Douglas A. Wickham has substantial trial, appellate and complex litigation experience in the full range of employment and labor matters. He focuses his practice on class action litigation, representative action, private attorney general matters and hotly contested cases involving the protection of trade secrets, covenants not to compete and other restrictive covenants. He also handles claims involving:

• Unfair competition
• Unfair business practices
• Discrimination on the basis of race, gender, age, and disability
• Harassment
• Retaliation
• Wrongful termination claims
• Breach of contract disputes

Douglas has extensive knowledge of a wide range of employment law matters, gained from 24 years of practice before state and federal trial and appellate courts; administrative agencies such as the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the Employment Development Department, the Department of Fair Employment and Housing, the Fair Employment and Housing Commission, and the California Division of Labor Standards Enforcement; and arbitration panels. His specific expertise applies to:

• Title VII
• The Americans with Disabilities Act
• The Family and Medical Leave Act
• The Fair Employment and Housing Act
• The Fair Labor Standards Act
• The Employee Retirement Income Security Act
• The Uniform Trade Secrets Act
• The Federal Arbitration Act
• The Computer Fraud and Abuse Act
• The California Arbitration Act
• The California Labor Code
• The California Family Rights Act
• The Class Action Fairness Act
• The California Labor Code
• The Private Attorney General Act of 2004

He also represents clients in arbitration and mediation.

Douglas regularly advises clients on compliance with applicable state and federal employment and labor laws and on international and cross-border employment matters and disputes. He also offers counseling in connection with:

• Corporate transactions
• Reductions-in-force
• Class action avoidance and defense
• Wage and hour matters
• The preparation and negotiation of national and international executive employment, consulting, and severance agreements
• Agreements providing for the protection of proprietary information, non-competition, and related issues

Additionally, he assists with internal investigations, conducts various types of training sessions and speaks at client briefings on employment and labor topics.

Douglas works with a broad range of clients that includes Fortune 50 companies and small employers in the following industries:

• Retail
• Food service
• Hospitality
• Manufacturing
• Pharmaceutical
• Staffing and contingent workers
• High tech
• Legal industry
• Transportation

Prior to joining Littler Mendelson in 1999, Douglas gained tremendous experience and training at two full service law firms. He also served as an assistant United States attorney in Washington, D.C., representing federal governmental clients in civil litigation matters, devoting the majority of his time to employment and labor cases. He represented the U.S. Information Agency in one of the largest Title VII gender discrimination class actions in history. He also served as a law clerk to the Honorable Frank X. Altimari of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. In law school, he was associate articles editor on the Georgetown Law Journal.

PROFESSIONAL AND COMMUNITY AFFILIATIONS

• Member, Labor and Employment / Intellectual Property sections - State Bar of California
• Member, Labor and Employment Law Section - Los Angeles County Bar Association
• Member, Alternate Dispute Resolution Committee - American Bar Association
• Member, Employee Rights and Responsibilities Committee - American Bar Association
• Member, Equal Employment Opportunity Committee - American Bar Association
• Member, International Labor Law Committee - American Bar Association