and Retention of Electronically Stored Information, Boise In-House Counsel Working Group, January 2015