David J. Laurent focuses his practice on complex ERISA litigation, traditional labor law, and transactional work involving employee-related issues, with a particular emphasis on the coal industry. His extensive ERISA practice includes defending claims by multiemployer trust funds for delinquent contributions and withdrawal liability, as well as a wide array of matters arising under the Coal Industry Retiree Health Benefit Act. Dovetailing his ERISA practice with traditional labor law, David provides unique insight in collective bargaining with regard to benefits matters, as well as unfair labor proceedings, union organizing campaigns, decertification elections, strikes, and corporate campaigns. His knowledge in the ERISA and traditional labor law arenas complements his transactional practice, which encompasses helping clients structure acquisitions and divestitures, minimizing control group, single employer, and other employee-related liabilities, negotiating labor agreements as a condition to closing transactions, conducting due diligence via web-based data rooms, and drafting complex employee and benefits-related provisions. Some examples of David's recent matters include: · Litigating alter ego and control group issues in a withdrawal liability dispute. · Assisting a large coal company with all of the labor and benefits aspects of several large acquisitions of both union and union free facilities. · Assisting a venture capital firm purchase the stock of a target company from an ESOP. · Helping to settle an ERISA class action claim for breach of fiduciary duty arising out of the bankruptcy of a large hospital. · Evaluating the trust fund contribution obligations that a national industry labor agreement will impose on potential me-too signers. · Helping a large investment firm understand the potential reach of related person liabilities under the Coal Industry Retiree Health Benefit Act. · Helping a family-owned group of affiliated companies understand the withdrawal liability implications of changes in ownership percentages. · Helping a coal company negotiate two collective bargaining agreements that included several major changes in benefits for active and retired employees. · Defending a unionized company from claims for trust fund contributions based on work performed by the employees of a union-free affiliate. · Helping two refractory companies negotiate new union contracts as a condition to acquiring those facilities. Prior to joining Buchanan, David was a shareholder in the Pittsburgh office of a regional law firm, where he handled a wide range of labor, employment, and employee benefits laws issues for many years. David has published many papers for the Energy & Mineral Law Foundation dealing with a variety of labor topics. Since 2007, David has been recognized in the Labor and Employment Law category on The Best Lawyers in America list, and was also recognized in the Natural Resources Law category in the publication's 2008 edition. In 2007, Pittsburgh Magazine listed him as one of the city's top labor and employment lawyers. In 2009, he was selected to the Pennsylvania Super Lawyers® list, representing the top 5 percent of attorneys practicing in Pennsylvania. Publications & Speeches Pittsburgh Labor and Employment Attorney David Laurent Quoted on 'Mini-COBRA' in Northeast Pennsylvania Business Journal
October 2, 2009 Pennsylvania's New Mini-Cobra Law Helps Additional Employees
August 18, 2009 Buchanan's Assistance in $2 Billion Stock Merger for Alpha Natural Resources, Inc. Noted by Law360, The Legal Intelligencer
August 12, 2009 Labor: Union Free and Union Operations
presenter, "Coal Law Short Course"
August 10, 2009 Buchanan Team Assists in $2 Billion Stock Merger for Client Alpha Natural Resources, Inc.
August 6, 2009 70 Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney Attorneys and Specialists Named Best Lawyers in America; Firm Ranks First in Several Categories
August 5, 2009 Supreme Court Holds that an Employer Cannot Make a Race-Based Decision to Avoid Possible Title VII Adverse Impact Claims Unless there is a Strong Basis in Evidence of Disparate Impact Liability
July 9, 2009 40 Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney Attorneys Selected to Pennsylvania Super Lawyers List
May 26, 2009 Four Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney Attorneys Nominated to become Fellows of the American Bar Foundation
May 7, 2009 The New COBRA Rules
presenter, Indiana University of Pennsylvania's 28th Annual Labor Conference
April 24, 2009 Pittsburgh Labor and Employment Attorney David Laurent to Present at Indiana University of Pennsylvania's 28th Annual Labor Management Conference
April 20, 2009 IRS Answers Important Questions Regarding New Cobra Rules
April 8, 2009 U.S. Department of Labor Issues Model Notices for New COBRA Rules
March 19, 2009 The Battle Begins - EFCA Introduced in Congress
March 11, 2009 NLRB Reminds Employers that Providing More than Ministerial Aid Can Taint a Decertification Petition
