Strasburger Labor & Employment Web Site

Today, a hiring decision, termination, downsizing, restructuring, transfer, or accommodation request carries with it a serious risk of litigation. Dollars and time devoted to litigation are dollars and time that could be utilized more productively to accomplish business objectives.

The common challenge to clients and Strasburger is to educate managers and supervisors about the long-term financial benefits of risk prevention and risk management as creative alternatives to the courthouse. Nonetheless, when litigation becomes inevitable after reasonable resolution proves elusive, the role of Strasburger is to win. Our lawyers understand and can help clients to understand the benefits of aggressive risk prevention and risk management. We also know how to win.

RISK PREVENTION

Some clients have yet to transition from a risk management to a risk prevention philosophy. The challenge to any client is to select counsel whose expertise and experience can be creatively utilized to assist in effecting institutional change.

Strasburger's commitment to risk prevention is longstanding. The firm's labor and employment practice provides newsletters, seminars, and a Speakers Bureau (single issue presentations) to clients. We have also pioneered the development of training programs. For example, at the request of the Dallas County Community College District, one of Strasburger's labor and employment partners developed self-contained training programs on discrimination, sexual harassment, and the Family Medical Leave Act to enable the District's human resources personnel to conduct in-house training on an ongoing basis. Training our clients to train their administrators and supervisors is a key component of our commitment to risk prevention.

Strasburger provides these additional risk prevention services to clients, including (1) an annual seminar to clients updating case law, statutory and regulatory developments; (2) a flat fee approach to audits and policy reviews to be agreed upon by Strasburger and the client; and (3) a flat fee approach to the development of training programs enabling clients to conduct their own in-house training.

RISK MANAGEMENT: A TEAM APPROACH

Corporate Officers, In-house Counsel, Risk Managers, Human Resource Professionals and Strasburger share a common commitment: to keep out of the courtroom and out of the headlines so that financial resources can be devoted to business objectives. The best risk prevention program, however, cannot insulate a business from claims. Clients who involve Strasburger at an early stage of a dispute, position themselves to get all the facts, to make reasoned assessments, and to effect any necessary remedial measures before claims ripen into lawsuits. A good investigation often is the best defense. Too often, clients charge down the litigation path on the basis of incorrect assumptions about the facts.

Having encouraged clients to utilize us at the early stages of a dispute, we must be configured to respond quickly to calls for help. To address this need for responsiveness, we emphasize a "client team" approach to provide immediate access to legal advice (during those times when the primary contact may be taking depositions or in trial at some remote location). Within labor and employment practice groups across the country, we believe this organizational structure is unique. In our structure, when a client needs help, help will answer the telephone, get in the car, and drive to the site to enable the client to shift from a reactive to a proactive approach to the problem. Moreover, our Austin, Collin County, Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, Washington, D.C., and Mexico City offices are networked telephonically and electronically to enable clients in any location to make a local call and team with legal talent in any of our offices.

Our lawyers are also trained to consider both a client's principles and its pocketbook. In that regard, we consider creative solutions to disputes long before climbing the courthouse steps. Pre-suit mediation is just one low cost, non-binding approach to crafting "win-win scenarios" to resolve a dispute. Mandatory arbitration of employment disputes is another option available to employers.

LITIGATION: A WINNING STRATEGY

For nearly 60 years, clients have entrusted their litigation to Strasburger with confidence that the firm brings (1) credibility, (2) expertise, and (3) results to the representation.

Credibility derives from a track record as one of the premier trial firms in the Southwest. More of our litigators have been elected to the American College of Trial Lawyers, the nation's most prestigious trial honorary, than any comparably sized Texas firm. National and state trial organizations, such as the Texas Bar Association, American Bar Association, International Association of Defense Counsel (IADC), Federation of Insurance and Corporate Counsel (FICC), Defense Research Institute (DRI) and Texas Association of Defense Counsel (TADC), continue to tap our lawyers for service as board members, officers, and committee chairs. Our opponents know and respect us.

The firm's substantive expertise extends to the myriad of legal hats that a client may wear — management, employer, landlord, tenant, research facility, governmental subdivision, cafeteria, police force, real estate developer, plan fiduciary, federal contractor, royalty owner, hospital, grant recipient, tour sponsor, and educator.

A number of our lawyers are board certified in labor and employment law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. Members of the group have cumulatively tried over 150 lawsuits to verdict, including:

Defense jury verdict on behalf of international telecommunications company arising from sexual harassment claim. (U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Louisiana, 2000).
Defense judgment on behalf of a national hospital company in jury trial involving claims under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act. (U.S. District Court, Sherman 1999).
Defense judgment on the affirmative defense of failure to mitigate in an age discrimination case brought by a terminated warehouse supervisor. (U.S. District Court, Dallas 1999).
Defense jury verdict on behalf of a community college district arising from sexual harassment and national origin claims brought by two former employees of the campus security department. (U.S. District Court, Dallas 1998).
Defense judgment in "bet the company" test case brought by the Department of Labor contesting independent contractor status of couriers. (DOL v. Express 60 Minutes) (U.S. District Court, Dallas 1997). Affirmed 161 F.3d 299 (5th Cir. 1998).

We aggressively seek to dispose of claims at the earliest stage of litigation as demonstrated by just a few of our results:

Summary judgment for a health care company employer in case alleging retaliation for filing worker's compensation claim. (County Court No. 5, Dallas 2000).
Summary judgment for defendant charged with failure to provide a name-clearing hearing. (U.S. District Court, Dallas 2000).
Summary judgment in a Title VII retaliation case. (U.S. District Court, Dallas 1999).
Dismissal of class action involving approximately 60,000 employees of a national hospital company. (State District Court, Fort Worth 1998).
Summary judgment in a three plaintiff race discrimination case brought by a former center director for a national childcare company. (U.S. District Court, Dallas 1998). Affirmed, 174 F.3d 198 (5th Cir. 1998).
Summary judgment in a sexual harassment case brought by the E.E.O.C. on behalf of several employees against their supervising doctor and employer. (U.S. District Court, Dallas 1998).
Summary judgment for an employer charged with disability discrimination under the ADA. In a case of first impression in the Fifth Circuit, the Court held that the application for or the receipt of Social Security disability benefits creates a rebuttable presumption that the claimant is judicially estopped from claiming status as a "qualified individual." Both the District Court and the Fifth Circuit held that the plaintiff failed to create a genuine issue of material fact to rebut the presumption. (Carolyn C. Cleveland v. Policy Management Systems Corp., 120 F.3d 513) (5th Cir. 1997). On appeal to the United States Supreme Court, the Supreme Court accepted the basic contention that the receipt of Social Security disability benefits is a evidentiary significance, but reversed the Fifth Circuit's holding regarding the creation of a rebuttable presumption.

LABOR-MANAGEMENT RELATIONS

Labor unions are redoubling efforts to unionize Texas companies. Strasburger exclusively represents management in labor-employment relations. Our lawyers assist management in union avoidance strategies, union organizing campaigns, collective bargaining, employee grievances, and charges of unfair labor practices.

Our lawyers have been involved in the following labor-management projects:

Representation of two trucking companies in connection with union organizing efforts (ongoing).
Representation of nationwide ambulance company in collective bargaining with the AFL-CIO (ongoing).
Representation of dairy industry clients in union decertification efforts (1998).
Advice to myriad clients regarding the acquisition of unionized facilities (ongoing).