- Find a Lawyer
- /
- United States
- /
- Litigation - Labor and Employment
- /
- Tennessee
Find Lawyers in Tennessee, United States for Litigation - Labor and Employment
Practice Area Overview
Often, these employment disputes culminate in a lawsuit, which can be costly, time-consuming, and damaging to employee relations. The number of employment-related litigation filings has been steadily increasing over the last decade, ranging from large-scale class actions to individual complaints. Employers are facing greater challenges and financial exposure from both current and former employees than ever before.
Employment litigation covers many types of claims, including discrimination; harassment; wage-hour pay, classification, and overtime violations; wrongful discharge; entitlement to employee benefits; misappropriation of trade secrets and confidential information; unfair competition; enforcement or avoidance of restrictive covenants; labor union disputes; workplace safety violations; defamation and other employment-related torts. These claims often involve the many laws governing employee relations, which are often referred to as “employment law alphabet soup.” These include Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII), the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), whistleblower claims under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) or Dodd-Frank Act, the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA), the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) and the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA).
Resolving employment litigation requires knowledge of these laws and regulations, the applicable case law, and a careful case analysis and strategy. More so than in other less personal litigation, a perceptive understanding of the people involved is essential for success. Often, suits will be settled among parties or ended before trial through summary judgment based on the facts of the case. When early resolution is not achieved, however, the case will go to trial in court or before an agency tribunal. Verdicts in employment-related cases can be enormous, especially in wage-hour and other class actions, creating a high-stakes situation for employers.
Jeff Beemer is a business lawyer who works with clients to achieve effective resolution of a variety of business disputes. He provides proactive advice on litigation avoidance and risk management, including daily counseling for employers on all aspects of employment law. As a seasoned trial advocate, Jeff has significant experience achieving favorable results for clients in employment cases and commercial disputes, as well as in litigation involving significant personal injury claims, product...
Margaret L. Behm has earned the reputation as the go-to person in 45 years of representing clients and forging coalitions for change. After beginning her legal career in 1976 at Legal Services if Middle Tennessee, Inc., Behm and Marietta Shipley in 1980 founded Shipley and Behm, the city's first all-woman law firm. “Back then, women just weren’t taken seriously as business owners or lawyers,” Behm says. “I wanted to run my own business and demonstrate that women could ...
FREDRICK J. BISSINGER is Regional Managing Member of the Nashville, Tennessee office of the firm, which he joined in 1999. His law practice includes an emphasis in handling employment discrimination and wrongful discharge matters at both the administrative level and in Federal and State Court litigation. His practice also includes an emphasis on ADA and FMLA compliance, as well as general liability matters. He received his Bachelor of Science, cum laude , in Economics from Washington & Le...
Zan is one of the firm’s generalists, as well as a lead trial lawyer. He has tried many cases before juries, judges and administrative agencies in employment discrimination, union-management and employee benefits cases. Zan has presented arguments to several federal and state appellate courts. He advises companies concerning structuring the relationships with workers and clients, whether as employment, leased employee or independent contractor arrangements to minimize legal risks and pr...
Jonathan Bobbitt is a civil trial lawyer that has one singular focus – to obtain the best possible result for his clients. Passionate, thoughtful and relentless, this guy loves to spend his free time running 50-plus miles through mountains, deserts and country roads. Those “ultra-experiences” have taught Jonathan the value of having the courage to take on challenges, the patience to stay the course and the creativity to solve problems along the way. Jonathan’s areas of...
John Bode concentrates his practice on labor relations and employment opportunity. For more than three decades, John has served as lead trial counsel in numerous cases before state and federal agencies and courts and the National Labor Relations Board. He has extensive experience representing many prominent national, regional and Tennessee employers in union organizing campaigns, collective bargaining, arbitrations, strikes, decertification petitions, wage and hour and other state and federal...
