Class Action Representative Matters:

• We defended a public company in a purported class action involving allegations of widespread race discrimination. After discovery, we avoided class certification and obtained a summary judgment for our client.  The judgment was affirmed by the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals. 
• We defended a public company in a putative class action in federal court in New Jersey alleging systematic ERISA/pregnancy discrimination in the administration of its short term disability benefits for employees on maternity leave.  The case settled favorably after class allegations were largely shown to be without merit.
• We defended a public company's financial services operations in California against class-wide allegations of wage and hour violations involving 600 current and former employees. Attorneys in our Labor & Employment Group interviewed more than 250 employees and conducted extensive legal research on the action issues and the merits, which enabled us to obtain a very favorable result for the client in mediation.
• We defended a public company client that was sued in the federal district court for the Northern District of Illinois for alleged violations of the FLSA and related state laws by a plaintiff seeking to pursue a collective action and to give notice to a nationwide class numbering in the thousands.  The case involved a complex legal and factual analysis of an esoteric FLSA exemption.  After engaging in initial rounds of discovery, we were able to obtain a de minimis settlement before a motion to approve class notice was filed with the Court.  This case was very important to the client because, along with several other issues, it involved whether thousands of former, current, and future route sales representatives (drivers) were exempt from the FLSA overtime requirements pursuant to the Motor Carrier Act.  We not only assembled key factual evidence substantiating the exemption, but also demonstrated to the plaintiffs' counsel through relevant case law that national certification was highly unlikely given the differences in meal and rest break practices from driver to driver.
• We represented a public company in a FLSA collective action brought in the district court for the Northern District of Illinois brought on behalf of assistants to the route representative position (helpers).  After initial discovery on the scope of the prospective class, we defeated the class plaintiffs’ motion for nationwide notice to certify a nationwide class of more than 200 helpers at 35 locations in over 20 states.  Once limited to a local action only, only one additional helper opted into the action, and the case was settled for a minimal amount per helper, saving the client hundreds of thousands of dollars.
• In a New Jersey federal lawsuit, we acted as lead counsel to a national finance company in defending against allegations that the lender was responsible for the unpaid wages and benefits of a class of employees of a bankrupt borrower. We developed compelling evidence through depositions and other discovery, which led to our client being dismissed outright from the case without liability or the payment of any money.