Constangy, Brooks, Smith & Prophete, LLP

The last decade has seen a significant rise in the number of class actions, collective actions and multi-plaintiff actions filed against employers throughout the United States. Plaintiffs’ attorneys and government agencies have revived interest in these forms of action in employment cases and have brought to the process a renewed vigor and resourcefulness.

Constangy, Brooks & Smith’s Employment Litigation Defense Team is experienced in all forms of multi-plaintiff employment claims. We regularly defend collective and class action claims brought by the government and private litigants throughout the United States under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII); the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA); the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA); Employees Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA); the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA); the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act ("WARN"); and the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act ("RICO") and their state law counterparts.

Constangy’s Litigation Defense Team brings to the defense of complex, multi-plaintiff lawsuits an unparalleled depth of experience and sensitivity to workplace issues gleaned from representing employers exclusively for over more than 50 years. Our particular strengths in defending these types of cases include the following:

• Containing the impact of high-profile, multi-plaintiff litigation;
• Designing and Implementing creative defense strategies to defeat the class aspects of the case;
• Incorporating key defense experts (statisticians, labor market economists, industrial psychologists, selection tool validation experts and the like) into the defense plan;
• Exploring suitable means for resolving complex cases on terms acceptable to our clients through the use of mediation and other forms of alternative dispute resolution; and
• Planning and operating within a litigation budget.

Class Action Litigation Representative Matters

Constangy’s attorneys are currently defending a number of class action and Fair Labor Standards Act collective action lawsuits.

Defeated class certification in multi-million-dollar class action under federal and state wage and hour laws involving allegations of off-the-clock work and falsification of time records by management; then settled case on terms very favorable to our clients.

Defeated collective status in multi-million dollar collective action under Fair Labor Standards Act; then settled case with two named plaintiffs for nuisance amount.

Obtained summary judgment on all issues in Equal Pay Act and Title VII wage discrimination case that was filed as nationwide class action. (Plaintiffs voluntarily abandoned class claims before summary judgment was obtained.)

Diverse History

Even in those early years of the 1940s, Frank’s partner was Mildred McClelland, one of a very few female attorneys practicing in Atlanta. Today, Constangy, Brooks & Smith has more than 130 attorneys in thirteen states, more than half of our associates are female, and women are leaders at the highest level of our firm through representation on the Executive Committee.

Constangy, Brooks & Smith has also been recognized for its efforts to foster a diverse legal workplace. 

• The firm received the Exceptional Service Award presented by the Georgia Diversity Program of the State Bar of Georgia.
• Constangy, Brooks & Smith maintains a Diversity Council comprised of attorneys from across its offices to address issues and promote diversity within the firm.

The firm prides itself in its inclusive environment that values and utilizes the contributions of people with different backgrounds, experiences and perspectives. The diversity of those who work for Constangy is one of its greatest strengths. Attorneys bring a variety of backgrounds to better serve a range of clients, which includes differences in geographical background, law schools, and career experience prior to practicing law, as well as religious affiliations and gender and ethnic backgrounds.

Commitment to Diversity

Constangy, Brooks & Smith recognizes that our clients and their employees, customers, and suppliers represent an ever-increasing multicultural and diverse society. Therefore, we believe that the recruitment, hiring, and retention of individuals with diverse backgrounds is integral to our providing the highest quality of legal services possible. Our commitment to diversity encompasses a broad spectrum of individual characteristics and experiences, including but not limited to race, gender, national origin, age, religion, sexual orientation, and disability. We recognize the benefits of a diverse work environment on firm morale, productivity, and success and believe that such diversity attracts the talented and well-rounded types of people that make our firm thrive.

All of Constangy’s policies, practices and processes benefit from having access to a range of different perspectives. Constangy takes into account these differences in its organizational structure, performance appraisal methods, recruitment and selection, and career development opportunities. Our firm recognizes that diversity makes a broader, richer environment that produces more creative thinking and solutions.

Constangy, Brooks & Smith is an equal opportunity employer. It is the policy of the firm, from recruitment through employment and promotion, including training and work assignments, to provide equal opportunity at all times without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, age or disability, or other status protected by federal or applicable state law. The firm provides an environment where all members, associates, administrators, managers and staff employees abide by the requirements of this policy so that no one associated with Constangy, Brooks & Smith is discriminated against.

Diversity Council

Constangy’s Diversity Council is comprised of a cross-section of members and associates from a variety of the firm’s offices. The Council exists to address issues of diversity within the firm, as well as within the communities where our attorneys live and work. The Diversity Council drafts and proposes programming and policy that create supportive and productive environments for diverse attorneys within our ranks, provide outreach to law schools, community and professional organizations, and encourage a culture in which differing points of view will be sought, and diversity valued. The Council also produces a semi-annual newsletter, The Diversity Connection, that details the firm’s initiatives and highlights attorneys’ involvement in outside organizations that aim to foster diversity and personal development.

Networking Groups

Networking groups provide an opportunity for individuals with similar interests to come together and discuss issues and concerns relevant to members of these groups. Constangy recognizes that unique issues sometimes affect attorneys who are women or individuals of color. To that end, Constangy actively supports networking groups for women and attorneys of color within the firm. Each networking group has an “Executive Committee Liason,” who serves as the group’s advocate before the firm’s Executive Committee, ensuring that the issues and concerns of the group are brought to the attention of the Executive Committee, and subsequently addressed by the firm.

Flexible Work Arrangements

Constangy, Brooks & Smith believes that well-rounded individuals make better attorneys who provide better service to clients. Unlike most law firms, biographical sketches presented publicly on our firm website note attorneys’ personal interests and activities outside the law firm. We encourage attorneys to be active in their communities while we strive to provide a family-friendly workplace. Based on the needs of each office, the firm’s associates and members may have the opportunity for flex-time status that permits them to work less than a full-time schedule due to family or extraordinary personal reasons. The firm recognizes the external factors affecting its attorneys such as changes in the family structure, single parent families, dual-career couples, and other community pressures. The firm’s policy providing for flex-time work arrangements enables talented attorneys to more effectively manage their personal and professional lives.

Flexible work arrangements provide attorneys who are seeking work patterns, which integrate work and family roles more fully, with an opportunity to advance their careers with the firm. An associate working under flexible time status will have his or her budgeted billable hours reduced in a corresponding percentage; will have the non-billable matters such as participation in business development, bar activities and other non-billable matters reduced correspondingly; and will be eligible for a prorated amount of salary and the annual productivity bonus available to associates.

Leave Policies

The firm’s leave policies are structured with the focus on increasing recognition and nurturing a culture that is devoted to the value of diversity and empowerment as essential elements of the firm’s success. Constangy’s leave policies provide a balanced approach that ensures both the provision of quality service to our clients and the firm’s commitment to diversity in a manner that benefits both the attorneys and the firm’s environment. Among the many benefits that Constangy, Brooks & Smith provides to associates are paid vacation benefits accrued during the calendar year based on the years of completed service; annual personal days and sick leave; and paid bereavement leave.