Practice Areas and Legal Definitions

Employment Law:
Employment law is a well-established body of statutes and judicial decisions covering all rights and obligations within the employer-employee relationship, including current employees, job applicants and former employees. It covers a wide range of legal issues, ranging from employment discrimination and wrongful termination to matters involving wages and workplace safety. Many employment law issues are governed by applicable federal and state employment law, but a number of issues are determined according to basic contract law.

Employee Rights:
All employees have basic rights arising from both state and federal laws. Some of these rights include: the right not to be subjected to discrimination on the basis of race, national origin, skin color, gender, pregnancy, religious beliefs, disability, age, and in California, marital status or sexual orientation; the right to a workplace free of harassment; the right to be paid at least the minimum wage as provided by federal or state law; the right to overtime wages as provided by federal or state law; the right to a safe workplace and the right to take leave to care for a personal or family member's serious illness, or following the birth or adoption of a child.

Employment Discrimination:
Discrimination generally occurs when an employee is intentionally treated differently because of race, color, religion, national origin, disability, gender, age, and in some states, sexual orientation. Employment discrimination claims may be prosecuted under various state and federal statutes. Even if the employee’s evidence is sufficient to show discrimination, an employer may be able to justify a particular job action by demonstrating that such treatment arose out of business necessity, or that a legitimate job qualification required consideration of factors that had an unintentional discriminatory effect. When the employer makes such a legitimate justification, the employee must show that discrimination, not the employer’s justification, was the true reason for the action.

Age Discrimination:
It is unlawful for an employer, employment agency or labor union to discriminate in employment on the basis of age. This includes refusing to hire an individual or firing an employee. It also includes an individual’s compensation, the terms, conditions, and privileges of his or her employment, and all employee benefits.

Disability Discrimination:
Both the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the California Fair Employeent Housing Act (CFEHA) protect individuals with disabilities from employment discrimination. An individual with a disability is defined as someone who has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity, has a record of having such a physical or mental impairment, or is regarded as having such impairment. The term is broadly defined to include any physiological, mental or psychologically-based impairment, but it does not include mere physical characteristics or cultural, environmental, or economic impairment.

Wrongful Termination:
Termination of employment cannot be classified as "Wrongful Termination" unless it is in violation of some fundamental public policy, as set forth in a state or federal statute, regulation or constitutional provision. Examples of Wrongful Termination include situations where:

• An employee is discharged for failure to comply with an order to perform an act that violates some law, ordinance or regulation, or
• An employee is discharged in retaliation for complaints about conduct by the employer that he or she believes to be unlawful, e.g., failure to pay overtime, or failure to comply with safety regulations, or reporting discrimination.
  

Sexual Harassment:
Sexual harassment is any unwanted and unwelcome sexual behavior. It involves a broad range of conduct, including such verbal harassment as derogatory comments, explicit sexual comments and descriptions of sexual exploits, leering or requesting sexual favors. The term also describes physical harassment, ranging from inappropriate touching to outright sexual assault. In order to be classified as illegal the conduct in question must be both unwelcome and offensive to the victim.

Minimum Wage and Overtime Compensation:
Under both State and Federal law employers are required to pay (1) minimum wage for all hours wored and (2) additional compensation to eligible employees who work over eight hours in a day and/or more than forty hours during any seven-day period.

Severance Agreements:
A severance agreement is a form of settlement agreement under which an aggrieved employee agrees to accept an agreed sum of money in exchange for, among other things, abandoning all claims against the employer.  Where it can be negotiated, a severance agreement saves money and aggravation for both sides.

Trade Secrets Agreements:
Employment contracts frequently contain provisions for the protection of the employer’s “trade secrets”. These may range from customer data of one kind or another, to company designs, or even “secret recipes”.

Non-competition Agreements:
Non-competition agreements are provisions contained within an employment contract which restrict the activities of an employee after leaving the service of the company. Courts treat non-competition agreements with suspicion—with an eye toward preventing unnecessary and unreasonable interference with a person’s livelihood after severance of the employer/employee relationship.  Many of these are illegal in California.

Whistleblower Claims:
Whistleblower Claims involve employer retaliation, sometimes to the extent of Wrongful Termination, against an employee who reports the improper or unlawful conduct of another employee or of management itself to government authorities. It is illegal for an employer to retaliate against a “whistleblower.”

Injunctions:
Injunctions are a type of Court Order that either requires or prohibits specified conduct or behavior. Injunctions are remedies frequently used in employment cases. They involve such situations as injunctions requiring striking public employees to return to work, or injunctions requiring someone to stop engaging in an unlawful employment practice.  Willful failure to comply with an injunction can lead to a citation for contempt of court, and can result in significant money sanctions or even time in jail for the purpose of coercing compliance.

