James J. "Jim" McDonald, Jr.

Jim McDonald is managing partner of the Irvine office and a partner in the Los Angeles office. He is also the firm's marketing partner and chair of the firm's Development Committee. Jim tries employment cases before juries, judges and arbitrators.

His practice especially focuses on executive terminations, workplace harassment and discrimination claims, the Americans with Disabilities Act, mental health issues in the workplace, and trade secrets and unfair competition matters.

Jim also advises employers on how to prevent employment disputes from arising, on how to manage union strikes and picketing, and on the labor and employment aspects of mergers and acquisitions. Jim is editor of the second edition of the treatise, Mental and Emotional Injuries in Employment Litigation published by BNA Books in 2001 and author of more than 50 published articles.

He has spoken before many national organizations on issues such as the defense of psychological injury claims in employment litigation, mental disabilities under the Americans with Disabilities Act, new theories of harassment and discrimination, and the use of expert witnesses.

Jim serves as Vice Chair and General Counsel of the Irvine Chamber of Commerce, and he is a past Chair of the Chamber's Board of Directors.

Jim is certified as a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) by the Society for Human Resource Management, and he teaches employment law in the Human Resources Management Program at the University of California, Irvine.