Avoiding and Limiting Wage and Overtime Liability

Orrick’s Employment Law Department has successfully defended numerous wage-and-hour class, collective and representative actions across a wide spectrum of industries. Our lawyers have extensive experience in handling state, regional and national class actions. We have also consulted or acted as coordinating counsel in local and regional matters throughout the country.

Orrick’s expertise in the wage-and-hour arena includes representing clients in all phases of class litigation, from class certification and subsequent litigation through settlement and claims proceedings. Orrick employs well-developed strategies that have proven effective in addressing the myriad of challenging issues that arise during class and collective litigation. Utilizing these strategies, Orrick’s lawyers have successfully defeated class certification on numerous occasions. Additionally, Orrick’s lawyers have defeated class actions altogether based upon res judicata and collateral estoppel theories.

Where appropriate, Orrick lawyers also work with their clients to resolve wage-and-hour class actions in a cost-efficient and economical manner. From the outset, we explore with clients the challenges, risks, costs and opportunities presented by the litigation.

We achieve positive outcomes for our clients – whether through success at a motion to dismiss, class certification, trial, appeal or settlement. The results we have achieved reflect an overall strategy that makes the best use of client resources and the creation of a plan for orchestrating the pace and direction of the litigation in concert with our clients’ evolving business needs. The quality of our representation, as evidenced by our results, is unmatched by any other defense firm.

• Albertson’s. Orrick represented Albertson’s in a significant case with national claims involving wage-and-hour claims based on alleged off-the-clock work.
• Blockbuster Video. Orrick represents Blockbuster in a wage-and-hour class action brought by California store managers alleging misclassification of their exempt status.
• Burlington Coat Factory. Orrick represented Burlington Coat Factory in a hotly disputed state wage-and-hour case involving the exempt status of employees and alleged off-the-clock work. We were successful in defeating certification of the class.
• The Gap, Inc. We represented The Gap in an action brought on behalf of associate managers at 50 Banana Republic stores who claimed to be improperly classified as exempt. Class certification was denied, which helped us obtain dismissal of similar claims in another class action lawsuit.
• Longs Drug Stores. We represented Longs against wage-and-hour claims challenging the exempt status of pharmacists.
• McKesson HBOC. Orrick represents McKesson in a wage-and-hour class action in California challenging the exempt status of driver salespersons and other similar employees.
• NBC Studios. Orrick currently represents NBC Studios in a bilateral class action regarding allegations of late payment of employees at the time of separation.
• Sohio Petroleum. In a case of first impression, Orrick lawyers established Sohio’s right to include the requirement of a release of claims in a severance pay plan governed by ERISA.