BakerHostetler represents employers in a wide array of class action disputes. This blog is written by members of its Employment Class Action Team.
John Lewis is the co-chair of the firm’s Employment and Civil Rights Class Action Team. He concentrates his practice on the resolution of complex employment, civil rights and regulatory disputes, including the defense and oversight of class action litigation. Mr. Lewis has represented organizations in a wide range of industries including retail, insurance, railway, securities, telecommunications, automotive, media, financial, manufacturing, utility, hotel, computer, healthcare, food distribution and sports organizations.
The majority of Mr. Lewis’s time is devoted to alternative dispute resolution procedures, litigation and appellate practice involving federal and state anti-discrimination and fair housing laws, the Railway Labor Act, the Civil Rights Acts, the Federal Reserve Act, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act and wrongful discharge, individual employment contract, trade secret, non-competition and work-related tort claims. He has participated in more than 70 cases before federal and state appellate courts presenting important issues regarding arbitration agreements, class actions, federal preemption, federal removal jurisdiction, wiretapping, employment claims, civil rights, regulatory and constitutional law.
Practice Strengths
- Appellate Litigation
- Class Action Defense
- Employment Class Actions
- Employment Litigation
Education
- LL.M., Columbia University
- J.D., University of Missouri School of Law
- B.A., University of Missouri
Bar/Court Admissions
- U.S. Supreme Court
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Eighth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit
- U.S. District Court, Southern District of Indiana
- U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Missouri
- U.S. District Court, Northern District of Ohio
- U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Michigan
- U.S. District Court, Northern District of California
- U.S. District Court, Southern District of Ohio
- Ohio
- Missouri
Greg Mersol concentrates his practice on the resolution of class action and complex employment disputes. He is a frequent speaker and writer on issues involving class actions and the defense of class action disputes. He has been certified as an employment law specialist by the Ohio State Bar Association and has been designated a Master Bencher by the Cleveland Employment Inn of Court.
Mr. Mersol’s practice focuses on assisting employers in matters ranging from class action litigation and management, restructuring and novel issues, to other difficult employment related disputes. He has defended employers in class actions on topics such as wage and hour disputes in state and federal courts, race, sex and age discrimination, public accommodations, and employee benefits.
Mr. Mersol has been described by Chambers & Partners as “a brilliant trial lawyer,” and praised for his “total unflappability” in high exposure cases. He has tried cases throughout the state and federal court systems, on matters ranging from age, race, and disability discrimination to entitlement to disability and other benefits. He has regularly argued cases before the state and federal courts of appeal. He has obtained successful results for employers in the energy, technology, retail, manufacturing, and financial services industries.
Practice Strengths
- Class Action Defense
- Appellate Litigation
- Employment Class Actions
- Employment Litigation
- Noncompete and Trade Secrets
Education
- J.D., Case Western Reserve University School of Law, magna cum laude, Order of the Coif
- B.A., Case Western Reserve University
Bar/Court Admissions
- U.S. Supreme Court
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Eighth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit
- U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Michigan
- U.S. District Court, Northern District of Indiana
- U.S. District Court, District of North Dakota
- U.S. District Court, Southern District of Ohio
- U.S. District Court, Northern District of Ohio
- Ohio
Todd Dawson focuses his practice in the wage and hour, litigation and labor relations areas. Mr. Dawson spends a large portion of his practice representing clients in wage and hour matters arising under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and various state wage and hour laws. These matters have included numerous class and collective actions, ranging from hundreds of putative plaintiffs to several thousand. He was part of a team of BakerHostetler attorneys that recently secured a significant and highly unusual class action trial verdict in the Sixth Circuit for a multinational electronics company. [Schreiber v. Philips Display Components Co., 692 F. Supp.2d 747 (ED Mich. 2010)]
Mr. Dawson has represented clients in ERISA-related matters. He has successfully defended several clients in class actions alleging unlawful termination of benefits. He has also counseled clients on benefits issues in the collective bargaining context and in unfair labor practice charges before the National Labor Relations Board.
