Richard L. Hurford

Since 1980, Mr. Hurford has focused his practice on employment matters and the representation of business clients in litigation and claims in state and federal courts and administrative agencies.

Immediately prior to joining the Firm, Mr. Hurford had been the Director of Litigation for Masco Corporation, a Michigan based Fortune 200 Company, which manufactures a wide variety of products for the home.  Masco, through over 30 wholly owned subsidiaries, employed more than 57,000 employees in its world-wide manufacturing and service based operations.  Although an employment law specialist, Mr. Hurford managed a dedicated staff of 20 legal professionals and litigated all types of cases throughout the United States, Europe and Canada (including employment, construction defect, commercial transactions, dealership termination, and general liability claims).  During his 15 year tenure at Masco, Mr. Hurford gained significant experience in the following areas:  the due diligence process and the evaluation of the “risk profile” of companies being evaluated for acquisition; Sarbanes-Oxley processes and compliance; system based claims and litigation management programs; the development of internal fraud protocols and investigation programs; trade secret and proprietary and confidential information protection systems; company wide mandatory pre-dispute mediation and arbitration programs; and the risk management of the Company.  As the Director of Litigation, Mr. Hurford monitored and measured the return on investment (ROI) of the Company’s legal expenditures, reductions in litigation costs, and mitigating the Company’s risk profile.  Through the implementation of project management principles and continuous improvement practices, and aligning legal spends with targeted results, Masco experienced an ever-increasing ROI in the processing of its risk and litigation portfolio.

In addition to his J.D., Mr. Hurford has earned a Masters in History, an MBA, and a Green Belt certification in Legal Lean Sigma. 

Prior to joining his client Masco Corporation in 1994, Mr. Hurford was a partner at a large Michigan based law firm where he focused on litigation and dispute resolution.  As a partner at that firm, Mr. Hurford specialized in employment litigation and claims but also defended and tried other types of cases in state and federal courts, including commercial disputes, product liability claims, medical malpractice cases, and construction defect matters. 

Throughout his career Mr. Hurford has been a frequent lecturer and presenter on employment law, ADR, and litigation and claims management techniques.