Overview
Daniel S. Richards is an associate in the Employment Law Department and is based in the firm's New York office. Mr. Richards defends employers against discrimination, retaliation, harassment, wrongful discharge, wage and hour, and restrictive covenant claims in state and federal courts around the country, including in the class and collective action context. He focuses on disparate-impact issues arising out of employment testing and defending employers through statistical test validation. He also advises employers in the lawful use of artificial intelligence in employment decision-making.
Before joining Paul Hastings, Mr. Richards was an employment litigation attorney in the New York office of an international law firm. He also served as a law clerk to the Honorable Associate Justice Walter F. Timpone of the Supreme Court of New Jersey.
Mr. Richards received his J.D. from Columbia Law School, where he served as the Executive Submissions Editor for the Columbia Science and Technology Law Review and received both James Kent Scholar and Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar honors. During law school, he served as a Law Clerk to Senator Christopher A. Coons, U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee. Mr. Richards received his B.S. from Cornell University in Industrial Labor Relations.
Education
- Columbia Law School, J.D., 2018
- Cornell University, B.S., 2015
Representations
- Obtained Rule 12 dismissal of a putative reverse discrimination class action under Section 1981 of the Civil Rights Act of 1866 in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey.
- Obtained arbitral award in favor of major pharmaceutical company after hearing in case alleging violations of Title VII, ADEA, and the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act.
- Won several interlocutory appeals in New York and New Jersey state courts.
- Successfully defended first challenge to major pharmaceutical company's arbitration program in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
- Successfully represented amicus in Delaware Supreme Court's reversal of Delaware Chancery Court opinion requiring additional scrutiny of forfeiture-for-competition provisions.
- Advised on two dozen validity studies for major energy employer's employment testing program.