In employment litigation, we represent management (generally public entities or corporations, as well as individual officers or managers) in claims and cases alleging sexual harassment, gender discrimination, race discrimination, wrongful termination, age discrimination, pregnancy discrimination, violation of the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA), religious (creed) discrimination, ethnicity discrimination, and other employment-related claims. In the public sector, our attorneys have experience with Personnel Commission rules and Education Code requirements, including related issues of workers' compensation benefits and their interaction with employment claims. We are familiar with the different remedies available under statutory and common-law theories, as well as the impact of attorney fee claims on litigation strategy.

Jeffery Carlson has defended management and public entities in employment-related claims since 1985. He has been an annual lecturer for the California Continuing Education of the Bar on recent developments in tort law, focusing on employment-related tort. He is currently defending a major private professional university, and several of its professors, against allegations of racial discrimination, civil rights violations, retaliation, due process violations, along with various other legal theories asserted by plaintiffs, stemming form plaintiffs' claims that their low grades were based on discriminatory practices by the university and professors. Recently, he defended a major company's chief executive officer and other managerial employees from "terroristic threats" from a former employee.

In addition, Mr. Carlson has just successfully defended another case against a public entity representing a professional among 39 defendants who were alleged to have committed civil rights violations resulting in the death of the plaintiff. The successful defense of this matter resulted in the granting of a motion for summary judgment in favor of Mr. Carlson's client, thereby obviating the need for a very lengthy Federal Court trial.

Charles Messer has represented several clients, including public entities, in employment litigation. He is knowledgeable about collective bargaining agreements and Personnel Commission rules and Education Code provisions related to public employees. His experience includes cases before the Department of Fair Employment and Housing, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, California Superior and U.S. District Courts. He has defended claims and cases involving allegations of sexual harassment, gender discrimination, age discrimination, race discrimination, defamation, assault, battery, wrongful termination, pregnancy discrimination, violation of ADA, and termination in violation of public policy.

Mr. Messer recently won a summary adjudication motion in a sexual harassment/wrongful termination case on behalf of a school district which he was then able to settle for a nominal amount. Recently, he also defended a school district in a federal civil rights action where the plaintiff alleged false arrest, false imprisonment, excessive force, failure to obtain medical care, and several other causes of action. Again, Mr. Messer was successful on a motion for summary judgment at the trial court level, which plaintiff then appealed. During pendency of the appeal, the school district decided to settle the matter for a minimal amount, which was made possible due to the successful defense strategy. In another recent case, he represented a college district and its employee in a matter involving allegations of assault and battery and failure to accommodate a disability. This matter was amicably resolved for our client.

And, Mr. Messer recently defended a cutting-edge case involving alleged marital discrimination in which the Court of Appeal unanimously affirmed the trial court's granting of our Motion for Summary Judgment. The case involved termination of an employee for conflict of interest after the employer learned that the employee's wife worked for a competitor. The allegations included marital status discrimination, invasion of privacy, intentional infliction of emotional distress and wrongful termination in violation of public policy. Mr. Messer handled the underlying case as well as the appeal.

Jeanne Zimmer has defended employers accused of gender discrimination, race discrimination, national origin discrimination, age discrimination, civil rights issues, and wrongful termination. Along with Mr. Messer, she recently defended a college district and its supervising employee against allegations of assault and battery. Ms. Zimmer successfully extricated the college district from the case. Thereafter, plaintiff filed a related action against the college district for failure to accommodate a disability. In defending the action, Ms. Zimmer worked closely with the Personnel Commission and other district staff members. Ms. Zimmer has successfully extricated clients from lawsuits by way of Motions for Summary Judgment in several employment-related cases and has co-tried an age discrimination trial in downtown Los Angeles.

Our experience in handling employment-related cases covers a broad range of claims and issues, including the defense of:

• a college district employee on claims of assault and battery with punitive damages exposure;
  
  
• a college district on claims of failure to accommodate a disability;
  
  
• a school district in a federal civil rights action in which plaintiff alleged false arrest, false imprisonment, excessive force, failure to obtain medical care, as well as several other causes of action, in which we successfully obtained summary judgment. Plaintiff then appealed and during the pendency of the appeal the matter was settled for a minimal amount;
  
  
• a city and an individual police officer against allegations of assault, battery, false arrest, false imprisonment and civil rights violations;
  
  
• a school district in a class action lawsuit involving allegations of civil rights violations by school police officers and the district's random search and probable cause search policies. We successfully opposed class certification and plaintiffs were unable to certify the class. Thereafter, we negotiated a favorable settlement for the school district for a minimal amount;
  
  
• a sexual harassment and wrongful termination case involving a school district in which we won summary adjudication of the sexual harassment cause of action and then were able to negotiate a nuisance value settlement;
  
  
• a private university in a case of alleged ADA violations involving a wheel-chair-bound plaintiff who was injured on campus. Plaintiff suffered from decubitus ulcers which were aggravated by an extended hospital stay following his fall at on campus. The case was resolved at a mediation;
  
  
• an international pharmaceutical corporation on claims of age discrimination, wrongful discharge, constructive termination, intentional infliction of emotional distress;
  
  
• a hotel on claims of sexual harassment/gender discrimination/wrongful discharge;
  
  
• a software company against allegations of breach of employment contract/wrongful termination/defamation/ fraud;
  
  
• an international pharmaceutical corporation against claims of wrongful death claim based on alleged wrongful termination;
  
  
• a major chemical company against claims of pregnancy discrimination/wrongful termination;
  
  
• an employee on allegations of wrongful termination based on violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA);
  
  
• an engineering corporation on allegations of racial discrimination/retaliation wrongful termination;
  
  
• a major retailer against allegations of racial and ethnicity discrimination;
  
  
• an international food supplier on allegations of racial discrimination/EEOC Proceeding;
  
  
• a software company against allegations of wrongful termination, sexual harassment, gender discrimination, defamation;
  
  
• a grocery store against claims of wrongful termination and age discrimination;
  
  
• a major department store on allegations of age and gender discrimination;
  
  
• a major department store against claims of age discrimination;
  
  
• a company against claims of wrongful termination, gender discrimination, termination in violation of public policy, including claims involving violations of the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DEFH) Act.
  

Additional representative employment-related cases include:

• In a case filed in the Los Angeles Superior Court, plaintiff alleged wrongful termination, termination in violation of public policy, gender discrimination and defamation. Charles Messer obtained a defense verdict on behalf of the employer and the case subsequently settled for a waiver of costs.
  
  
• In another case filed in the Los Angeles Superior Court, Mr. Messer represented an officer of an entity in a lawsuit brought by his former executive secretary alleging sexual harassment, gender discrimination, and defamation. The case ultimately settled for a nominal sum, while plaintiff was under pressure from motions to compel plaintiff to answer discovery, and to dismiss the case for failure to prosecute.
  

In addition to representing employers in litigation, we have worked with various employers in preparing submissions and in defending claims filed with the Department of Fair Employment and Housing, and filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. These submissions filed on behalf of our clients included the preparation of comprehensive responses to wrongful termination, race discrimination, gender discrimination, and defamation claims that were filed with the DFEH and with the EEOC. We have represented employers in the EEOC hearings arising out the same claims. In addition, we have counseled management in the preparation of employment-related policies and programs to minimize the potential for claims and suits involving employment-related issues. We are also experienced in pension litigation claims and ERISA class actions.