Upholding employee rights

Lieff Cabraser has a strong tradition of fighting for employee rights across America. Our employment law class action cases challenge (a) discrimination based on employees’ race, color, national origin, religion, age, gender, sexual orientation, or disability; (b) wage violations, including failure to pay overtime, break time, or vacation time; and (c) misuse of employees’ retirement benefits.

We also represent employees who “blow the whistle” on wrongdoing by their employers as well as in other cases alleging violations of the law. For example, we represent technical, creative, and other salaried employees in a ground-breaking class action against Apple, Google, Intel, and other prominent Silicon Valley companies that challenges practices suppressing the pay of technical, creative, and other salaried employees.

Successfully challenging unlawful employment practices

Lieff Cabraser’s nationally-recognized employment lawyers are litigating many of the most significant employment class action lawsuits in our nation today. These cases challenge gender and race discrimination, where female or minority employees are not hired, are paid less than their white male counterparts, or are given fewer opportunities to advance at the company; policies requiring hourly workers to report to work early, stay late, or work through breaks for no pay (off-the-clock work); policies classifying employees as salaried who should have been classified as hourly workers and received overtime pay; and pension plan abuses under Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) claims on behalf of employees and retirees.

We have repeatedly prevailed in and obtained significant recoveries for our clients in precedent-setting employment cases against the largest corporations in the U.S. and throughout the world, including Walmart, IBM, Federal Express, Smith Barney, and Home Depot.

Our goal is not only to recover compensation for employees and job applicants who have suffered legal violations but also to press employers to comply with the law. We are proud to have assisted our clients in ending unfair and illegal practices and inspiring industries to improve recruitment, hiring, promotion, and pay practices and other aspects of employment.

Assisting employees acting as whistleblowers

Corporations that knowingly defraud the government can be subjected to substantial liability under the False Claims Act. An employee with evidence of such fraud can serve as a whistleblower and share in the recovery the government receives if the lawsuit is successful.

Lieff Cabraser’s whistleblower cases have challenged a wide variety of frauds against the government, including overcharges to Medicare, military units, and federally-funded education programs. We understand the unique pressures employees face when considering bringing a lawsuit against their employer or stepping forward as a whistleblower.

It is important that whistleblowers seek legal advice early and meet with counsel. Our lawyers are dedicated to protecting employees who have been treated unfairly and preventing retaliation against them for challenging illegal practices.

Expertise across markets and an outstanding reputation

Lieff Cabraser litigates employment cases spanning a wide variety of industries, including retail, medical, insurance, technology, banking, financial services, security, and many more industries. Commenting on the work of Lieff Cabraser in one employment case, the Court stated “the results achieved here could be nothing less than described as exceptional” and praised “the efforts of outstanding counsel.”

In 2020, Lawdragon named Lieff Cabraser partners Lin Chan, Kelly Dermody, Rachel Geman, Daniel Hutchinson, and Anne Shaver to its “500 Leading Plaintiff Employment Lawyers” listing, showcasing “the heroic lawyers throughout the U.S. working to ensure that workers’ rights are respected and fairly compensated.”

In 2018, the California Daily Journal named Kelly Dermody and Anne Shaver as “Top Labor & Employment Lawyers” in the state.

The legal weekly The Recorder named our employment group as a 2015 California Litigation Department of the Year Award recipient. U.S. News and Best Lawyers selected Lieff Cabraser as a 2013 national “Law Firm of the Year” in the category of Employment Law – Individuals.

Daniel M. Hutchinson chairs the firm’s employment practice group and supports the firm’s employment cases with San Francisco managing partner Kelly M. Dermody , and partners Lin Chan, Rachel Geman, Dean Harvey, Michael Levin-Gesundheit, Anne Shaver, and Tiseme Zegeye.