Employment Policy Manuals & Employee Handbooks:
A high percentage of Employment Law conflicts arise because there is no established company policy on a particular issue or the existing policy is either unknown or poorly understood. Competent Employment Law counsel can help draft and put together a company policy manual that is both comprehensive and understandable, and an employee handbook that leaves no doubt as to what is expected from each employee, and what he or she can expect from the company.

If you or someone you know needs the assistance of an experienced San Diego Labor & Employment attorney, call Pope, Berger & Williams today at 866-292-5549, or complete the contact form provided on this site to schedule a free consultation.

ADDRESS OF THE FIRM:
Pope, Berger & Williams, LLP
3555 5th Avenue, 3rd Floor
San Diego, CA 92103
Phone: 866-292-5549
Hours: M-F, 8:00AM-5:00PM

MEMBERS OF THE FIRM:

• Attorney A. Mark Pope

Mark Pope is a founding partner of the firm whose practice for the past 10 years has focused almost exclusively on employment litigation, with an emphasis on wage and hour class actions. He is a graduate of Brown University (AB Psychology, 1971) and the University of San Diego School of Law (J.D. 1977).

In almost 30 years since he was admitted to the California Bar, Mark has tried, mediated and arbitrated cases for individuals and for businesses in a wide variety of civil litigation. Mark is one of the very few attorneys in the state of California who has tried a wage and hour class action trial to verdict. He has represented clients in the Superior and Appellate Courts of California, and the U.S. District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of California. Mark has also served as a court-appointed arbitrator, Judge Pro Tempore for the San Diego Superior Court, a fee dispute arbitrator for the San Diego County Bar Association and as a private mediator and arbitrator.

Mark has achieved the highest possible ("AV") rating from Martindale-Hubbell, the authoritative resource for information on the world-wide legal profession. This AV rating indicates very high to preeminent legal ability and very high professional standards of conduct, ethics, reliability and diligence as established by confidential opinions from both judges and members of the bar.

Mark is currently an active member of the State Bar of California, San Diego County Bar Association, and Lawyers Club of San Diego.

• Attorney Harvey C. Berger

Harvey has been voted by The San Diego Daily Transcript as one of the Top (10) Employment Attorneys in San Diego County, by other employment lawyers, in 2005, 2006, 2007 & 2008. The Transcript conducts a peer voting process to determine the best lawyers in San Diego County in key categories.

Harvey has been selected as one of San Diego's "Super Lawyers" for 2007, 2008 and 2009. Harvey's selection as a "Super Lawyer" was highlighted in a special supplement to the Southern California edition of The New York Times and the San Diego Union Tribune as well as the 2007 issue of Southern California "Super Lawyers" for San Diego. The award followed a survey of more than 10,000 San Diego lawyers followed by an extensive panel review. Only 5% of San Diego attorneys have been selected for 2007, 2008 and 2009 Super Lawyers.

He was also selected as one of the Best Lawyers in San Diego for 2008 as published in San Diego Magazine, as well as one of Southern California’s Best Lawyers for 2008.

Harvey Berger is a founding partner of the firm. For over 25 years Harvey has represented individuals, insurance companies, small businesses and billion dollar corporations in all aspects of civil litigation. Many of his clients have stayed with him for over a decade. His specialty is employment law, both representing employees, and defending employers, in lawsuits, class actions, mediations, arbitrations and labor commissioner hearings.

Harvey Berger obtained a Bachelor's Degree in Economics from the State University of New York at Stony Brook in 1974 and a Masters in Management from M.I.T. Sloan School of Management in 1976. After working for several years as a personnel manager and labor relations consultant, Harvey graduated from the University of San Diego School of Law in 1981.

Harvey lectures to statewide attorney organizations as well as to businesses throughout the Southern California area on wage & hour issues, sexual harassment and management issues. He is a Chapter Author of Wage and Hour Laws: A State-by-State Survey, as well as the 2008 Cumulative Supplement. Harvey is an arbitrator and Judge Pro Tempore for the San Diego Superior Court, an arbitrator for the San Diego County Bar Association Fee Dispute Committee, and privately arbitrates and mediates cases upon request.

As a result of a practice representing both employees and employers, Harvey is able to anticipate opposing counsel's strategies and far more effectively represent his clients. He is also able to easily interact with opposing counsel, while known as an aggressive and outstanding advocate for his clients.

