Partner

Heather M. Sager is a partner in the firm's Labor & Employment Practice Group.  Heather focuses her practice on management-side representation in collective and class actions, with particular experience in wage and hour litigation under state and federal law, including representative claims brought under California Business & Professions Code Section 17200. Heather also regularly handles single and multi-plaintiff employment litigation in the areas of unfair competition, wrongful discharge, harassment and discrimination before state and federal courts and administrative agencies.  Heather regularly provides management training seminars and advice and counsel on reductions in force, employee relations, and workplace policies and procedures for the firm's clients.  

Published Opinions:

• Jackson v. EJB Facilities Services, Inc., 334 Fed.Appx. 104, C.A. 9 (Wash.), Oct. 9, 2009.
• Wren v. RGIS Inventory Specialists, 2009 WL 2612307 (N.D. Cal. 2009).
• Johnson v. RGIS Inventory Specialists, 554 F. Supp.2d 693 (E.D. Tex. 2007).
• Woodfin Suite Hotels, LLC v. City of Emeryville, 2007 WL 81911 (N.D. Cal. 2007).
• Ho v. IKON Office Solutions, Inc., 143 F.Supp.2d 1163 (N.D.Cal. 2001).

Representative Experience and Accomplishments:

• Lead counsel role in more than one dozen state and federal class, collective, and representative actions, supervising fact investigation, discovery, certification and summary judgment briefing and argument, pre-trial and settlement strategy, and notice proceedings;
• Defeated certification of national class in FLSA collective action;
• Obtained summary judgment on majority of wage and hour claims brought under FLSA in putative national collective action;
• In two actions for different clients, obtained voluntary dismissal of putative state-wide class claims of misclassification and unfair business practices, followed by minimal settlement of individual plaintiffs' remaining causes of action;
• Obtained summary judgment of wrongful termination, gender discrimination, and hostile work environment claims brought under Title VII;
• Obtained summary judgment of travel pay claim under California state law;
• Obtained complete defense verdict after the arbitration of a high six-figure discrimination matter;
• Obtained summary adjudication on 60 of 63 causes of action in multi-plaintiff case alleging wage and hour violations and various categories of discrimination;
• Obtained complete summary judgment on behalf of a large national advertising firm for claims of breach of contract, wrongful termination and retaliation filed by former management employee fired for sexual harassment;
• Defeated six-figure wage claim by former sales employee; and
• Obtained high six-figure award for client in unfair competition case alleging misuse of proprietary information by former manager.

In General.  Heather graduated cum laude from Wake Forest University with a bachelor's degree in English.  She received her law degree from Fordham University School of Law, where she was on the editorial board of the International Law Journal, a volunteer mediator at the Bronx Civil Court, one of the founding members of the law school's Battered Women's Clinic, and a recipient of the Murray Public Service Award.  She is active in a number of professional and trade organizations including the National Association of Women Business Owners Bay Area Chapter, Fordham University School of Law's Alumni Association.  Heather has been the featured speaker for various civic and trade organizations, including the National Association of Women Business Owners, Tipping Point, the California Restaurant Association, the California Lodging Industry Associations, the Oakland Small Business Symposium, the Bay Area New Employer Training Forum, the Employer's Group, Employer Resource Institute and Lorman Educational Services.