Marc Siegel

Marc Siegel

Summary of Experience

Prior to co-founding the firm in 2002, Mr. Siegel spent approximately seven years practicing at Laner Muchin, a mid-size Chicago management-side boutique labor and employment firm. There, he advised employers on all types of employment matters, conducted audits of employment practices, ran organizing campaigns, handled collective bargaining, and defended numerous employment cases before the EEOC and unfair labor practices before the NLRB. Representative clients include Marmon Corporation, HARPO (Oprah Winfrey's company), Allied Waste, and numerous other small and medium-sized businesses.

After co-founding Caffarelli & Siegel, Mr. Siegel has focused the vast majority of his work on representing employees in employment matters. He particularly enjoys the negotiation and counseling aspects of employment law. Mr. Siegel negotiates separation packages, reviews employment agreements, and advises clients on all work-related matters. He has drafted employment agreements on behalf of chief executive officers, physicians, university faculty, and other professionals. Mr. Siegel has successfully negotiated six-figure severance packages for numerous former executives, and is especially proud of the results he has achieved for his lower-waged clients. Both Mr. Siegel and co-founder Alejandro Caffarelli are fluent in Spanish, and have the distinction to be among very few fluent labor and employment lawyers in Chicago. They are especially pleased to have successfully represented numerous Hispanic workers in wage and hour disputes and other employment-related matters.

Accolades

· Has been named as a "Super Lawyer" in the 2009 Super Lawyers publication.

· Marc J. Siegel achieved the highest rating for legal ability in Martindale-Hubbell. According to Martindale-Hubbell, the highest possible rating, achievable only after admission to the bar for at least ten years, and indicating the highest level of legal ability and ethics. The highest rating is the pinnacle of professional excellence.

· Highly respected and oft-demanded speaker for a wide variety of audiences, on emerging topics in labor and employment law.

Negotiation

Mr. Siegel has successfully negotiated employment contracts, separation agreements, and better terms and conditions of employment for his clients. He has developed a niche practice from his negotiation experience, and has spoken before hundreds of other employment lawyers about his negotiation strategies and techniques. Mr. Siegel uses a customized approach, based upon each client's unique goals, to maximize the chances for success.

Mr. Siegel has assisted executives and professionals by negotiating the terms and conditions of their employment prior to their beginning a new job. For example, he represented a surgeon, with a very unique specialty, whose employer wanted him to agree to a broad non-compete agreement as a condition of employment. This non-compete agreement would have prohibited the client from working anywhere in the state of Illinois were he to separate from employment. Mr. Siegel successfully negotiated a drastic reduction of the scope of the agreement, which gave the client the security of knowing he would be able to work again if he were to resign or was terminated. If the situation calls for it, some of Mr. Siegel's work on employment agreements involves his "working behind the scenes" to assist the client in negotiating his or her own agreement.

Mr. Siegel also works with clients who have been presented with separation or severance agreements. He has negotiated six-figure separation packages for executive clients, and has greatly increased the amount of his clients' separation pay over the amount originally offered. Further, he often negotiates non-economic changes in separation agreements, including amending the client's record to reflect that the client resigned instead of being terminated - thus ensuring that the employer does not contest unemployment; or securing outplacement services for his client. These types of non-economic changes enable Mr. Siegel's clients to transition more smoothly from their previous positions and find re-employment with greater ease. In formulating a negotiation strategy, Mr. Siegel assesses both potential legal claims and other negotiation "levers" that assist clients in meeting their goals.

Representative Litigation Matters

Mr. Siegel also litigates clients' claims in federal and state court with regularity.

Representative litigation matters for executive clients

· Obtained the prompt dismissal of counterclaims brought against his client in federal court for breach of fiduciary duty.

· Filed counterclaims against an employer who sued his client, resulting in not only the dismissal of the employer's claims against the client, but payment to the client as well.

· Filed state law claim of breach of contract to seek recovery of six-figure severance payment in complex change of control situation. Zarazinski v. ACCO Brands Corp. and General Binding Corp., Circuit Court of Cook County No. 2006-L-8297.

· Defended misappropriation of trade secrets and non-compete claims filed against clients in federal court.

Representative wage and hour matters

· Obtained a $920,000 settlement on behalf of a class of meat-processing plant workers who had not been paid for the time spent putting on and taking off required safety equipment. Sanchez et al. v. Stampede Meat, Inc., N.D. Ill. No. 02-C-5452.

· Brought national class-action opt-in suit for failure of employer to properly utilize available tip credit for sky caps. Barreda v. Prospect Airport Services, Inc., N.D. Ill. No. 08-C-3239.

· Obtained a consent judgment in favor of a group of landscaping employees who sued their employer for failure to pay overtime wages under the Fair Labor Standards Act, Illinois Minimum Wage Law, and Illinois Wage Payment and Collection Act. Palmerin, et al. v. Serra Landscaping, Inc., f/k/a John Serra Landscaping, Inc., and John Serra, individually, N.D. Ill. No. 06-C-1115.

Other representative matters

· Represented an employee diagnosed with bipolar disorder and depression who had been terminated after taking a medical leave. The employee alleged that she was terminated in violation of the Family and Medical Leave Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act. The case was settled to the employee's satisfaction.

· Brought suit on behalf of a nurse suing her former employer, a nursing home, for failure to pay owed overtime and retaliation in violation of the Illinois Whistleblower Act. The case settled to the client's satisfaction.

· Obtained settlement to the satisfaction of the client in a sexual harassment and retaliatory termination case in federal court.

Speaking Engagements, 2007-08 and Publications (representative list)

· "The Flip Side Of Negotiation: Effectively Interacting With Your Client" June 2009, at the 2009 National Employment Lawyers Association National Convention in Rancho Mirage, California

· "Insight About the Management Bar: A Former Management Attorney's Inside Knowledge and How It Can Help You Represent Employees" June 2008, before 400 attendees at the 2008 National Employment Lawyers Association National Convention in Atlanta, Georgia February 2008, at the Seventh Circuit Conference in Chicago

· "Leveling the Employment Playing Field: Who's On First" July 2008, before an audience of attorneys sponsored by the Chicago Volunteer Legal Services

· "Your Employee is on FMLA Leave: Figuring Out How to Handle Benefits and Other Policy Issues," September 2007, at the 2007 FMLA Update seminar presented by the Council on Education in Management

· 'Winning the Summary Judgment Game Before It Is Played: A Unique Framework for Negotiation" June 2007, before 500 attendees as one of a panel of speakers discussing "State of the Art Negotiation and Mediation" at the 2007 NELA National Convention in San Juan, Puerto Rico

· "Hiring Latinos for Retention Success: Best Practices and Legal Guidelines" May 2007, at a seminar for human resources professionals sponsored by Graciela Kenig & Associates

· Published author in a variety of major newspapers, journals, and public records IICLE Philadelphia Inquirer Christian Science Monitor Congressional Record.