Harvey is active in various bar associations and legal organizations, including the State Bar of California, American Bar Association, San Diego County Bar Association, California Employment Lawyers Association, National Employment Lawyers Association, Association of Trial Lawyers of America, Society for Human Resource Management, San Diego Defense Lawyers Association, Consumer Attorneys of San Diego and Lawyers Club of San Diego.

Harvey has achieved the highest possible ("AV") rating from Martindale-Hubbell, the authoritative resource for information on the world-wide legal profession. This AV rating indicates very high to preeminent legal ability and very high professional standards of conduct, ethics, reliability and diligence as established by confidential opinions from both judges and members of the bar.

• Attorney Timothy G. Williams

Tim completed his undergraduate work at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, receiving a Bachelor of Arts degree in Social Sciences and Communications in 1993. He then attended South Texas College of Law in Houston, Texas, with a focus of study in business law, litigation, and advocacy. There, he earned a Doctor of Jurisprudence degree in 1996. Tim has been licensed to practice law in Texas since graduating in 1996, and in California since 1997.

Tim has been working in different areas of labor and employment law, among other areas of business law, dating back to 1994. Since graduating from law school in 1996, Tim has represented a wide variety of clients, ranging from individuals to large corporations, in many aspects of business litigation, including employment and insurance cases. He has practiced in various federal and state courts at trial and on appeal, in arbitrations, as well in state administrative proceedings in the California labor commissioner and workers' compensation arenas.

Since joining Pope & Berger in 1999, employment matters have become the focus of Tim's practice. In particular, he specializes in wage-and-hour issues, where he represents employer and employee clients in individual and class-wide litigation. He lectures in employment matters, and authors employment law articles and treatises. In January 2003, Tim became a partner in Pope, Berger & Williams, LLP.

Tim is active in various bar associations. These include the State Bars of both California and Texas, American Bar Association, American Association for Justice, Association of Business Trial Lawyers, Consumer Attorneys of California, Federal Bar Association, San Diego County Bar Association, and San Diego County Defense Lawyers Association. He is also an alumni of the Louis M. Welch Chapter of the American Inns of Court, a nation-wide association of judges and lawyers committed to the preservation of ethics and civility in the practice of law. Tim also devotes time as a volunteer to local law school functions, bar organizations, and community events. He is also a two-time marathon finisher, who competes in local events.

Tim has also achieved the highest possible ("AV") rating from Martindale-Hubbell, the authoritative resource for information on the world-wide legal profession. This AV rating indicates very high to preeminent legal ability and very high professional standards of conduct, ethics, reliability and diligence as established by confidential opinions from both judges and members of the bar.

• Attorney Helen Y. Liu

Helen obtained her bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Berkeley, where she studied Anthropology. She received her J.D. from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law in 2006. While in law school, Helen served as Assistant Symposium Editor of the Hastings Women’s Law Journal and was actively involved in the Hastings Chinese Law and Culture Society.

Helen first became interested in labor and employment law during school, while working at a law firm representing employees with Division of Labor Standards Enforcement claims to recover unpaid overtime wages. Following admission to the State Bar of California, Helen practiced at a civil litigation firm in San Francisco, representing clients in contract, real property, and family law matters. Upon her relocation to San Diego, Helen was happy to join Pope, Berger & Williams, where she continues her employment law and civil litigation practice.

• Attorney Stephanie Reynolds

Stephanie Reynolds obtained her Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from the University of Colorado - Boulder in 1997. She received her J.D. from Western New England College School of Law in 2001. While in law school, she was a member of the National First Amendment Moot Court team and was an intern with the Hampden County District Attorney’s Office and the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Stephanie was also actively involved in several organizations including the Criminal Law Society, Women’s Law Society and the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program which provided income tax assistance to low-income, elderly and disabled people.

Following admission to the State Bar of California, Stephanie worked at a civil litigation firm that specialized in business litigation. She represented plaintiffs and defendants in business, real property, and employment litigation. Stephanie obtained favorable results for clients in actions involving breach of contract, fraud, unlawful use of trade secrets, unfair business practices, and copyright infringement. She has practiced in both state and federal court and has represented clients in mediation and arbitration proceedings.

Since joining Pope, Berger & Williams, LLP, Stephanie's focus is on employment litigation matters. She represents employee and employer clients in litigation involving wage and hour issues, mis-classification of employees, and breach of employment agreements.

Stephanie is a member of the State Bar of California, the American Bar Association, the San Diego County Bar Association, Lawyer’s Club of San Diego, and the Association of Business Trial Lawyers. Stephanie also frequently volunteers her time as a mentor to law students from California Western School of Law.