February 18, 2009 Fair Labor Standards Act: The Bare Essentials of Donning and Doffing Claims
Energy and Mineral Law Foundation's Winter Workshops on Energy Law
February 6, 2009 New York State Department of Labor Issues Proposed Rule for NY WARN Act
February 4, 2009 New 2008 FMLA Regulations Are in Effect Beginning January 16, 2009
December 15, 2008 38 Pittsburgh Attorneys Noted in Pittsburgh Business Times for Inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America 2009 List
November 18, 2008 ADA Amendments Act Of 2008
October 3, 2008 69 Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney Attorneys and Specialists Honored As Best Lawyers in America
September 26, 2008 The Pennsylvania Clean Indoor Air Act
July 22, 2008 Article by Laurent, Klamut, Sullivan Runs on CUNA Councils Website
July 16, 2008 Supreme Court Holds an Administrator that Both Evaluates Claims and Funds Benefit Payments Has a Conflict of Interest that Must Be Weighed on Review
July 2, 2008 Supreme Court Holds that NLRA Preempts California Neutrality Law
June 25, 2008 Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008
May 27, 2008 New Multiemployer Pension Plan Funding Rules Begin Impacting Employers in April 2008
April 10, 2008 Employment Law Information Network Carries Age Discrimination Article Written by David Laurent and Bethany Cieply
March 6, 2008 Supreme Court Holds that, in Certain Circumstances, Preliminary Filings with the EEOC Can Constitute a Charge of Discrimination
March 5, 2008 Supreme Court Rejects Categorical Treatment of 'Me, Too' Evidence in Age Discrimination Cases
February 27, 2008 Supreme Court Permits Employees to Sue Retirement Plan Fiduciaries for Losses to Individual Account Balances
February 26, 2008 WARN Act Implications of Transactions Affecting Multiple Facilities or Mobile Workers
January 4, 2008 Pension Plan Withdrawal Liability Can Reach Estate Planning and Investment Activities
November 15, 2007 Timing is Everything - Terminating Employees Before a Sale of Assets Closes Can Result in a WARN Act Violation
March 22, 2007 When Are Disputes Over Side Agreements Arbitrable?
February 13, 2007 A Stitch in Time Saves Nine: Amending a Misleading Summary Plan Description
October 31, 2006 Legal and Practical Considerations for Operating a Small Business - Employment Law Primer
National Business Institute
August 22, 2006 Labor and Employment Law From A to Z in Pennsylvania - Employee Benefits, Labor Relations, and Disciplinary Action
Lorman Educational Services Seminar
January 10, 2006 Don't Let Your Guard Down When Hiring Employees in a Tight Labor Market
Energy and Mineral Law Foundation's Winter Workshops on Energy Law
January 28, 2005 Counseling the Small Business Client in Pennsylvania
National Business Institute
2005 What You Don't Know Can Hurt You: Uncovering Twenty-Five Common Misconceptions Concerning Your Employees
International Right of Way Association's Consultant's Council
June 20, 2002 Mandatory Arbitration of Employment Claims After Circuit City v. Adams and EEOC v. Waffle House: When is an Arbitration Agreement Valid and Enforceable?
22 Energy & Min. L. Inst. ch. 1
2002 Counseling the Small Business Client in Pennsylvania
National Business Institute
2002 Can SSA Assign Responsibility for Retired Miners' Health Benefits to the Successor in Interest of a Defunct Employer?, Preview of United States Supreme Court Cases
American Bar Association, Issue No. 2
October 22, 2001 They're Not Our Employees - Are They? An Examination of the Labor, Employment and Employee Benefits Issues that Can Arise with the Use of Temporary, Contract and Leased Employees
co-author, 21 Energy & Min. L. Inst. ch. 1
2001 Practicing Preventative Law: Helping Your Small Business Clients Avoid Ten Common Mistakes in Employment Matters
Bench-Bar Conference of Allegheny County
June 16, 2000 The Defendant's Perspective on Obtaining Summary Judgment in a Discrimination Case, or How to Pull a Rabbit Out of a Hat
Academy of Trial Lawyers of Allegheny County's Annual Federal Practice Program
December 16, 1999 Beware of Labor Contracts that May Limit Work Opportunities for Affiliated Entities
The Benchmark
October 31, 1999 Successor Liability Under the Coal Industry Retiree Health Benefit Act of 1992
18 Eastern Min. L. Inst. ch. 1
1997 Liability for Labor and Employment Obligations of Others
Special Institute on Enterprise Liability, Eastern Mineral Law Foundation
April 5, 1995 Recent Developments Under the Coal Industry Retiree Health Benefit Act of 1992
American Mining Congress
March 1993 Collective Bargaining Obligations Following a Hiatus in Coal Mining Operations
13 Eastern Min. L. Inst. ch. 6
1992 Civic & Charitable Pennies from Heaven, Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, Advisory Board Affiliations Allegheny County Bar Association Pennsylvania Bar Association The West Virginia State Bar District of Columbia Bar American Bar Association Past president, member of Executive Committee, Energy & Mineral Law Foundation | 
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