Best Lawyers in California, United States for Litigation - Labor and Employment
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Mark S. Askanas is a principal in the San Francisco, California, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. He joined the firm in 1988 and is a senior employment law litigator who has served as lead counsel for cases in state and federal courts, as well as arbitration forums, throughout the western United States. Mark practices all forms of complex litigation, including class actions and cases involving trade secrets and confidential information. He also counsels employers on all facets of employment law i...
Theodora Lee is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Litigation - Labor and Employment. Theodora, who practices law in San Francisco, California, has been recognized since 2021. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Theodora is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Mark D. Kemple is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Litigation - Labor and Employment. Mark D., who practices law in Los Angeles, California, has been recognized since 2016. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Mark D. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Thomas G. Mackey is a principal in the Los Angeles, California, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. He joined the firm in 2002. Tom exclusively represents employers in all types of employment litigation, including discrimination, harassment, retaliation, disabilities and reasonable accommodation, wrongful termination, wage and hour disputes, and matters involving competition and restrictive covenants. Tom specifically focuses his practice on trials and arbitrations. He has substantial jury trial exp...
Dawn M. Irizarry is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Employment Law - Management and Litigation - Labor and Employment. Dawn M., who practices law in Los Angeles, California, has been recognized since 2023. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Dawn M. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
With more than 25 years’ experience as a trial lawyer, Partner Patrick McNicholas exclusively represents victims in catastrophic injury, product liability, sexual assault and other consumer-oriented matters, such as civil rights and aviation disasters. Mr. McNicholas has tried and settled numerous noteworthy cases, including a $44 million settlement for air crash victims, a $10.8 million jury verdict awarded to a minor molested by a school teacher, a $10 million jury verdict to a constr...
Anthony J. DeCristoforo is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Litigation - Labor and Employment. Anthony J., who practices law in Sacramento, California, has been recognized since 2018. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Anthony J. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Eric Tate serves as the co-chair of our Employment and Labor Group and co-chair of our Diversity Strategy Committee. He represents companies in trade secrets, employee raiding and mobility, unfair competition, wage and hour, employment discrimination and whistleblower litigation, and in counseling matters. He has litigated various employee claims including, for example, discrimination and harassment, wrongful termination, and the interpretation of collective bargaining agreements in both stat...
Barbara Enloe Hadsell is a founding partner of Hadsell Stormer Renick & Dai LLP in Pasadena, California. She advises the firm on complex litigation and has spent decades representing individuals in matters involving Civil Rights Law, Employment Law - Individuals, and Litigation - Labor and Employment . Her practice has included employment discrimination , harassment , retaliation, whistleblower claims , wage and hour disputes, civil rights actions , and public interest litigation. Ms. Had...
John Polson is a partner in the Irvine office and a member of the firm's Management Committee. He represents employers and staffing industry clients in all aspects of labor and employment law, including transactional matters, litigation, compliance advice and audits, executive and management training, and other employment related legal matters. John handles administrative and civil employment litigation matters, including arbitrations, in California and elsewhere. John has particular expertis...
Lonny Zilberman has been practicing employment law for over 30 years and is a partner in the firm's Employment Law Practice Group. Lonny works with employers to find practical, cost-effective strategies to their workplace problems. Lonny is an expert storyteller. Every organization has a story to tell: the value created for customers; the contributions made to communities; the opportunities created for employees. If an employer is not telling their story well, then an adversary will tell a di...
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.