Christopher J. DeGroff is a partner of Seyfarth Shaw LLP, a leading national labor and employment law firm. Mr. DeGroff, a member of the Labor and Employment Practice Group in the Firm’s Chicago office and is Co-Chair of the Firm’s Complex Discrimination Litigation Practice Group. Mr. DeGroff represents employers throughout the country in a wide range of employment law matters largely focused on multi-plaintiff and class/collective actions. Mr. DeGroff also manages large portfolios of cases for some of our most valued institutional clients.
Mr. DeGroff’s class action experience spans the entire scope of employment law theories, including claims of race, age and gender discrimination, sexual harassment, retaliation, and wage and hour matters. Mr. DeGroff has leveraged this experience with the talents of others operating in high impact class-action teams to secure dismissal of substantial multi-plaintiff claims. In addition, when it has advantaged the employer, he has structured complex case-resolution strategies for the efficient disposition of otherwise costly actions. Mr. DeGroff also has designed valuable partnering relationships with clients’ existing counsel to provide strategic case collaboration and guidance.
Mr. DeGroff has extensive experience litigating against the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, both at the early charge stage, administrative subpoena enforcement actions, and in large-scale EEOC pattern-and-practice litigation. He has developed innovative strategies for addressing wide-ranging governmental requests for information and has handled complex regional and national EEOC investigations and negotiations, typically resulting in no action being taken against our clients at all. When the EEOC has resorted to litigation, Mr. DeGroff has been instrumental in defending our clients against these often high-profile systemic cases, working with any number of class action teams to achieve efficient and effective case resolution. Mr. DeGroff is routinely asked to speak on emerging EEOC issues and is regularly quoted and published on this and related topics.
Mr. DeGroff’s class experience also includes a significant understanding of emerging electronic discovery issues, including spearheading the briefing and argument on a controversial class action cost-shifting issue related to electronic discovery, securing one of the most employer-favorable published opinions concerning how costs are shared by the parties.
Beyond this litigation experience, Mr. DeGroff routinely counsels employers on mass layoffs, plant closing, harassment investigations, employment contracts and numerous other areas – counseling that has allowed clients to avoid litigation in the first instance. As a member of the Business Restructuring and Transactional Employment practice, Mr. DeGroff identifies employment obligations, liabilities and risks in the business restructuring context and provides detailed statutory compliance advice. He also provides legal advice and practical assistance with employee communications and potential separation issues arising in the business restructuring context.
