Felicia A. Davis

Before enrolling at UCLA School of Law, Davis spent five years in management training at McMaster-Carr, an industrial supply distribution company. That experience gave her a unique perspective and a clear goal in mind when she began her legal education.

"I really liked the management-employee relationship, and I thought it would be interesting for me," Law said. "When I went to law school, I was already interested in that area of the law."

And since her first year as an associate at Paul Hastings, when she secured summary judgment for Disney after it was sued for firing several employees who were caught drinking in a company van, Law has done employment work for marquee clients -- a book of which now includes several subsidiaries of the Walt Disney Company, Nike Inc. and Alphabet Inc.

"I like helping employers work through complicated issues with their employees and helping them develop ways to improve the workplace," she said.

In the last year, she's been able to fend off portions of a California Fair Pay Act class action against Google alleging the company pays female employees less than male counterparts. Ellis v. Google Inc., GCG-17-561299 (S.F. Super. