Craig Cleland defends employers in litigation—including class and collective actions—and counsels them on compliance and risk management issues in all areas of employment law.  He is Co-Chair of the Firm’s Class Action Practice Group. 

Craig is named in Best Lawyers in America, Atlanta Magazine’s “Super Lawyers,” Georgia Trend’s “Legal Elite,” and Chambers USA’s Leading Business Lawyers.  Recently, he was recognized as a BTI Client Service All-Star, one of 165 lawyers in the U.S. who “combine exceptional legal expertise with practical advice, business savvy and creative, effective solutions.” 

Craig is a contributor to Black’s Law Dictionary, Garner’s Modern American Usage, and Employment Discrimination Law.  He also teaches employment discrimination law as an adjunct professor at Georgia State University College of Law.

During law school, Craig was the Editor-in-Chief of the law review, winner of the McKenzie-McPhail Moot Court Competition, and Runner-Up, Best First-Year Brief.  After graduating in 1992, he clerked for U.S. District Court Judge Marvin H. Shoob in Atlanta for two years.  Before joining Ogletree Deakins in 2002, Craig practiced at Paul Hastings, including one year as Senior Employment Counsel at Georgia-Pacific.

Craig has also served as a mediator or been retained as settlement counsel, and he is a graduate of the Harvard Law School Mediation Program.  He has served on several Atlanta nonprofit boards, including as chair.