For nearly 20 years, Brian McDermott has represented public and private employers in individual and class/collective employment actions, including cases involving the FMLA, the ADA, Title VII, the ADEA, ERISA, the FLSA, the NLRA, covenant not to compete/trade secret matters, state wage laws, and wrongful discharge. He has represented employers in federal and state courts, labor arbitrations, and administrative agencies (including the EEOC and NLRB) throughout the country. Brian also has represented employers before the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth and Seventh Circuits on multiple occasions.
Brian devotes a substantial portion of his practice to litigation avoidance and counseling. To this end, he works with employers to provide valuable employment training, including sexual harassment, hiring/interviewing, employee terminations, union avoidance, diversity, and FMLA training. He also assists employers in developing employee handbooks, personnel policies, employment contracts, noncompete agreements, severance agreements, and other employment-related documents.
Experience
Experience:
A significant part of Brian’s labor and employment practice involves representing employers in state and federal employment actions. A representative sampling of Brian’s litigation experience includes:
- Prevailing on summary judgment for international food company in plant closing case under the ADEA
- Obtaining Seventh Circuit appellate victory in ERISA Section 510 case for national retailer
- Securing dismissal in FLSA “misclassification” collective action for regional retailer
- Obtaining directed verdict at trial on behalf of automobile dealership in a state-law employment action
- Obtaining Seventh Circuit victory in ADEA case for national retailer
- Defeating union representation petition filed with the NLRB against Indiana-based hotel
- Obtaining appellate victory at the NLRB on behalf of a major utility charged with violating Section 8(a)(1) of the NLRA
- Prevailing on summary judgment for a national telecommunications company in an FMLA action
- Obtaining Seventh Circuit appellate victory in ERISA Section 502 case for national telecommunications company
- Securing appellate victory before the Sixth Circuit in an ADEA case
- Obtaining dismissal of race case in Iowa on behalf of national biomedical company
- Prevailing at summary judgment on behalf of national retailer in FLSA action
- Obtaining dismissal of Section 1981 claim for national aeronautics company
Admitted to Practice:
Indiana
Iowa
U.S. District Court, Northern and Southern Districts of Indiana
U.S. District Court, Northern District of Iowa
U.S. District Court, Northern District of Ohio
U.S. Court of Appeals, Sixth and Seventh Circuits
Education and Honors
Honors and Awards:
- Best Lawyers in America (2005-2011)
- Chambers USA (2004-07, 2009-11)
- Indiana Super Lawyer, Law & Politics and Indianapolis Monthly (2005-11)
- AV Peer Review Rating by LexisNexis Martindale-Hubbell
Professional Activities
Professional Activities:
- American Bar Association (Civil Procedure and Evidence Committee; Tort Insurance Practices Section (2002-present); ABA/ERR Complex Litigation Subcommittee)
- Indiana Bar Association (Chair, Labor and Employment Section. 2003-2004)
- Indianapolis Bar Association (Chair, Labor and Employment Section, 2004-2005)
- Employment Law360 Advisory Board (2009-10)
- Indiana Chamber of Commerce (Human Resource and Labor Committees)
- National Association of Professional Employer Organizations (Legal Advisory Counsel, 2010)
- IndySHRM (Strategic Leadership Forum Committee)
Speeches:
- Ogletree Deakins webinar - "Genetic Bias in your workplace: How to Comply with the New GINA Regulations" - December 16, 2010
- Business & Legal Resources/Employer Resource Institute - "Final GINA Regulations Issued: What Employers Need to Know to Comply" - webinar - December 15, 2010
- Indiana Chamber of Commerce Leave Seminar - "You Make the Call!" - Indianapolis - September 15, 2010
