Should Big Law Be Afraid of David Sanford?
The Sanford Heisler name partner says his sex discrimination suit against Chadbourne & Parke is the strongest gender bias case he's ever brought.
September 13, 2016 at 04:38 PM
5 minute read
This article has been updated.
David Sanford, the Sanford Heisler name partner who made his name lobbing bias lawsuits at Fortune 500 companies, invited me to his office in midtown Manhattan last week for a little chat.
We were 10 minutes into our conversation about his latest client, Kerrie Campbell, the Chadbourne & Parke partner suing the firm for gender discrimination, when he laced into me: “What you wrote was a disservice!”
He was talking about my recent post, So You Want to Sue Your Firm, about the pitfalls of suing a law firm or company for discrimination. I had suggested that there's hell to pay if you sue your firm, since the process can leave people isolated, with few job prospects. (Not that there aren't some winners: Sanford's firm broke records with a $253 million sex discrimination verdict against Novartis A.G. in 2010. The case later settled for $175 million.)
Admittedly, the piece was a bit of a downer. It didn't lift my spirits to think that standing up to employers might force victims of harassment or discrimination to give up their chosen careers. So if Sanford wanted to challenge my conclusions, that was fine with me.
Here are excerpts of my meeting and follow-up phone conversation with Sanford:
You got on my case for being too pessimistic about suing firms for discrimination. How would you have written the article?
Let's applaud people who have the courage to right wrongs and effectuate change. These are people who feel they've been wronged, want compensation for the wrong and want the system changed.
That sounds noble, but what about the personal cost of bringing a lawsuit? What about the risk that the litigation can drag on and that you ultimately won't succeed?
There are risks in everything. You can go a dentist for a root canal and something can go wrong but that doesn't mean you don't go. Look, 80 percent of the cases we take on settle, and people are happy with the result. Very few go to trial.
So why hasn't this case settled? You'd think a big law firm would do everything to prevent airing the mess about how partners are paid and fired.
Maybe [Chadbourne] thought we wouldn't file. But if they think that about me, they didn't do their homework.
How did you decide to take this case?
I like Kerrie a lot and I'm confident that the jury will find her compelling. I only take 5 percent of the cases that come my way. We only take the ones we're prepared to take all the way to trial.
You say that Kerrie Campbell's case is a typical gender discrimination case. How does it compare with others you've seen?
It is the strongest I've seen. It is strong on numbers, strong on witnesses and strong on documents. We say there is discrimination based on gender because there's no other reason for [men and women] who are similarly situated to be paid differently. [Campbell asserts in her claim that she billed more than $5 million since she lateraled into the firm in 2014 but was paid less than men who generated far less revenue.] If you don't track compensation to revenue generated, what are you tracking it on? There are only so many objective factors to consider: hours billed, collectibles, collections and origination. I don't think these cases are complicated.
With partners, you can look at what they've generated as a measure. But what about associates whose only record is their performance reviews? Do they have a hell's chance of claiming gender discrimination?
It is tougher. Firms will say they make decisions about year-end bonuses and promotions based on billables and quality of work—and quality is subjective.
Kerrie is still at the firm?
Yes. She's doing work, doing appeals. She's a hard worker. There are uncertainty and challenges. She's really strong.
It must be weird to work at a firm that you are suing. Do people speak to her?
Not much.
And what do you think of that letter to you from 14 female partners at Chadbourne telling you off—that you don't speak for them in this class action lawsuit?
It is notable that the women do not contest the underlying allegations of gender discrimination. Other partners and associates have contacted us with support.
What advice do you have for people who are thinking of suing their firms? Should they be prepare to kiss Big Law goodbye for a new life?
Most people in law are like lemmings. They go to good schools, go for the prized big firm jobs and think—in a profoundly wrong way—that it's the only context to be a lawyer.
The typical story in this situation is that a person takes a courageous stand and discovers there's another world. People write me that they're much happier out of big law firms.
The reality is that it's a big world. And you don't have to work at Chadbourne to be happy.
Contact Vivia Chen at [email protected]. On Twitter: @lawcareerist.
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
You Might Like
View All'It's Like They Lynched You:' Law Professor's Discrimination Claim Reaches High Court
7 minute readTrending Stories
- 1Nevada Supreme Court to Decide Fate of Groundbreaking Contingency Cap Ballot Measure
- 2OpenAI Tells Court It Will Seek to Consolidate Copyright Suits Under MDL
- 34th Circuit Allows State Felon Voting Ban Challenge to Go Forward
- 4Class Actions Claim Progressive Undervalues Totaled Cars
- 5How the Trump II Administration Can Combat Antisemitism
Who Got The Work
Michael G. Bongiorno, Andrew Scott Dulberg and Elizabeth E. Driscoll from Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr have stepped in to represent Symbotic Inc., an A.I.-enabled technology platform that focuses on increasing supply chain efficiency, and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The case, filed Oct. 2 in Massachusetts District Court by the Brown Law Firm on behalf of Stephen Austen, accuses certain officers and directors of misleading investors in regard to Symbotic's potential for margin growth by failing to disclose that the company was not equipped to timely deploy its systems or manage expenses through project delays. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton, is 1:24-cv-12522, Austen v. Cohen et al.
Who Got The Work
Edmund Polubinski and Marie Killmond of Davis Polk & Wardwell have entered appearances for data platform software development company MongoDB and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The action, filed Oct. 7 in New York Southern District Court by the Brown Law Firm, accuses the company's directors and/or officers of falsely expressing confidence in the company’s restructuring of its sales incentive plan and downplaying the severity of decreases in its upfront commitments. The case is 1:24-cv-07594, Roy v. Ittycheria et al.
Who Got The Work
Amy O. Bruchs and Kurt F. Ellison of Michael Best & Friedrich have entered appearances for Epic Systems Corp. in a pending employment discrimination lawsuit. The suit was filed Sept. 7 in Wisconsin Western District Court by Levine Eisberner LLC and Siri & Glimstad on behalf of a project manager who claims that he was wrongfully terminated after applying for a religious exemption to the defendant's COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The case, assigned to U.S. Magistrate Judge Anita Marie Boor, is 3:24-cv-00630, Secker, Nathan v. Epic Systems Corporation.
Who Got The Work
David X. Sullivan, Thomas J. Finn and Gregory A. Hall from McCarter & English have entered appearances for Sunrun Installation Services in a pending civil rights lawsuit. The complaint was filed Sept. 4 in Connecticut District Court by attorney Robert M. Berke on behalf of former employee George Edward Steins, who was arrested and charged with employing an unregistered home improvement salesperson. The complaint alleges that had Sunrun informed the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection that the plaintiff's employment had ended in 2017 and that he no longer held Sunrun's home improvement contractor license, he would not have been hit with charges, which were dismissed in May 2024. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer, is 3:24-cv-01423, Steins v. Sunrun, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Greenberg Traurig shareholder Joshua L. Raskin has entered an appearance for boohoo.com UK Ltd. in a pending patent infringement lawsuit. The suit, filed Sept. 3 in Texas Eastern District Court by Rozier Hardt McDonough on behalf of Alto Dynamics, asserts five patents related to an online shopping platform. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap, is 2:24-cv-00719, Alto Dynamics, LLC v. boohoo.com UK Limited.
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250