Financial Services & Insurance: Constangy, Brooks, Smith & Prophete, LLP

Overview

Employers operating within the financial services industry encounter distinct challenges concerning legal compliance and defense against lawsuits and administrative complaints. Entities like banks, insurance carriers, and financial institutions are particularly susceptible to employment-related lawsuits, including discrimination, retaliation, "whistleblower" violations, and wage and hour concerns. Additionally, the recruitment of industry personnel often leads to disputes over employee "raiding," violations of non-competition, non-solicitation, non-disclosure agreements, and trade secret litigation. Also, as federal depositories, banks must maintain affirmative action plans and frequently become targets of compliance reviews and "glass ceiling" evaluations by the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP).

What Sets Us Apart

Our lawyers’ substantial experience working with financial services companies enables us to effectively and efficiently represent our clients.

Members of Constangy’s sophisticated class and collective action practice group have substantial experience representing financial services companies in overtime cases filed under the Fair Labor Standards Act and related state wage and hour laws. With offices located in the primary hubs of the financial services industry, Constangy can readily mobilize a team of litigators to handle complex cases on a nationwide or regional basis. This enables us to provide a unified defense to financial institutions doing business in multiple states.

In addition, Constangy team members regularly represent banks, insurance carriers, and other financial institutions in discrimination and retaliation cases, including against large-scale investigations before administrative agencies and related litigation.

Constangy’s attorneys also advise financial institutions regarding the employment law implications of mergers and acquisitions, including potential class claims related to reductions in force. Our attorneys have tremendous experience with the development of HR policies and practices that are specific to financial institutions and can help eliminate risk on a class basis. We also work regularly with clients in the financial industry to protect their trade secrets and other competitive interests, including drafting non-competition agreements and other restrictive covenants and obtaining injunctive relief.

What We Do

FINRA Arbitration
Advice and representation in matters involving violations of non-competition, non-solicitation and non-disclosure agreements, as well as theft of trade secrets and other competitively sensitive information
Defense of claims alleging discrimination, harassment and retaliation before administrative agencies and courts, including large-scale class action proceedings
Defense of whistleblower claims under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and other statutes
Defense of claims of unpaid overtime and other violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act and similar state wage and hour laws, including nationwide collective/class actions
Advice, policy development, and training regarding compliance with employment-related laws and regulations
Development of affirmative action plans and representation in OFCCP compliance reviews

Representative Matters

Represented one of the nation’s largest financial institutions in a class investigation being conducted by the Denver Field Office of the EEOC regarding allegations of age discrimination resulting from the merger between two major banks and related reductions in force.
Represented multinational bank before San Francisco Superior Court in a class action involving meal and rest periods, off-the-clock work, reimbursements and travel time.
U.S. District Court, Central District of CA. Represented and served as lead California counsel for large banking institution in class action regarding MDL hybrid commission sales.
U.S. District Court, Central District of CA. Represented global insurance provider in putative medical benefits class action.