Mr. Garcia focuses his practice exclusively on representing employers with their labor and employment needs. He has extensive experience in both federal and state courts representing employers. He has defended both individual and collective actions under numerous state and federal employment laws, including Title VII, the ADEA, the ADA, FMLA, FLSA, Florida’s private whistle blower statute, and all manner of retaliation claims. Mr. Garcia has also defended employment related torts such as defamation, negligent retention, negligent hiring, assault, battery and fraud, as well as all manner of breach of contract claims. Mr. Garcia has handled numerous trials and administrative hearings.
Mr. Garcia has been featured as a speaker at numerous human resources and legal conferences throughout Florida.
Mr. Garcia also represents employers in front of numerous administrative agencies such as the EEOC and the Florida Commission On Human Relations.
Mr. Garcia regularly advises employers on numerous day to day matters related to their employees both domestically and internationally. He emphasizes a practical approach to problem solving while decreasing an employer’s exposure to potential liabilities. Mr. Garcia’s fluency in Spanish further allows him to address employee issues where language barriers would otherwise prevent such.
Experience
In addition to counseling clients on employment issues, Mr. Garcia handles the following:
- Litigates employment law cases in state and federal courts and before administrative agencies throughout the state
- Handles trials in federal and state courts as well as before administrative agencies
- Handles appeals before both federal and state appellate courts, most recently upholding a summary judgment verdict given in a Florida state court
- Has successfully achieved summary judgment in several race, national origin, gender, sex, and age discrimination claims
- Provides employer training, lectures and seminars on various employment topics in both English and Spanish
- Has successfully achieved no-cause determinations in various sex, age, and national origin discrimination claims
- Represents employers in various restrictive covenant matters
- Represents employers with their international labor and employment needs
Florida
U.S. District Court, Federal District
U.S. District Court, Middle, Northern and Southern Districts of Florida
Education and Honors
- Member, Land Use and Environmental Law Journal
- Member, Moot Court
- Member, Mock Trial Team
- Florida Trend magazine's "Florida Legal Elite Up and Coming Attorneys"
- Florida Super Lawyers "Rising Stars" list
Professional Activities
- Florida Bar Association
- Tampa Bay Hispanic Bar Association
- Hillsborough County Bar Association
- Federal Legislative Chair, HR Florida
In The News
- April 1, 2011 - Tampa Bay Business Journal - "'Imperfect' E-Verify System the Subject of Statewide Business Debate"
- April 1, 2011 - Tampa Bay Business Journal - "Independent 1099 Contractors Offer Options, Introduce Questions"