Practice Strengths
- Employment Class Actions
- Employment Litigation
- Labor Relations
Education
- J.D., Duke University School of Law
- B.A., Political Science, Youngstown State University
Bar/Court Admissions
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Second Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit
- U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Michigan
- U.S. District Court, Western District of Michigan
- U.S. District Court, Southern District of Ohio
- U.S. District Court, Northern District of Ohio
- Ohio
David Grant primarily represents management clients in the labor and employment law matters. He has done extensive work under the Fair Labor Standards Act and has successfully represented employers in diverse industries both in investigations by the Wage and Hour Division of the U.S. Department of Labor and in litigation brought by employees and the Solicitor of Labor’s Office.
Mr. Grant also has extensive experience under the National Labor Relations Act and in representation proceedings. He has represented employers in cutting-edge unfair labor including TNS, Inc., 309 N.L.R.B. 1348 (1992), and Overnite Transportation Co., 311 N.L.R.B. 1242 (1993). Mr. Grant has been involved in collective bargaining in the air freight industry and has handled a variety of litigation matters across the country under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, the Americans With Disabilities Act and antidiscrimination statutes.
Practice Strengths
- Employment Class Actions
- Employment Counseling and Compliance
- Employment Litigation
- Health Care Reform
- Labor Relations
Education
- J.D., Georgetown University Law Center
- A.B., Bowdoin College, summa cum laude
Bar/Court Admissions
- U.S. Supreme Court
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Tenth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals, District of Columbia Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals, First Circuit
- District of Columbia
Sabrina Shadi serves as a co-chair of the firm’s Employment Class Action Team. Ms. Shadi focuses her practice in the area of employment law, with an emphasis in age, sex, race and national origin harassment and discrimination matters, Americans with Disabilities Act and other disability discrimination claims, as well as wage and hour, trade secret misappropriation, unfair competition, workers’ compensation discrimination claims and OSHA issues.
Ms. Shadi’s practice also involves the defense of class action matters, particularly with regard to wage and hour issues for companies in the technology and hospitality industries. In addition, she provides training, investigates complaints and counsels employers in all aspects of personnel matters, including wage issues, harassment complaints, company-wide layoffs and terminations, development of employee handbooks and policy and procedure manuals.
Jeffrey Vlasek concentrates his practice primarily on wage and hour issues, employment litigation and traditional labor matters. Mr. Vlasek devotes a large portion of his time to assisting clients, particularly those operating in the technology industry, with state wage and hour laws and federal claims under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). He provides counsel on claims involving alleged violations of overtime, meal and rest break requirements, as well as associated state law penalties. These matters are often class and collective actions and have ranged from hundreds of putative plaintiffs to several thousand.
Mr. Vlasek’s class action experience includes the coordination of employer defense and related discovery issues. Recently, Mr. Vlasek was part of a team of BakerHostetler attorneys that secured a significant and highly unusual class action trial verdict in the Sixth Circuit for a multinational electronics company. [Schreiber v. Philips Display Components Co., 692 F. Supp.2d 747 (ED Mich. 2010).]
Practice Strengths
- Employment Class Actions
- Employment Counseling and Compliance
- Employment Litigation
- Labor Relations
Education
- J.D., University of Iowa College of Law, with distinction
- M.A., English, Cleveland State University, passed thesis exam with honors
- B.A., English, Miami University, magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa
Bar/Court Admissions
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit
- U.S. District Court, Northern District of Ohio
- Ohio
Gilbert Brosky concentrates his practice on wage and hour, employment litigation and labor. He focuses on assisting employers in a wide variety of employment-related matters and devotes a part of his practice to insurance coverage issues. Mr. Brosky has represented numerous clients in the insurance, newspaper and technology industries.
Mr. Brosky has assisted in the defense of numerous class and collective actions, and has specifically worked in connection with briefing collective action issues. These matters have included classes ranging from hundreds of putative plaintiffs to several thousand. He has particular experience representing clients in the information technology sector with regard to independent contractors and associated wage issues. Mr. Brosky also has experience in ERISA-related matters and has been involved in the successful defense of several clients in class actions alleging unlawful termination of benefits.
Practice Strengths
- Class Action Defense
- Employment Class Actions
- Employment Counseling and Compliance
- Employment Litigation
- Noncompete and Trade Secrets
Education
- J.D., University of Michigan Law School
- B.A., Tiffin University
Bar/Court Admissions
- U.S. Court of Appeals, First Circuit
- U.S. District Court, Northern District of Ohio
- U.S. District Court, Western District of Michigan
- Ohio
