Leigh Anne St. Charles

Leigh Anne is the Managing Partner of the Nashville office of Sanford Heisler Sharp. Since joining Sanford Heisler Sharp, Leigh Anne has been recognized in the legal community as a Mid-South Rising Star by Super Lawyers, was named one of the Top 40 Under 40 Lawyers in Tennessee by the National Trial Lawyers Association, and was recognized in the 2021 and 2022 edition of The Best Lawyers in America “Ones to Watch” in the field of Employment Law – Individuals. At Sanford Heisler Sharp, Leigh Anne’s practice has focused on discrimination and harassment, and financial services litigation. As part of her discrimination and harassment practice, Leigh Anne has represented individuals and classes in claims of gender, age, FMLA, and disability discrimination, and retaliation. As part of her financial services practice, Leigh Anne represents classes of workers from around the country who have invested through their employer’s 401(k) plan in their claims of breach of fiduciary duty and 401(k) plan mismanagement. Leigh Anne’s representations have included:

• Securing an $8.3 million arbitration verdict on behalf of the co-founder of a global semi-conductor company following his termination in Chen v. InnoGrit Corporation, et al.
• Securing a settlement of over $2 million on behalf of the former CEO of the Nashville airport following litigation of his claims of FMLA and disability discrimination in Wigington v. Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority et al.
• Negotiating settlements on behalf of female partners at multiple AmLaw 200 law firms for claims of gender discrimination, inequitable pay, and failure to promote.
• Negotiating settlements on behalf of multiple female in-house counsel at a Fortune 100 corporation for claims of gender discrimination and retaliation.
• Securing a settlement on behalf of more than 700 auto-workers in a class age discrimination claim against Volkswagen in Manlove v. Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft et al.
• Litigating as class counsel on behalf of a certified class of current and former 401(k) plan participants alleging claims of fiduciary breach against Home Depot in Pizarro v. The Home Depot, Inc. et al.
• Serving as interim-class counsel in ongoing class litigation on behalf of current and former 401(k) plan participants in claims of fiduciary breach against UnitedHealth Group in Snyder v. UnitedHealth Group, Inc. et al.
• Litigating an ongoing class matter on behalf of current and former 401(k) plan participants in claims of fiduciary breach against The Allstate Corporation in Cutrone v. The Allstate Corp. et al.

Leigh Anne received her law degree from Columbia Law School and her Bachelor of Arts cum laude from Western Kentucky University. While at Columbia Law School, Leigh Anne was a James Kent and Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar. She served as a notes editor for the Journal of Law and Social Problems, a board member for the American Constitution Society and Workers’ Rights Student Coalition, and a teaching assistant for Disability Law. She also tutored middle school students through the Harlem Tutorial Project.

A member of the Tennessee and District of Columbia bars, Leigh Anne co-authored an article, Brokerage Windows in 401(k) Plans: The Total Abdication of Fiduciary Responsibility, in the Winter 2021 edition of the Benefits Law Journal.