Featured Speaker:
Brett OwensTampa Office - Associate
Fisher Phillips
Topic:
Don’t Get Stranded Avoiding Workplace Retaliation Claims The number of retaliation claims has nearly tripled since 1997, and retaliation now is the most frequently filed charge with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Even if a discrimination or harassment claim fails, a retaliation claim may prevail. In this session we will cover, what constitutes retaliation, protecting and defending your company against such claims, whistle-blower protection vs. retaliation claims and creating policies and procedures to minimize problems, claims and lawsuits.
About Our Speaker:
Brett Owens is an attorney in the Tampa office. He devotes his practice to all aspects of labor and employment law. Brett has litigated employment disputes throughout state and federal courts in Florida, including, individual claims of discrimination, harassment, and retaliation, trade secret and restrictive covenant disputes, and class and collective actions under the Fair Credit Reporting Act and Fair Labor Standards Act.
When employers are faced with litigation, Brett strategically relies upon the discovery process to position disputes for an early resolution. When necessary, Brett has assisted with trying several cases to verdict in state court.
Brett also assists clients with navigating the myriad of federal and state laws governing the employer-employee relationship to ensure compliance and reduce the risk of litigation. Brett has experience assisting employers with due diligence during mergers and acquisitions and also provides advice to employers during post-acquisition integration. Brett also works with gig economy companies to prepare independent contractor agreements and prepares nondisclosure, arbitration, and noncompetition agreements for employers.
Brett was included in the Florida Super Lawyers – Rising Stars list in 2018 and 2019. Brett is a member of the Mentor Network at the Tampa Bay Wave, a community-driven nonprofit organization that supports the success of Tampa Bay’s tech entrepreneurs and the innovative businesses they are building.
Brett earned his JD, cum laude, from the University of Florida Frederic G. Levin College of Law in 2014. Brett also completed his MS in Management in 2011 and his MBA in 2014 from the University of Florida, Hough Graduate School of Business and graduated summa cum laude, with a B.S. in Advertising from the University of Florida in 2010.
While in law school, Brett was a Judicial Intern for the Honorable James S. Moody in the United States District Court, Middle District of Florida. Additionally, Brett served as President of the Association of Law and Business, Vice President of the Levin College of Law Honor Committee, and Secretary of Florida Blue Key.
Sponsored By:
Edward Martinez, Agent for New York Life