Labor & Employment Client Seminar

Carla J. Hartley, of Dillingham & Murphy, LLP (San Francisco, California, USA), represents employers in jury trials, appeals, arbitrations and before agencies such as the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, California Department of Fair Employment and Housing, and Division of Labor Standards Enforcement.

A skilled litigator, Carla also provides human resources advice and a full range of services to assist her clients in remaining compliant with the complicated web of laws applicable to California employers. Her areas of expertise include wrongful termination, discrimination, harassment, retaliation, whistleblowers, leaves of absence, disability and religious accommodation, wage and hour, trade secrets, privacy rights, reductions in force, severance negotiations, compensation and commission plans, and class and collective actions. Additionally, Carla's expertise focus includes the Affordable Care Act, Stark and Anti-Kickback compliance, and peer review.

Philip S. Mortensen, of Barton LLP (New York, New York, USA), has been representing both private and public sector employers in labor and employment law matters for over thirty years. Prior to joining Barton, Phil was with Jackson Lewis and Kreitzman, Mortensen & Borden. Phil’s labor law practice has concentrated in the areas of union avoidance, collective bargaining, National Labor Relations Board litigation and arbitration.

Phil’s Employment Law experience extends from drafting employee handbooks to working closely with managers and training supervisors to ensure compliance with all applicable laws such as equal employment opportunity laws and wage/hours laws. He has conducted many on-site, in-depth “Risk Review” meetings with management in order to make certain of employer’s compliance with Federal and State anti-discrimination laws, to identify potential risks and exposures, and to recommend appropriate and lawful action in order to rectify those potential vulnerabilities. In both administrative proceedings, as well as related court litigation, Phil has represented and defended management in numerous employment discrimination actions.

Francisco Peña is a partner at Cacheaux Cavazos & Newton (CCN)(Mexico City, Mexico), where he has worked since 2000. He graduated from the Tecnológico de Monterrey (JD). Francisco represents foreign investors doing business in Mexico, particularly in the areas of environmental, employment and labor litigation, health and safety and contract law. He has extensive experience negotiating collective bargaining agreements with Mexican unions before Mexican labor authorities. Prior to joining CCN, he worked as the legal director of Grupo CIGSA in Tampico, Tamaulipas; he also worked for Martínez Arrieta y Asociados, and Asesores Jurídicos S.C. in Monterrey, Nuevo León.

He has written numerous articles and given presentations on environmental and labor law topics. He is a frequent speaker at seminars and conferences offered throughout the United States by M.L. Smith Publishers.

Paul W.L. Russell, of Russell Advocaten B.V. (Amsterdam, Netherlands), is the senior partner at Russell Advocaten, a full-service law firm in Amsterdam. He has over 35 years of experience in corporate and commercial law, family law and art law. Paul is an expert litigator. His clients include international companies, art dealers and auction houses, museums and well-known artists and collectors. As a well-established expert in the field of art law, he has handled several complicated art restitution cases.

Corporate clients praise him for his strategic out-of-the-box thinking and commercial expertise. As a trusted advisor, he provides legal assistance in the day-to-day operations of many entrepreneurs. Paul does this in a persistent way, always looking for practical and immediately applicable solutions. Besides his decades of experience as a legal professional, he looks back on a long political career as a member of the Dutch Senate. For many years, he was a speaker on Foreign Affairs, Defense and Development Cooperation.

Michael Szeto is a litigation partner of ONC Lawyers (Hong Kong) and heads the firm’s employment practice. He has over 20 years of experience in handling complex commercial dispute resolution, shareholders’ and joint venture disputes, bankruptcy and insolvency matters, debt recovery and mortgagee actions. He also routinely deals with regulatory actions and compliance matters under the Securities and Futures Ordinance, the Hong Kong listing rules and anti-money laundering laws and guidelines.

On the employment side, Michael often advises on various contentious and non-contentious employment matters, covering contract reviews, termination disputes, injunctive relief, discrimination and harassment claims, data privacy matters, as well as advice on matters relating to team moves, remuneration packages and employee incentive schemes. He is an author to Hong Kong employment law manuals and frequently publishes employment law articles in industry publications. He frequently gives talks to legal and human resource professionals. Michael has been recognized as a Lexology Legal Influencer in Employment & Immigration (Individual Expert) during multiple quarters in 2021, 2022, and 2023.