- Indiana Chamber of Commerce, Wellness Council of Indiana, INShape Indiana, 2010 Indiana Employee Health and Wellness Summit - "The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act: Its Impact on Employee Benefit Plans and Employment Practices” (a/k/a “I Dream of - Indianapolis - September 1, 2010
- Indiana Chamber of Commerce - "Don’t Leave Me!”: Managing the FMLA 2010" - Indianapolis - June 3, 2010
- Ogletree Deakins Workplace Strategies Seminar - "Tackling Tough Wage & Hour Issues" - Las Vegas - May 7, 2010
- Indiana Chamber of Commerce, 46th Annual Human Resource Conference & Expo - "50 Ways to Leave Your Employer" - Indianapolis - May 5, 2010
- Columbus AM Series - "The NLRB in the Obama Era" - Columbus - February 17, 2010
- National Business Institute - "State and Local Government Law" - Independence - December 2, 2009
- 2009 Warehouse Legal Practices Symposium Human Resource Issues - "Updates to the Family and Medical Leave Act " - Chicago - June 24, 2009 - June 25, 2009
- Park 100 Partners - "Evaluating Employee Performance and Workplace Harassment: Avoiding Legal Liability " - Indianapolis - May 27, 2009
- Wabash Personnel Association - "The Changing Landscape of Federal Employment Law" - Indianapolis - May 27, 2009
- Jennings County Human Resources - "Evaluating Employee Performance and Workplace Harassment: Avoiding Legal Liability " - North Vernon - May 20, 2009
- Ogletree Deakins Workplace Strategies Seminar - "EEOC Charges – Effective Response Strategies" - Miami - May 8, 2009
- Ogletree Deakins Workplace Strategies Seminar - "Discrimination Hot Spots – Disability and Religion" - Miami - May 7, 2009
In The News
Media Quotes:
- March 29, 2012 - Bloomberg BNA - "Employee Leave Issues Can Be Complex As Overlapping Laws Apply, Speakers Say"
- February 3, 2010 - Law360 - "Controversy Over NLRB Pick Persists on Eve of Vote"
- June 1, 2009 - Inside Counsel - "Advancing Arbitration in Supreme Court Upholds Mandatory Arbitration of Discrimination Claims"
- August 28, 2006 - Inside Indiana Business - "Religious Discrimination"
Published Works:
- June 2011 - Indiana Restaurant Association: At Your Service Magazine - "Harassment and Teenaged Employees"
- June 2011 - The Federal Lawyer - "The Use Of Experts In Employment Discrimination Litigation"
- December 13, 2010 - Ogletree Deakins Publication - "EEOC Issues Long-Awaited Final GINA Title II Regulations "
- November 22, 2010 - Ogletree Deakins Publication - "EEOC Publishes Long-Awaited Final GINA Title II Regulations"
- March 19, 2010 - Ogletree Deakins Publication - "Governor Daniels Signs Workplace Gun Bill Into Law"
- February 2010 - HR Spotlight.com - "Seventh Circuit Looks at Religion in the Workplace from Two Different Perspectives"
- December 2009 - IndySHRM Newsletter - "Beyond Facebook – Legal Issues in Marketing Your Company"
- October 2009 - HR Spotlight.com, Employment Law Update - "Court Upholds FMLA Verdict Against Employer for Retroactive Termination of Health Benefits "
- August 2009 - HR Spotlight.com, Employment Law Update - "Unanswered Request for Raise Renders EEOC Charge Filed Years Later Timely"
- July/August 2009 - Indiana State Bar Association - Res Gestae - "Just When You Thought You Understood the Family and Medical Leave Act"
- Summer 2009 - Indiana State Bar Association – The Workplace Lawyer - "Just When You Thought You Understood the Family and Medical Leave Act"
- March 2009 - HR Spotlight - "Tenth Circuit Holds Unforeseeable Circumstances Justify Layoff Without WARN Notice"
- 2009 - Indiana Chamber - "The Interviewing Guide: Helping Indiana Employers Utilize Lawful and Effective Interviewing Techniques"
- 2009 - Certificate Program in FMLA and ADA Compliance and Best Practice, Council on Education in Management - "Understanding the Legal Prohibitions on Discrimination Against Disabled Individuals"
- 2009 - Indiana Chamber of Commerce - "The Interviewing Guide: Helping Indiana Employers Utilize Lawful and Effective Interviewing Techniques"