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.
G9
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.
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