Employment Law

• Won a multi-million dollar verdict for a technology company after a seven-week jury trial. The verdict included punitive damages against the individual employees who breached their contracts and defrauded the company in order to steal technology for their own use.
• Won a crucial jury verdict for an esteemed educational institution in a retaliatory discharge lawsuit. After a six-week trial, the jury returned a complete defense verdict, concluding that there was no causal connection between the plaintiff’s discharge and his alleged whistleblowing activities.
• Won a full defense verdict in arbitration (JAMS) for a professional services firm, defeating claims by a female director who was not placed on partnership track and then sued for "gender plus" discrimination on account of her status as a woman with young children, whose schedule prevented her from working the same hours as male colleagues.
• Won an early dismissal with prejudice of 17 causes of action against a technology company in a multi-million dollar action under the Private Attorneys’ General Act for alleged violations of the California Labor Code.
• Won a full defense verdict for an employer in a highly publicized, five-week bench trial in which the employer was alleged to have disciplined and terminated an employee for advocating his religious and political beliefs during work hours.
• Won a full defense verdict in arbitration (JAMS) against claims of disability discrimination, violation of FMLA and CFRA, failure to accommodate, failure to engage, and infliction of emotional distress, where plaintiff struggled with substance abuse and anxiety, which negatively affected his work performance.
• Successfully represented a venture capital startup in litigation filed by the founders’ former employer, alleging theft of customer lists and financial models. After we successfully defended the startup against a restraining order, the former employer quickly settled.
• Secured a full defense verdict for a video game equipment maker after a three-week jury trial in which a rival gaming company alleged misappropriation of trade secrets and tortious interference with employee and customer relationships.
• Obtained summary judgment on an employer’s complaint for declaratory relief on a contract with a temporary staffing company, as well as summary judgment against the staffing company’s cross-claims for breach of contract. Also obtained terminating sanctions against the staffing company’s business tort cross-claims as a consequence for its litigation misconduct. All rulings affirmed by the California Court of Appeal.
• Won a full defense verdict for a consulting firm in a breach of contract action brought by a former employee for additional commissions and compensation. After a two-week bench trial, the judge ruled for the employer on all claims.
• Won summary judgment denying a Labor Code Section 2802 claim by a terminated senior employee who sought reimbursement of legal fees for three years of litigation brought by a junior colleague who sued for sexual harassment.

Traditional Labor

• Defeated 38 consecutive unfair labor practice charges filed as part of a large-scale campaign to oust senior management and successfully defeated later attempts by a startup employee group to petition NLRB for a union election.
• Successfully represented major educational institution through filing of election petition, representation case hearing, election, and test of cert in the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, which ruled in the employer’s favor that the petitioned-for unit consisted of managerial employees under the Act.
• Successfully represented prominent apparel maker in responding to election petition, including representation case hearing, subpoena enforcement proceedings (on behalf of the employer) in federal court, and eventual withdrawal of the petition.
• Successfully represented global technology company in high-profile unfair labor practice charge that garnered international attention.  The matter ended in dismissal of the charge and issuance of an important Advice Memorandum confirming employers’ rights to make decisions in support of Equal Employment Opportunity policies.
• Secured dismissal of unfair labor practice charge by charging party alleging violations of 8(a)(3) and 8(a)(4) in the wake of multi-year Board litigation over the employer’s speech policies (affirmed by Office of Appeals).

• DRI, “Latest Developments in EEO Law” (May 20, 2024)
• “Sound the Alarm: Trends and Risk Management Relating to Whistleblowers”, Paul Hastings Consumer Financial Services Webinar Series (May 1, 2024)
• National Employment Law Institute, "Developments in Equal Employment Opportunity Law" (March 12, 2024)
• National Employment Law Institute, "Developments in Equal Employment Opportunity Law" (November 16, 2023)
• Practicing Law Institute (PLI), “The Emerging Protected Class: Caste Discrimination in the United States” (April 26, 2023)
• The Rutter Group and California Judges Association, 2023 Employment Litigation Update Program, “Employee Activism in the Workplace; Does Anything Cross the Line These Days?” (March 7, 2023)
• “Latest NLRA Developments and What They Mean for Unionized and Non-Unionized Employers” (January 11, 2023)
• Los Angeles County Bar Association, “Social Media: What’s New, What’s The Risk, and What’s It Worth?” (March 15, 2022)
• “The Growing Impact of Social Justice and Employee Advocacy on the Global Workplace” (May 19, 2021)
• "Speech in the Workplace: When Is It Protected?" (April 27, 2021)
• National Employment Law Institute, "Developments in Equal Employment Opportunity Law" (February 24, 2021)
• Berkeley Center for Law & Technology, "Legal Issues Presented by Workplace Activism in the Social Media Age" (February 18, 2021)
• “Union Fundamentals and Related Labor Law Issues” (January 27, 2021)
• National Employment Law Institute, "Developments in Equal Employment Opportunity Law" (December 2, 2020)
• National Employment Law Institute, "Developments in Equal Employment Opportunity Law" (August 26, 2020)
• “The Future of Work: Workplace Activism & Diversity” (July 15, 2020)
• “How Sexual Harassment and #MeToo Investigations Unfold in Litigation and at Trial” (June 1, 2020)
• “COVID-19 Series: Workforce Planning Strategies” (April 1, 2020)
• “They’re Doing What?!: Handling and Preparing For Employee Activism in the Social Media Age” (January 14, 2020)
• Co-Chair and Presenter, Daily Journal Employment Law Forum (July 11, 2019)
• Institute for Corporate Counsel, Annual Meeting, “Effectively Responding to #MeToo Issues: Perspective from the Trenches” (December 5, 2018)
• National Employment Law Institute, “Developments in Equal Employment Opportunity Law” (May 4, 2017)
• Association of Corporate Counsel, “The Dawn of a New Administration or an Earthquake: Employment Law 2017” (November 9, 2016)
• Employment Roundtable of Southern California, “Proactive Tips for Navigating Transgender Issues in the Workplace” (November 3, 2016)
• Beverly Hills Bar Association, “Annual Review – The California Labor Code Private Attorney General Act” (October 27, 2016)

• Member, Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles Associates & Affiliates (Children’s Chain)
• Member of the American Bar Association, State Bar of California, Los Angeles County Bar Association, and Women Lawyers of Los Angeles
• Former Member, Board of Directors, and current Pro Bono Counsel, AIDS Project Los Angeles (APLA Health)
• Former Executive Committee member, Los Angeles County Bar Barristers