Litigator Elliott McGraw Elevated to Partner

Bailey Glasser is pleased to announce that Washington, D.C. litigator Elliott McGraw has been elevated to partner effective January 2024.

Continue reading

Bailey Glasser is pleased to announce that Washington, D.C. litigator Elliott McGraw has been elevated to partner effective January 2024.

“Congratulations to Elliott on her much-deserved promotion to partner at Bailey Glasser,” said Cary Joshi, Commercial & Environmental Litigation Practice Group Leader. “Elliott’s tenacity and strategic skills as a litigator are exceptionally valuable to our clients as she handles some of our most complicated matters.”

Elliott is a member of the Commercial & Environmental Litigation Practice Group, where she focuses her practice on complex commercial disputes in state and federal courts across the country and represents institutional investors and asset managers, as both plaintiffs and defendants, in contract and tort-based claims arising from financial fraud, accounting malpractice, and corporate malfeasance. Elliott has an extensive privacy and data protection background and was named a Best Lawyers Ones to Watch in Privacy and Data Security Law in Washington, D.C. in 2024.

Elliott commented: “I love practicing law with Bailey Glasser and I’m very excited about the additional opportunities to contribute to this world class group of litigators and our fantastic clients as a partner.”

Bailey Glasser’s Commercial & Environmental Litigation practice has a proven track record of successfully handling national high-stakes litigation in state and federal courts and before arbitrators and mediators across the country. We represent businesses in many industries and of all sizes from Fortune 500 companies to family offices, individuals, governmental entities, government servants, and even other law firms call upon us to lead bet-the-company litigation and parachute into cases and appeals when our deep experience and resources are necessary.

Elliott is a vital team member in some of our most complex matters. Notably, she was a member of the Bailey Glasser team that served as co-lead trial counsel representing the Official Committee of Talc Plaintiffs in its high-profile challenge against Johnson & Johnson’s “Texas Two Step” bankruptcy ploy to offset the liability of 38,000 lawsuits related to the company’s alleged cancer-causing baby powder. She has also contributed her time to litigating cases on behalf of women athletes in Title IX sex discrimination cases against universities across the country. Elliott’s experience also includes advising organizational and individual clients navigating government or internal investigations and has represented clients in front of Congressional committees, including the 2019 Impeachment Inquiry into then-President Donald Trump.

To learn more about Elliott’s experience please visit this link.

ERISA Partner Mark Boyko Quoted in Law360 on 401(k) Forfeiture Case

Bailey Glasser partner Mark Boyko was quoted in the Law360 article, “3 Arguments, Hearing Benefits Attys Should Watch in Feb.,” commenting on the significance of a new theory of liability under ERISA against Clorox Co. in a California federal court. The case challenges the company’s use of 401(k) forfeitures, created when employees leave before fully vesting, to offset corporate contributions into the plan.

Continue reading

Bailey Glasser partner Mark Boyko was quoted in the Law360 article, “3 Arguments, Hearing Benefits Attys Should Watch in Feb.,” commenting on the significance of a new theory of liability under ERISA against Clorox Co. in a California federal court. The case challenges the company’s use of 401(k) forfeitures, created when employees leave before fully vesting, to offset corporate contributions into the plan.

“The two main issues in the case involve the plaintiffs’ standing and industry practice of how to treat 401(k) plan forfeitures,” Mark said. “A decision for defendants on standing or for plaintiffs on the merits would have meaningful consequences that sweep beyond the case itself.” Read the full article here.

Mark is a pioneer in ERISA class action litigation and represents 401(k) plan participants alleging breach of fiduciary duties by their employers and has secured judgments and settlements in this area exceeding $500 million. Learn more about his experience here.

#ERISA #ClassActions #EmployeeBenefits #BaileyGlasser

BG Defeats Attempt to Dismiss Federal Class Action ESOP Lawsuit

Another win on behalf of protecting company employees’ hard-earned money: today, our ERISA team defeated a motion to dismiss that challenged a class action brought on behalf of a class of investors in the Churchill Holdings, Inc. Employee Stock Option Plan where we alleged that the trustees breached their fiduciary duties and engaged in prohibited transactions in violation of ERISA law.

Continue reading

Another win on behalf of protecting company employees’ hard-earned money: today, our ERISA team defeated a motion to dismiss that challenged a class action brought on behalf of a class of investors in the Churchill Holdings, Inc. Employee Stock Option Plan where we alleged that the trustees breached their fiduciary duties and engaged in prohibited transactions in violation of ERISA law.

The federal court in Arnold v. Parades (filed in the Middle District of Tennessee), rejected virtually every argument made by defendants. Judge Crenshaw held that the plaintiffs’ individual releases did not bar them from suing on behalf of their ESOP, that the plan’s class action waiver was unenforceable because it prevented effective vindication of statutory rights and violated ERISA’s anti-exculpatory provision, section 410, and that plaintiffs adequately alleged breaches of fiduciary duty and prohibited transactions. Plaintiffs are challenging the fair market value of the stock determination made by the trustee when it terminated the Churchill Holdings, Inc. ESOP.

The Bailey Glasser team includes partner and ERISA Practice Group Leader Greg Porter, partners Mark Boyko, Ryan Jenny, and Patrick Muench, and associate Laura Babiak. Our ERISA team is a leader in protecting ERISA and ESOP plans, and is ranked nationally by Chambers & Partners and Best Law Firms, with Greg Porter also being ranked Band One in ERISA Litigation, Mainly Plaintiffs – USA-Nationwide. For more about our ERISA work, please visit here.

To read the Court’s opinion, visit this link.

BG’s 2023 Year in Review

Thanks to everyone – our clients, colleagues, co-counsel, communities, and friends, for making 2023 so successful. We hope you enjoy this recap of 2023!

Continue reading

Thanks to everyone – our clients, colleagues, co-counsel, communities, and friends, for making 2023 so successful. We hope you enjoy this recap of 2023!

 

Federal Law Clerk Joins Morgantown, WV Office

Bailey & Glasser, LLP welcomes lawyer Gabrielle Marcum to our Morgantown, WV office. Gabrielle has joined our national Commercial & Environmental Litigation Practice Group, where she will represent a diverse range of business interests and industries – from solo entrepreneurs to multi-national corporations – in state and federal courts nationwide.

Continue reading

Bailey & Glasser, LLP welcomes lawyer Gabrielle Marcum to our Morgantown, WV office. Gabrielle has joined our national Commercial & Environmental Litigation Practice Group, where she will represent a diverse range of business interests and industries – from solo entrepreneurs to multi-national corporations – in state and federal courts nationwide.

Gabrielle brings valuable courtroom and legal writing experience, having completed two prestigious federal court clerkships in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia.

As a West Virginia University College of Law graduate, Gabrielle was an Executive Editor of the WVU Law Review and President of the Women’s Leadership Council. She was also a student clinician in the Child and Family Advocacy Clinic, providing vital legal services to children and families of limited income in custody matters, education advocacy, and accessing healthcare resources.

Gabrielle returns to Bailey Glasser after previously serving as a summer associate at the firm in 2019 and we are excited to welcome her back to our Morgantown office.

Learn more about Gabrielle Marcum here.

#BaileyGlasser #CommercialLitigation #Welcome