Adam R. Rosenthal

Single Plaintiff Employment Litigation

• Secured complete defense verdict after a five-week jury trial in Orange County Superior Court on behalf of a Fortune 100 retailer in a wrongful termination, disability discrimination and failure to accommodate case brought under the FEHA, where the plaintiff sought over $3 million in compensatory and punitive damages.
• Obtained a complete defense verdict in a three-week jury trial in the Eastern District of California (Sacramento) on behalf of a national telecommunications company in a gender discrimination and wrongful termination case brought by a senior executive, where the plaintiff sought over $8 million in damages.
• Secured a complete defense verdict in a four-week bench trial in Orange County Superior Court on behalf of an automotive company in a business and employment dispute where the plaintiff sought over $3 million in damages and fees.
• Secured a complete defense verdict in a multi-plaintiff three-week JAMS arbitration in Los Angeles where the plaintiffs were asserting claims for wrongful termination, sexual harassment, and retaliation and seeking over $5 million in compensatory and punitive damages.
• Obtained a complete defense verdict in a two-week AAA Arbitration in San Diego on behalf of a global financial institution where the plaintiff asserted claims for wrongful termination, race and gender discrimination, and whistleblower retaliation.
• Obtained summary judgment on behalf of an entertainment industry client in Los Angeles Superior Court in a wrongful termination and retaliation lawsuit brought by a former executive.
• Obtained summary judgment on behalf of a national retailer in the Central District of California (Los Angeles) in a wrongful termination and retaliation lawsuit brought by a store manager.

Class and Representative Actions

• Represented over 200 national and international companies in putative class and PAGA representative actions brought under the California Labor Code, involving claims for failure to pay minimum wage and overtime, failure to provide compliant meal periods and rest breaks, wage statement violations, off-the-clock work, and misclassification (both independent contractor and exempt). Secured favorable pre-certification settlement in the vast majority of these cases saving clients hundreds of millions of dollars in potential exposure and tens of millions of dollars in attorneys’ fees.
• Obtained summary judgment on behalf of a national restaurant chain in the Southern District of California (San Diego) in a wage and hour class action where the plaintiff sought in excess of $25 million on behalf of over 8,000 non-exempt current and former employees.
• Defended a global technology company against a national and statewide class action and representative action alleging employee misclassification under the FLSA and California Labor Code. Successfully defeated class and collective certification, resulting in settlement of the individual claims on favorable terms.
• Represented a global fashion retailer in a proposed class action lawsuit asserting numerous claims under the California Labor Code. Negotiated a dismissal of the class claims in exchange for a nominal settlement to the named plaintiff.
• Obtained denial of class certification on behalf of a global retailer in a case alleging meal and rest break violations, defeating a class of over 20,000 putative members.
• Defeated class certification in Los Angeles Superior Court on behalf of a health care client in a case alleging exempt misclassification.
• Successfully compelled arbitration in over 25 California state and federal court cases resulting in the dismissal of class claims.
• Advised technology company in pre-trial and trial litigation strategy in a certified class action lawsuit in the Northern District of California alleging claims for national origin discrimination. The jury returned a complete defense verdict for the employer.

Trade Secrets & Unfair Competition

• Obtained a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction on behalf of a technology company against a departing executive who misappropriated proprietary information in violation of the Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) and California Uniform Trade Secrets Act (CUTSA).
• Represented a pharmaceutical company in defending against trade secret misappropriation claims brought by a former employer of its newly hired executive. Successfully defeated a motion for preliminary injunction and obtained a favorable settlement prior to trial.
• Successfully prosecuted trade secrets claim on behalf of an insurance brokerage company against a former employee who departed to a competitor, taking confidential client information and data. The matter resolved through a confidential settlement that included substantial monetary recovery.
• Defended a financial services company in a trade secret action filed in federal court involving alleged misappropriation of confidential trading algorithms.

Executive Disputes

• Negotiated the separation of a C-suite executive of a publicly traded technology company, including resolution of disputes involving deferred compensation, accelerated equity vesting, and post-employment restrictive covenants, achieving a favorable outcome that avoided litigation and protected the client's business interests.
• Represented a global financial services company in enforcing restrictive covenant and non-solicitation provisions against a departing senior executive who joined a direct competitor, obtaining injunctive relief and a favorable settlement.
• Defended a private equity-backed portfolio company in an arbitration brought by a former executive alleging breach of an equity incentive agreement and wrongful forfeiture of carried interest.

Government Investigations & Agency Proceedings

• Represented a Mexican-based multinational technology company in a U.S. Department of Labor investigation involving allegations of systemic overtime and minimum wage violations. Successfully negotiated a resolution that significantly reduced the client's potential exposure.
• Defended a global technology company in a Department of Justice investigation alleging systemic discrimination. Obtained a favorable no-cause determination.

Advice and Counseling

• Provides ongoing advice and counseling to clients in the technology, retail, fashion, financial services, healthcare, defense, transportation, hospitality, and non-profit industries.
• Counseled a private equity-backed portfolio company through a multi-state workforce integration following the acquisition of a competitor, including drafting uniform employment agreements and employment policies and conducting employee classification audits.
• Assisted a multinational technology company in developing and implementing a global anti-harassment and anti-discrimination training program.
• Advised the board of directors of a publicly traded company on investigating complaints brought against a senior executive, including oversight of the independent investigation and risk mitigation.
• Counseled a Japanese technology start-up on structuring its workforce, including the proper classification of workers as employees versus independent contractors, drafting compliant proprietary information and invention assignment agreements, and developing an equity compensation framework.

Client Service All-Star, BTI Consulting, 2020

San Diego Rising Star, Super Lawyers, 2017-2019

Legal 500, Labor and Employment, 2017

AV Preeminent® Rated, Martindale-Hubbell

Member Emeritus, Board of Regents, University of California

Member, Board of Directors, Anti-Defamation League (ADL), San Diego Region

Former Member, Executive Committee, Board of Directors, Hillel of San Diego

Adam frequently presents to legal, HR and business audiences nationwide. He is the author of Managing Employees Without Fear: How to Follow the Law, Build a Positive Work Culture, and Avoid Getting Sued and co-author of Employer’s Guide to COVID-19 and Emerging Workplace Issues.