Dewey Branstetter has represented a broad range of individuals and entities, but his practice concentrates on utility and municipal issues, employment matters, and complex litigation. Mr. Branstetter has extensive experience advising and representing utility districts, municipalities, and utility related entities such as Tennessee 811. He recently appeared before the Utility Management Review Board and successfully defended against the first ratepayer petition ever filed against a utility dis...
Louis Britt is the Regional Managing Partner for FordHarrison's Memphis, Nashville and Dallas offices. He concentrates his practice on employment litigation and advice, representing private and public employers in a broad range of employment matters. Louis handles employment discrimination and harassment cases (Title VII, ADA, ADEA and FMLA), wage/hour matters, enforcement and defense of restrictive covenants contained in employment agreements, and employment-related torts. He is experienced ...
First and foremost, Teresa is a relationship partner for her corporate clients in the employment defense space, and a very practical "problem solver." She is constantly trying to figure out how to connect her clients to resources that can make their job easier, help them navigate through tricky employment and HR issues, as well as connecting them to the excellent attorneys at Constangy throughout the U.S. In her 19 years of practice as a defense-side employment litigation attorney (all 19 yea...
Joshua L. Burgener, a partner in the firm’s Nashville office, focuses his practice on complex commercial and business litigation, employment disputes, class action litigation, and real estate litigation. Specifically, he specializes in trade secret and non-compete suits, contract claims, lease disputes, and business torts. In addition to his courtroom practice, Josh also advises clients on litigation assessment and avoidance. He has been recognized by Super Lawyers® as a “Risi...
Chris Cardwell is a trial lawyer in GSRM’s Litigation and Labor and Employment practice groups. He serves on the firm’s management, marketing and staff committees, and leads the Litigation and Labor and Employment practice groups. Chris represents life sciences, healthcare, railroad and transportation, and entertainment companies in complex commercial, employment, and intellectual property lawsuits.
Clay Culpepper serves as counsel for a number of businesses and aggressively advocates for injured individuals. Clay has litigated cases from Tennessee to California, in federal and state courts, in front of both juries and judges. Clay represents and counsels clients in various actions, including, but not limited to: Significant Personal Injury: Automobile accidents Trucking accidents Premises liability Malpractice Wrongful death Negligence Business/Commercial Litigation: Contract/transactio...
Frank Day devotes his practice to helping clients accomplish business objectives through employment law litigation and counseling. Frank has successfully represented national retailers, health care providers, and various other public and private employers in matters arising under the FLSA, Title VII, the ADA, FMLA, ADEA, USERRA, and various other federal and state statutes. He has extensive litigation experience in many different forums, and he has helped many clients prevail on summary judgm...
Jay Ebelhar guides company leadership through lawsuits and administrative proceedings to resolve complex employment disputes. He acts as a go-to resource for the full spectrum of employment matters, from harassment and discrimination claims to wage and hour challenges. Utilizing this varied experience, Jay partners with employers to explore options and develop sound strategies that manage risk in line with their organizational goals. Whether this means taking a case through trial or resolving...
M. Reid Estes, Jr. is the Practice Group Chair for the South Region Labor & Employment Practice. He has nearly 40 years of experience as a trial lawyer and has served as trial counsel for numerous Fortune 500 and smaller companies in the restaurant, hospitality, retail, manufacturing, construction, health care, and other industry sectors, and during his career has handled nearly every conceivable type of case from tort claims, to theft of trade secret, covenant and contract breach, commer...
Greg Grisham has over 25 years of successful experience counseling and representing employers in all aspects of workplace law in Tennessee and across the United States. He has helped employers avoid claims, charges and lawsuits with a focus on preventative practices. Preventative practices include counseling in situations involving discipline, termination, demotion, promotion and other workplace changes in the terms and conditions of employment, harassment investigations, wage and hour compli...
