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Experience
Noncompetition Litigation
InnerWorkings, Inc. v. Sonia Khurana
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois
Obtained injunction against former sales employee who joined competitor and attempted to solicit former customer in violation of restrictive covenants. (2013)
CDW v. Kimberly Sennerikuppam
Circuit Court of Illinois, Cook County
Prosecuting action to enforce confidentiality restrictions against former employee who left for competitor. (2013)
Genoptix Inc. v. Karen Warner
U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut
Defended claims that former employee and new employer violated Trade Secrets Act and restrictive covenants in hiring employees of competitor. (2013)
Arthur DiBari v. APAC Customer Services Inc.
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois
Successfully defended action by former employer against former Chief Operating Officer to enforce non-compete covenant in employment agreement. Motion for Temporary Restraining Order denied and Case then settled. (2013)
CHC Companies Inc., et al. v. James Dennis Sanders
Court of Chancery of Delaware
Enforced non-compete and non-solicitation restrictive covenant and obtained injunction against former owner who attempted to start competing business. (2013)
Brooks Automation Inc., et al. v. Matrical Inc., et al.
Obtained injunction to enforce non-compete agreements in both Germany and United States against former employees who left to join competitor. (2012)
RR Donnelley v. Robert Mueller
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York
Obtained preliminary and permanent injunction against former employee who left RRD and attempted to go to work for major competitor in violation of restrictive covenants. (2011)
CDW LLC v. Lochkovic, et al.
Circuit Court of Wisconsin, Dane County
Injunction action against former employees who misappropriated trade secrets and confidential information, solicited customers and solicited CDW employees in violation of their contractual obligations. (2010)
CDW LLC, et al. v. NETech Corporation
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana
Obtained preliminary injunction where the court found that CDW had demonstrated a likelihood of success on the merits with regard to their trade secret misappropriation, conspiracy to breach fiduciary duty and unfair competition claims. The court also concluded that the competitor tortiously interfered with valid restrictive covenants. Reported at 2010 WL 2710626. (July 2010)
CDW LLC v. Peterson, et al.
Circuit Court of Wisconsin, Dane County
Obtained stipulated injunction order enjoining the individual defendants from misappropriating trade secrets and confidential information, contacting the majority of their customers and soliciting CDW employees. (2010)
Jamo HI-FI U.S.A. Inc. and Jamo Acquisition, LLC v. Helge Fischer and Audio Video Advisors, LLC
Klipsch, L.L.C. v. Helge H. Fischer and Audio Video Advisors, LLC
Circuit Court of Illinois, Lake County
Obtained a temporary restraining order on behalf of stereo equipment manufacturer enjoining a former employee from selling audio speaker products to former employer’s customers that had been manufactured at the same China manufacturing facility. After the court rejected defendants’ motion to dissolve the TRO, defendants’ counsel asked to “surrender” and we worked out a very favorable settlement. (2007)
The Standard Companies v. H.P. Products Inc.
Circuit Court of Illinois, Cook County
Defense of claims for violation of the Illinois Trade Secrets Act and breach of post-employment restrictive covenants. Settled. (2007)
CDW LLC Corporation v. Romazko
Circuit Court of Illinois, Cook County
Prosecution of restrictive covenant and breach of fiduciary duty claims. Obtained Injunction Order. (2006)
Employment Litigation
R. Michael DeSalle v. Columbia College Chicago
Defended Title VII retaliation claim brought by former CFO. (2013)
Antonia Stephens v. The Boeing Company, et al.
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia
Defense of ADEA, ADA and FMLA claim. (2013)
Grant C. Bonser v. Cazador, LLC, et al.
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois
Defended commission claim by former sales person. (2013)
Coble, et al. v. Reliant Equity Investors, LLC, et al.
Circuit Court of West Virginia, Jefferson County
Represented private equity firm, Reliant Equity Investors, in West Virginia seeking damages under the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act and the Wage Payment and Collection Act. Represented Reliant Equity in defense of class actions brought by former employees of a portfolio company who were terminated when the portfolio company shut down. (2011)
Gladney, et al. v. Reliant Equity Investors, LLC, et al.
Circuit Court of West Virginia, Jefferson County
Represented private equity firm, Reliant Equity Investors, in West Virginia seeking damages under the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act and the Wage Payment and Collection Act. Represented Reliant Equity in defense of class actions brought by former employees of a portfolio company who were terminated when the portfolio company shut down. (2011)
Nolan, et al. v. Reliant Equity Investors LLC, et al.
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia
Represented private equity firm, Reliant Equity Investors, in West Virginia seeking damages under the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act and the Wage Payment and Collection Act. Represented Reliant Equity in defense of class actions brought by former employees of a portfolio company who were terminated when the portfolio company shut down. (2011
Dodge v. CDW Government Inc.
U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Virginia
Commissions claim by former employee returned to Federal Court in Virginia. (2009)
Fischer v. Avanade Inc.
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois
Defense of Title VII gender discrimination, retaliation and constructive discharge claims. Prevailed on summary judgment. (2007) Settled pending 7th Circuit appeal. (2009)
Sheila Hanenburg v. Qwest Corporation
U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota
In August 2008, prevailed on a motion for summary judgment in lawsuit by a former employee who was terminated after she was involved in a car accident and employee had failed to inform her supervisor regarding a DWI, as required under Qwest policy. She claimed she had been sexually harassed by her former supervisor (same gender) and fired because of her gender and sexual orientation. (2008)
Ponce, et al. v. Contract Cleaning Maintenance Inc.
Defense of class action claim under Illinois Wage Payment and Collection Act. Settlement approved. (2007)
Vega, et al. v. Contract Cleaning Maintenance Inc., et al.
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois
Defense of FLSA overtime collective action and state law wage claim class action brought by janitorial workers alleging misclassification. Settlement approved. (2007)
Merritt v. Tellabs Operations Inc.
U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
We obtained summary judgment in this age discrimination case. Among other things, the plaintiff alleged that Tellabs systematically replaced older employees with younger employees and assessed his performance more critically than his younger peers. The plaintiff relied heavily on a quote from Tellabs' CEO in the Chicago Tribune that the company was reducing the age of senior management and that was a good thing as far as he was concerned. Although the plaintiff was represented by a high-profile and very successful counsel, the court's decision sided wholly with Tellabs. In its ruling, the court found the CEO's comment a stray remark of personal opinion and further found the plaintiff's case was based on "scuttlebutt" and his own perception of people's ages, duties, abilities and experience, which were not relevant to the decision to terminate him. The court found Tellabs' explanation for why the plaintiff was terminated to be "more than sufficient" to carry its burden on summary judgment and awarded Tellabs its costs. Affirmed by 10th Circuit. 222 Fed. Appx. 679 (10th Cir. 2007)
Walker v. Qwest Corporation
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Iowa
Defense of discrimination and retaliation claims under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA), Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Iowa Civil Rights Act. (2007)
Hall v. Qwest
U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota
Defense of age discrimination claim. Settled. (2006)
Traditional Labor
Cook County Labor Negotiations
Chief labor negotiator for five collective bargaining agreements with different unions representing health benefit employees for Cook County Illinois. (2008)
National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) v. Overnite Transportation Company*
Defense of numerous NLRA unfair labor practice charges for discharges, disciplines, bargaining violations across the country. (1997 - 2002)
Overnite Transportation Company, 330 NLRB No. 1
Obtained 3rd Circuit reversal of NLRB ruling that subcontractors at trucking company violated NLRA. (2000)
