Best Lawyers in California, United States for Litigation - Labor and Employment
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Garry is a senior class action litigator and strategist at Littler Mendelson, resident in the San Francisco office. He has personally supervised the firm's attorneys on more than 1,000 employment and labor litigation matters and currently defends employers in complex wage and hour, and discrimination class action cases. He also represents clients before the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), in arbitration, mediation, and collective bargaining and offers advice on: Class action avoidance,...
Elena Baca is the Global Chair of the Paul Hastings Employment Law Department and leads a diverse group of more than 80 lawyers in 10 offices around the world. Ms. Baca is a first-chair litigator who regularly navigates high-stakes litigation, conducts sensitive investigations and advises C-suite executives and corporate boards on compliance and regulatory issues involving human capital. In her role as practice Chair, Paul Hastings’ Employment Department has anticipated and led the resp...
Marie DiSante is the Firm Managing Partner at CDF Labor Law LLP (CDF), a California focused labor, employment and immigration defense law firm with five offices throughout the state. An employment litigation attorney whose dual role as a California business owner and entrepreneur allows her to understand her clients’ workplace challenges firsthand, Marie DiSante has been resolving and preventing disputes for employers for 28 years. Her active leadership in the business community shapes ...
Barbara Enloe Hadsell is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Civil Rights Law, Employment Law - Individuals and Litigation - Labor and Employment. Barbara Enloe, who practices law in Pasadena, California, has been recognized since 2001. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Barbara Enloe is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Amy L. Lessa is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Employment Law - Management and Litigation - Labor and Employment. Amy L., who practices law in San Diego, California, has been recognized since 2023. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Amy L. 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...
Karl Lindegren is a partner in the Irvine and Los Angeles offices. He represents employers in all areas of labor and employment law. He provides clients with preventive advice and counseling on issues ranging from union avoidance to compliance with state and federal laws, such as the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), defending and preventing wrongful discharge and discrimination claims and protection of trade secrets. His litigation practice in...
Philip Azzara is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Litigation - Labor and Employment. Philip, who practices law in Irvine, California, has been recognized since 2026. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Philip is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Judy Keyes is a labor and employment lawyer who partners with employer-clients to navigate the complex system of laws and regulations that govern the California workplace. She is recognized for her "out-of-the-box" thinking and ability to solve complex human resources and labor relations problems in effective and efficient ways. She counsels clients on how to avoid and respond to discrimination, harassment and retaliation claims; comply with wage and hour laws (e.g., exempt vs. nonexempt, ind...
Lara C. de Leon is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Litigation - Labor and Employment. Lara C., who practices law in Irvine, California, has been recognized since 2025. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Lara C. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Jim handles complex disputes in line with the business goals of his clients. He approaches cases efficiently, using preventive measures to keep litigation in check, including ADR. When high-stakes litigation is unavoidable, Jim's 30 years of trial experience in state and federal courts enables him to fight for the best results possible, now and in the future. James Evans is a highly skilled trial attorney with decades of experience handling complex cases in state and federal courts. Jim is al...
Cynthia J. Emry is a principal in the Los Angeles, California, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. She focuses her practice in the areas of employment litigation, benefits litigation, and litigation avoidance within the labor and employment law sector. Cynthia represents employers, including public entities, and individuals in a wide range of employment matters, including employment discrimination actions, misappropriation of trade secrets actions, and wage and hour class actions. She has significan...
Jennifer N. Lutz focuses her practice in employment litigation and counseling. Jennifer represents California’s employers in all aspects of employment disputes in state and federal court, and before administrative and government agencies. Jennifer has successfully litigated disputes involving issues of discrimination, wrongful termination, harassment, defamation, and both individual and class action wage and hour claims. In addition, Jennifer provides advice and training to employers on...
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...
Patricia Matias is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Employment Law - Management and Litigation - Labor and Employment. Patricia, who practices law in Irvine, California, has been recognized since 2025. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Patricia is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Yesenia M. Gallegos focuses her labor and employment practice on a wide range of matters, including restrictive covenants, wage and hour law, discrimination and harassment claims, executive employment agreements, leaves of absence, employee terminations and reductions in force. Yesenia represents employers in employment litigation—including class actions—pending in both state and federal court. She also represents employers in actions against former employees in trade-secret and e...
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.