Ms. Hagerman’s practice focuses on employment litigation and complex commercial litigation, with a particular emphasis on matters pending in federal court. She has represented clients in cases involving employment discrimination, wage and hour class actions, civil rights, products liability, insurance coverage and numerous areas of commercial law. Ms. Hagerman also advises clients on a variety of employment matters including non-solicitation and non-competition agreements, employee hand...
Jon Harris is a trusted counselor to employers in all aspects of their labor and employment law needs. He also spends a significant amount of his practice defending companies in data privacy class actions. Jon has gained repeated recognition for his responsiveness and problem-solving prowess. Rather than a one-size-fits-all approach, Jon tailors solutions to a client’s business needs and risk tolerance. Jon is known as a strategic advisor and zealous advocate in employment matters, incl...
Mr. Henderson is the Managing Shareholder of the Memphis office. He has represented management in employment and labor relations matters for over 25 years. He has served as lead counsel in numerous jury trials in state and federal courts across the nation. His trial experience includes defending state and federal discrimination and harassment lawsuits, class actions, FMLA claims, ERISA and benefit claims, trade secret and unfair competition matters, and related state law claims. He also handl...
Charles W. Hill concentrates his practice in the areas of employment law, securities and broker/dealer litigation, contracts and commercial litigation. Mr. Hill consults with employers concerning employment law decisions regarding their workforce, including discipline, discharge and the implementation of specific policies to ensure compliance with existing employment law, particularly the application of federal and state discrimination statutes. Mr. Hill provides advice and consultation conce...
HOWARD B. JACKSON is a Member of the Knoxville, Tennessee office of the firm, which he joined in 2001. His practice includes substantial experience with labor law, employment litigation, including both discrimination cases of all kinds and employee restrictive agreements, frequent training and counseling of employers on a wide variety of employment law issues, and commercial litigation. Howard graduated from Georgia Tech in 1983, with a B.S. in Industrial Management, from Duke University in 1...
Russell Jackson represents management in employment-related matters on federal, state, and local levels. Russell's representation includes claims relating to discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wrongful discharge, restrictive covenants, wage and hour violations, unemployment compensation, and other aspects of the employee-employer relationship under federal and state employment laws including Title VII, ADA, ADEA, FMLA, FLSA, NLRA and the OSH Act. Russell also closely works with employer...
Jonathan E. Kaplan has devoted his entire career to representing management clients exclusively in all areas of labor relations, employment law, and human resources management. His practice spans litigation, training, and consulting, in which he has handled matters in more than 40 states and Canada. Jonathan practices extensively before the NLRB across the country, and also has been admitted specially to practice before the state courts in California, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Mic...
With a combination of big-firm training and courtroom experience, Kevin has earned a reputation as a savvy counselor, a skilled litigator, and an excellent trial attorney. During his 20-plus year career, Kevin has tried dozens of cases — from simple negligence to multi-week federal trials – briefed and argued numerous appeals, and litigated hundreds of cases. After graduating from Cornell Law School in 2000, Kevin joined Husch & Eppenberger, LLP (now Husch Blackwell, LLP), a m...
Peter F. Klett III, a member in Dickinson Wright’s Nashville office, focuses his practice on labor and employment law with a particular emphasis on class action lawsuits. He has served as lead counsel in many high-profile wage and hour compliance suits throughout the U.S. For nearly 30 years, Peter has proudly served as primary regional and local litigation counsel for independent trucking companies in catastrophic injury, wrongful death, and personal injury cases. He also represents co...
Steve has over 35 years of experience working with a broad cross-section of industries and management teams in his practice areas of Employment and Labor, Corporate and Transactional and Sports Law. He provides sound and practical legal advice to his clients and proactively interacts with management teams in some of the most critical aspects of their businesses. He has provided numerous management training and civic group presentations on employment and sports law issues. He also serves as a ...
