Lew Clark concentrates his practice on counseling and advocacy for both private and public sector employers in all types of labor and employment matters and is an experienced mediator of employment and other civil litigation matters.

Mr. Clark is a trial lawyer who represents employers in a broad range of employment litigation and administrative matters throughout the United States that involve such issues as discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wage and hour law, employment at will, employee benefits, employment contracts, defamation, employment intentional torts, wrongful discharge, unfair competition, trade secrets and unfair labor practices. He also regularly represents both private and public sector employers in arbitrations relating to grievances under collective bargaining agreements.

Mr. Clark counsels employers on compliance with all federal and state labor and employment laws such as discrimination laws, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN), Equal Pay Act, National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), whistleblower retaliation provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, and the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA). He counsels employers on workplace harassment, workplace violence, terminations, mass layoffs, union avoidance, unfair labor practices, drug and alcohol testing, employment practices liability insurance, employee handbooks and policies, noncompetition agreements and executive employment agreements. He regularly collaborates with the firm’s corporate lawyers, counseling clients on employment and traditional labor law issues that arise amidst mergers, acquisitions, bankruptcies, restructurings, reductions in force and reorganizations. Mr. Clark also represents employers with respect to complex executive compensation arrangements and counsels employers with respect to negotiated and involuntary executive terminations.

Mr. Clark also performs comprehensive reviews of employment policies and practices and trains supervisors and other employees concerning hiring and firing, discrimination, harassment, managing employee leaves, religious discrimination and accommodation, union avoidance, wage and hour law compliance, technology use, and other employee relations issues. He also assists human resources and legal professionals in developing comprehensive legal compliance training programs designed to assist employers in minimizing the risk of employment-related liability. He is also a frequent lecturer for a variety of human resources organizations.

Mr. Clark is a member of the Labor and Employment Committees of the American Bar Association; the Arizona, Ohio and New York State Bar Associations; and the Columbus Bar Association. He has been listed in The Best Lawyers in America and Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers each year since 2006 and in Ohio Super Lawyers five of the last seven years including 2009.

Szakmai tapasztalat

• Counseling the Kingdom of Bahrain in revising and updating the Kingdom’s labor laws as part of an overall labor market reform.
• Obtaining a complete defense verdict on behalf of a consumer products manufacturer in an age discrimination case tried before a jury in state court in Ohio.
• Obtaining a complete defense verdict on behalf of an international HVAC equipment manufacturer in a race discrimination case tried before jury in state court in Ohio.
• Obtaining summary judgment on behalf of a national real estate developer in an ADA case in federal court in Alabama.
• Obtaining summary judgment on behalf of an international defense contractor in an age discrimination claim arising from a reduction in force.
• Obtaining summary judgment on behalf of an international software company in an age discrimination case in federal court in Ohio and obtaining affirmance of the judgment on appeal to the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.
• Obtaining summary judgment on behalf of an international pharmaceutical manufacturer in an age and reverse national origin discrimination case in federal court in Ohio and obtaining affirmance of the judgment on appeal to the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.
• Representing a public regional transit authority in a federal collective action in which multiple employees in multiple positions alleged that the employer misclassified the employees as exempt from overtime and obtaining a favorable resolution that enabled the employer to properly treat the employees as exempt from overtime.
• Representing a multistate hair salon company in a Department of Labor audit involving a complete range of FLSA issues and obtaining a favorable resolution without litigation, enabling the employer to continue its lawful practices including the proper treatment of critical managers as exempt from overtime and continuing permissible docking practices.
• Representing a national insurance carrier in conducting a comprehensive review of the employer’s wage and hour law compliance including proper overtime exemption determinations and pay practices.
• Conducting a comprehensive wage and hour compliance review for a regional telecommunications company.
• Obtaining summary judgment against the EEOC on behalf of an auto parts manufacturer in an ADA case in federal court in Ohio.
• Successfully defending a publicly traded manufacturing conglomerate in a Sarbanes-Oxley whistleblower claim.