Labor & Employment Law

Companies require attorneys who provide forward-thinking counsel to the most challenging issues facing employers in the modern workplace.

Overview

Experience

Litigation & Class Action

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Compliance and Litigation

U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California
Represented client in putative class action litigation alleging violation of the ADA related to accessibility of products and services by blind and visually impaired customers.

Bailey v. Alpha Technologies Incorporated, et al.

U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington
Represented Alpha Technologies and Altair Advanced Industries and their respective chief executive officers in a hotly contested public policy wrongful termination, defamation, and wage-and-hour case brought by a former senior international buyer. All claims except the wrongful termination claim were dismissed on motions to dismiss or on summary judgment. After a six-day trial, the court granted defendants’ motion for a directed verdict and dismissed the sole remaining claim against all four defendants. The court also entered judgment against the plaintiff on the defendants’ counterclaim on several outstanding promissory notes, with attorneys’ fees and interest.

Data Logistics Company

Secured summary judgment dismissing former employee’s claims for breach of employment contract on behalf of client. Permitted to proceed forward to trial with counterclaim for misappropriation of confidential information and breach of fiduciary duty claims against former employee.

Huge v. The Boeing Company

U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington
Lead trial counsel for Boeing in ADA and Washington State Law Against Discrimination (WLAD) suit in which the plaintiff alleged failure to accommodate, retaliation, and disability discrimination claims. Resulted in a complete defense judgment after a five-day bench trial. Affirmed by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

Nicolos v. North Slope Borough, 424 P.3d 318 (Alaska 2018)

Successful representation at administrative hearing and on appeal to the Alaska Supreme Court on disability discrimination claims.

Nouri v. The Boeing Company

U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
Represented Boeing in a case brought by a class of Asian engineers and technical workers in Seattle alleging discrimination in the company’s compensation and retention systems. Successfully limited the size and scope of the certified class, obtained dismissal of several claims before trial, and then tried the remaining class case to a defense verdict before a federal jury. The verdict was affirmed on appeal.

Osborne v. Recreational Equipment, Inc.

Superior Court of Washington, King County
Washington State Court of Appeals
Trial counsel for REI in a case alleging age discrimination, retaliation, disability discrimination, and failure to accommodate. Resulted in defense verdict after a three-week jury trial. Affirmed on appeal at Osborne v. Recreational Equipment Inc., 2016 WL 6601634 (Wa. Ct. App. 2016).

Purnell-Carlson v. The Boeing Company

Superior Court of Washington, Snohomish County
Trial counsel for Boeing in a case alleging disability discrimination and failure to accommodate. Resulted in defense verdict after a two-week jury trial. Affirmed on appeal.

Restaurant Companies

Defense of two restaurant companies in an alleged labor “trafficking” lawsuit filed by a former chef. After a two-week bench trial, the judge ruled in favor of our clients.

Solomon Williams, et al. v. The Boeing Company

Race discrimination class action included 4,000 class members. Summary judgment before trial dismissed compensation claims. Obtained victory in a jury trial and obtained a positive ruling from the bench on the disparate impact claim.

Sotelo, et al. v. MediaNews Group Inc., et al.

Superior Court of California, Alameda County
Trial court denied class certification involving wage-and-hour related claims of newspaper carriers who claimed that they were “misclassified” as independent contractors. Trial court’s decision was affirmed on appeal. Resolved through a favorable settlement.

The Boeing Company

Secured voluntary dismissal by plaintiff with respect to claims of whistleblowing and wrongful termination upon filing of motion summary judgment and as a result of favorable testimony obtained at deposition of plaintiff.

Counseling & Training

COVID-19 Counseling

Provide critical guidance to keep employees safe and companies in business during the COVID-19 pandemic. This includes assisting essential businesses with the development and implementation of safety measures/policies, return-to-work procedures, COVID-19 testing, leave issues, response/notice procedures regarding infected employees, closure and reopening of facilities due to coronavirus outbreaks, and advice/counseling regarding a variety of employment-related COVID-19 issues.

Workplace Harassment Training

Conduct anti-harassment and anti-discrimination trainings for national workforces.

Investigations & Audits

Workplace Harassment Investigations

Conducted internal investigations for financial services, manufacturing, retail, and service industry clients relating to unlawful employee conduct and sexual assault/harassment allegations.

Traditional Labor

Aerospace*

Successfully represented an American multinational aviation corporation before the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) regarding a union’s effort to organize a micro-unit.

Airlines for America v. Port of Seattle, et al.

Represented trade group for major American air carriers in challenge to wage ordinance adopted by the Port of Seattle imposing minimum wage, training, and other requirements. Case involves challenge based on labor preemption, Airline Deregulation Act (ADA), and state statutory authority issues.

Association of Flight Attendants v. Alaska Airlines Inc.

Represented air carrier in temporary restraining order (TRO) and preliminary injunction action arising from "CHAOS" strike under the Railway Labor Act.