LISA A. KRUPICKA is a member of the law firm of Burch, Porter & Johnson, PLLC, in Memphis, where she heads the firm’s Labor and Employment Law group. She received her B.A. degree, magna cum laude, from Rhodes College, and her J.D. degree, with high honors, from Duke University where she was a member of the Duke Law Journal and the Order of the Coif. From 1986 to 1987, she was law clerk to the Honorable Julia Smith Gibbons (then United States District Judge for the Western District o...
Charles (Chuck) Lee, Vice-Chair of the firm's Litigation Practice and Co-Chair of the firm's Labor & Employment Practice, has been with Miller & Martin since 1985 and concentrates his practice primarily on employment law, corporate/commercial litigation and federal agency investigations. In the employment law practice area, Chuck is lead defense counsel for a number of major companies and other employers in connection with wrongful discharge, discrimination, retaliation, FLSA, ADA, FM...
Courtney Leyes is a partner in the firm's Gulfport, Memphis and Nashville offices. She represents employers throughout Mississippi and the greater Memphis-metropolitan area, with particular focus on the burgeoning industrial areas in the northern part of the state. Courtney has experience representing employers in litigation related to discrimination and harassment in the workplace, in particular, federal jury trial experience. She also has experience representing employers on wage and hour i...
Matt practices almost exclusively in the area of labor relations and employment law on behalf of management. In his career Matt has represented companies throughout the country in the areas of collective bargaining negotiations, grievance and arbitration, employment discrimination litigation in both federal and state courts, the National Labor Relations Act, wrongful discharge, wage and hour law, and other employment-related areas. Matt is also experienced in ADR, mediation and has served as ...
Jay Mader focuses on employment and business litigation. His employment law practice includes cases involving discrimination, harassment, and retaliation with claims relating to age, gender, race, disability, and whistleblower allegations. He also handles wage and hour and FMLA litigation. Jay’s experience in business litigation includes cases involving breach of contract and fiduciary duty, fraud and misrepresentation, consumer protection, and other business torts. In addition to litig...
Mike Marshall is the co-leader of the Labor and Employment section and uses his experience in other arenas to reach solutions and resolutions to his clients' disputes. When no resolution is possible, Mike is a zealous advocate in the courtroom. Mike also has extensive experience in litigating and resolving employment matters and other business-related disputes. He is a frequent speaker on employment-related topics. He has also received an AV rating from Martindale-Hubbell for his legal abilit...
Chuck Mataya has developed a focused practice of litigation and counseling in various areas of labor and employment law, including the defense of class, collective individual actions in both state and federal courts. Chuck acts as a lead counsel for prominent employers throughout the United States in the counsel and defense of employment and labor claims, including claims of wrongful discharge, breach of an employment contract, illegal discrimination under the various federal and state laws, ...
Deeply experienced commercial and business litigator in areas including Contract and Business Disputes, Health Care, Insurance, Real Estate, Transportation, Labor, and Employment. Acts as regional and national counsel for various businesses, and defense and coverage counsel for numerous transportation, liability, casualty defense, EPLI, and D&O and E&O carriers. He has successfully litigated numerous matters of all kinds nationwide. Jeff's experience further includes representing clie...
Robert D. Meyers is certified as a Civil Trial Specialist by the National Board of Trial Advocacy. Mr. Meyers has a breadth of employment litigation experience. He has defended companies and individuals before courts in Tennessee, Mississippi, Arkansas, Alabama, Texas, Georgia, Louisiana, Indiana and Virginia. He has been instrumental in assisting clients in dealing with employee medical issues including ADA, FMLA and workers' compensation concerns. Mr. Meyers also has extensive experience re...
Our Methodology
Recognition by Best Lawyers is based entirely on peer review. Our methodology is designed to capture, as accurately as possible, the consensus opinion of leading lawyers about the professional abilities of their colleagues within the same geographical area and legal practice area.
The Process
Best Lawyers employs a sophisticated, conscientious, rational, and transparent survey process designed to elicit meaningful and substantive evaluations of the quality of legal services. Our belief has always been that the quality of a peer review survey is directly related to the quality of the voters.