The group at Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP regularly handles an array of employment litigation, with core mandates including wage and hour, non-compete, discrimination, wrongful termination, defamation, and breach of contract mandates. The team’s sectoral expertise covers healthcare, transportation, financial services, retail, fashion, and hospitality. Los Angeles-based Kelly Hensley co-leads, along with New York-based Jonathan Stoler, who represents international clients in a variety of contentious and transactional matters. Additional key department figures include Chicago-based Kevin Cloutier, who has experience appearing before state and federal trial and appellate courts across the country; and Los Angeles-based Tracey Kennedy, lauded as a ‘superstar employment defense trial lawyer’.
Testimonials
Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.
‘Paul Cowie is one of the best partners I've worked with - he is extremely knowledgeable, unbelievably responsive, very practical, and has helped us navigate a number of very complex and emotionally fraught employment matters.’
‘Very strong employment defense practice. Lots of high quality partners; comparatively diverse firm and practice group.’
‘Tracey Kennedy is one of the few superstar employment defense trial lawyers. The wage and hour and class practice also has superstars like Richard Simmons.’
‘Aggressive when required but also tactful and restrained when appropriate. Willing to allocate resources for an 'all hands on deck' approach for important matters when necessary.’
‘They are smarter than the opposition. We have not lost a litigated matter with Sheppard Mullin representing us.'
Key clients
- NAV Consulting
- Tempus Labs, Inc.
- Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings, Inc.
- In-N-Out Burger
- Advanced Sterilization Products
- Zeta Global Corp.
- American Express Company
- Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings, Inc.
- Tata Consultancy Services
- Major League Soccer
- Spirent
- Fareportal
- Brooklyn Sports & Entertainment
Work highlights
- Represented NAV in litigation concerning the violation of an employee's contractual non-compete obligations.
- Acted for NAV after an employee alleged discrimination.
- Secured injunctive relief for Tempus Labs, Inc., in Illinois federal court.
Practice head
The lawyer(s) leading their teams.
Kelly Hensley, Jonathan Stoler