Litigating Employment Discrimination Cases

About the Authors

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Andrew H. Friedman, is a name partner in the law firm of Helmer • Friedman, LLP (www.helmerfriedman.com) in Los Angeles, California. He has practiced primarily in the area of employment law since completing his judicial clerkship with the Honorable John T. Nixon (United States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee) in 1990.
Mr. Friedman graduated from Vanderbilt University, cum laude, in 1986 with a B.A. in History and Psychology. Mr. Friedman then graduated from Cornell Law School in 1989 where he was an Editor of the Cornell Law Review.

Mr. Friedman has litigated virtually every type of employment case (on behalf of management, individual defendants, and plaintiffs) in the California state and federal courts. Mr. Friedman has also represented both employers and employees in administrative matters pending with numerous governmental agencies, including the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing, and the California Division of Labor Standards Enforcement. In addition, Mr. Friedman has comprehensive experience negotiating employment contracts and severance and settlement agreements on behalf of both employers and employees. He has also counseled employers in all aspects of employment law including: wrongful termination avoidance; discrimination and harassment training, avoidance and how to conduct a proper investigation; trade secret protection; workplace violence; and employee handbooks and personnel policies addressing all issues that affect the workplace from at-will employment and drug testing to voice-mail, e-mail, computers and the internet. Mr. Friedman has also served as a neutral fact-finder.

Mr. Friedman is a frequent speaker for various human resource and legal organizations, including the National Business Institute (“NBI”), Southern California Employment Round Table (“SCERT”), the Professionals In Human Resources Association (“PIHRA”), the Beverly Hills Bar Association, the State Bar of California, and the Los Angeles County Bar Association on such topics as: “Saints and Sinners in the Workplace: A Primer on Religious Discrimination, Accommodations and Undue Hardship,” “Mastering and Surviving Summary Judgment in Employment Cases,” “Preventing and Dealing With Sexual Harassment Claims,” “Fundamental Issues in California Human Resource Law,” “Advanced Issues in California Employment Law,” “Litigation Tricks Du Jour: Cutting Edge Strategies for Employment Cases,” “Avoiding Liability for Age Discrimination,” “From Hiring to Firing: The Nuts and Bolts of Employment Law,” “Employment Law for Managers of Small Non-Profits and Their Legal Advisors,” and “Annual Update on Employment Law.” Mr. Friedman has also spoken about various labor and employment law issues on “Your Legal Rights”, a San Francisco-based public radio program, produced and hosted by Chuck Finney, which covers a wide range of legal issues for California consumers.

Mr. Friedman is a member of numerous labor and employment law organizations including: Executive Committee of the Labor and Employment Law Section of the State Bar of California (Advisor, 2005 – Present; Member, 2002-2005); Executive Committee of the Labor and Employment Law Section of the Los Angeles County Bar Association (2003 – Present); (3) Executive Committee of the Labor and Employment Law Section of the Beverly Hills Bar Association (1999 – 2003); former Co-Chair of the Executive Committee of the Labor and Employment Law Section of the Beverly Hills Bar Association (2002-2003); and Co-Chair of the Saturday Morning Seminar Committee of the Labor and Employment Law Section of the Los Angeles County Bar Association (2003 – 2005). Mr. Friedman is licensed to practice in California, Missouri, and the District of Columbia. He is an avid photographer, hiker and downhill and water skier. 

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Contributing Authors

Theodore A. Cohen has 16 years of experience in finance and bankruptcy law. He represents strategic and financial buyers of the assets of distressed middle market companies through bankruptcy sales, assignments for the benefit of creditors, foreclosure sales, and private sales. Mr. Cohen efficiently and economically closes transactions while giving clients the necessary legal protection in connection with the acquisition of a distressed company.

Mr. Cohen represents banks, asset-based lenders, equity funds, factors, lessors and other credit providers in bankruptcies, workouts and refinancings. He maximizes his clients’ recoveries on secured and unsecured loans made to middle market companies.

Mr. Cohen also represents plaintiffs and defendants in civil cases, including employment discrimination actions, when a party has filed bankruptcy. He works closely with plaintiff and defense employment counsel in navigating clients through the minefield of bankruptcy. He also assists plaintiffs in negotiating settlements when the employer may be on the brink of bankruptcy.

Mr. Cohen has lectured at employment law conferences and published articles regarding the intersection of bankruptcy and employment law. He has also spoken on bankruptcy law at conferences for insolvency professionals, including attorneys, financial advisors, turnaround specialists, accountants, and investment bankers.

Mr. Cohen received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from UCLA in 1987 and his law degree from UC Davis Law School in 1990. He was the Executive Editor of the UC Davis Law Review. He became a member of the State Bar of California in 1990, and is admitted to practice before all federal and state courts in California, as well as the US Supreme Court.

Mr. Cohen has received an “AV” rating from Martindale Hubbell. He is a member of the American Bankruptcy Institute, the Los Angeles Bankruptcy Forum, the Financial Lawyers Conference and the Los Angeles County Bar Association.

Mr. Cohen is a Contributing Author to Chapter 11, Bankruptcy Issues in Employment Litigation.
Mr. Cohen can be reached at Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton, LLP, 333 South Hope Street, 48th Floor, Los Angeles, California 90071, Phone: (213) 617-4237, Fax: (213) 443-2896, E-mail: TCohen[at]sheppardmullin.com.

Lisa Klerman is a full-time mediator with her own private practice, as well as an Adjunct Professor at USC Law School, where she teaches Alternative Dispute Resolution. Prior to becoming a full-time mediator, Ms. Klerman was a partner at Morrison & Foerster, where her achievements included several notable jury trials, as well as several high profile appellate cases.

In 2004, Ms. Klerman was honored with the Alternative Dispute Resolution Achievement Award in recognition for her outstanding ADR services to the Los Angeles Superior Court. That same year, Ms. Klerman was named a Southern California Super Lawyer Rising Star, recognized as one of the top 2.5% employment attorneys in Southern California, and given Martindale-Hubbell’s highest rating (“AV”) for professional excellence and ethical standards.

Ms. Klerman serves on the Public Policy Committee of the California Dispute Resolution Council, as well as the Executive Committee of the Labor and Employment Section of the Los Angeles County Bar Association. She has been a commentator on National Public Radio and has spoken at numerous conferences and seminars. In addition to being published in the University of Chicago Law Review and Employment Law Commentary, Ms. Klerman has been interviewed by major publications such as Forbes, California Lawyer, Editor and Publisher Magazine, and Oprah Magazine.

Ms. Klerman completed her undergraduate education at the University of California, Berkeley, where she graduated with distinction. She received her J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School. For additional information, please visit Ms. Klerman’s website at www.lisaklerman.com.

Ms. Klerman is a contributing author to Chapter 10, Resolution Without Trial.

Ms. Klerman can be reached at (310) 386-9612, Fax: (310) 774-3908, E-mail: lisa[at]lisaklerman.com, and Web: www.lisaklerman.com.

Anthony J. Oncidi is a partner at Proskauer Rose LLP and the Chair of the Labor and Employment Department in the firm’s Los Angeles office. Mr. Oncidi represents employers in all aspects of labor relations and employment law, including litigation and preventive counseling, wrongful termination, employee discipline, Title VII and the California Fair Employment and Housing Act, union-related issues, wage and hour matters, executive employment contract disputes, employee handbooks and personnel policies, sexual harassment training and investigations, workplace violence, drug testing and privacy issues, confidential information, trade secret protection and collective bargaining. A substantial portion of Mr. Oncidi’s practice involves the defense of employers in class action wage and hour, employment discrimination and wrongful termination litigation in both state and federal court. Mr. Oncidi also has particular experience in trade secret and unfair competition litigation and the defense of sexual harassment, discrimination, breach of contract and defamation lawsuits.
Mr. Oncidi is the author of the treatise “Employment Discrimination Depositions” (Juris Pub. 2006; www.jurispub.com) and, since 1990, has been a columnist for the official publication of the State Bar of California, the California Labor & Employment Law Review, and the Los Angeles Daily Journal. Los Angeles Magazine has identified Mr. Oncidi as one of the “Top 100 Southern California Super Lawyers,” and he is listed in The Best Lawyers in America and described as one of “America’s Leading Business Lawyers” by Chambers USA. He has been a regular commentator on employment issues for Adelphia Cable Television, Bloomberg News and public radio station KALW-FM in San Francisco, and was a featured guest on Fox 11 News in Los Angeles and Bill O’Reilly’s nationally syndicated program, the “Radio Factor.” He has served as an Adjunct Professor of Law at the University of Southern California Law School and as a guest lecturer at the UCLA School of Law.

Mr. Oncidi has received the highest Martindale-Hubbell rating (“AV”), indicating “very high to preeminent legal ability and very high ethical standards as established by confidential opinions from members of the Bar.” He received his bachelor of arts degree, cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, from Pomona College, and his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Chicago Law School. He is a member of the State Bar of California and is admitted to practice before the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and the United States District Courts for the Northern, Central and Southern Districts of California.

Mr. Oncidi is a contributing author to Chapter 4, Case Evaluation; Chapter 5, Pleading; and Chapter 6, Discovery.

Mr. Oncidi wishes to thank Catherine Brito, an associate in the Los Angeles office of Proskauer Rose LLP, for her invaluable assistance in preparing this material.

Mr. Oncidi can be reached at Proskauer Rose LLP, 2049 Century Park East, Suite 3200, Los Angeles, CA 90067-3206, Tel: (310) 284-5690, Fax: (310) 557-2193, E-mail: aoncidi@proskauer.com.

John L. Barber serves as Vice-Chair of the firm-wide Employment, Labor and Workers’ Compensation Department at Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP. His practice is dedicated exclusively to employment-related litigation and counseling. Mr. Barber regularly defends employers in employment-related litigation and appeals before California state and federal courts.

Mr. Barber has tried numerous matters and participated in dozens of arbitrations and mediations. He has defended employers in matters before the EEOC, DFEH (FEHC), DLSE, and is involved in all aspects of employment-related litigation and counseling. His published opinions include: Romo v. Y-3 Holdings, Inc., 87 CalApp.4th 1153 (2001); and Gardenhire v. Housing Authority, 85 CalApp.4th 236 (2000).

Mr. Barber has extensive employment-related class action experience, with a particular emphasis on wage and hour, discrimination and harassment litigation. Over the last decade, Mr. Barber has defended employers in numerous class action lawsuits against private litigants and the EEOC, and has specifically defeated class certification and/or resolved cases favorably in each instance. His experience also includes anticipating potential class action lawsuits and preparing a defense before the lawsuit has been filed.

He also lectures throughout the United States on employment-related legal issues, and provides in-house training and investigation services for numerous California employers. Mr. Barber writes frequently for a variety of publications and is the Editor-in-Chief of the Employment Practices Quarterly.

Mr. Barber co-authored Chapter 12, Insurance Issues in Employment Litigation, with Gordon Calhoun and Erin Hiley.

Gordon J. Calhoun serves as Chair of the firm-wide insurance regulatory and reinsurance department of Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP. For the last 30 years, Mr. Calhoun’s practice has focused on the representation of insurance companies, including personal, commercial and specialty lines carriers on first and third party issues. In addition, he has represented workers’ compensation carriers against claims involving reserve and dividend practices. He represents each type of insurer in a variety of political drafting, coverage, breach of contract, bad faith, insurance fraud, and regulatory matters. These representations have involved both civil and criminal proceedings. He also represents cedents and reinsurers in contract drafting, coverage disputes and arbitrations.

Mr. Calhoun has given numerous lectures and seminars to attorneys and members of the risk industry on a variety of topics, particularly bad faith, coverage, insurance fraud and subrogation issues affecting insurers. His publications include Insurance Coverage Law in California (2001) and Y2K Monographs and Charts (1999).
Mr. Calhoun co-authored Chapter 12, Insurance Issues in Employment Litigation, with John Barber and Erin Hiley.

Erin L. Hiley is an Associate at the law firm of Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP. She specializes in employment litigation before California state and federal courts and the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing. Ms. Hiley defends clients involved in class action wage and hour lawsuits, complex litigation matters and international disputes. Ms. Hiley’s practice also includes employment counseling aimed at preventing litigation.

Ms. Hiley co-authored Chapter 12, Insurance Issues in Employment Litigation, with John Barber and Gordon Calhoun.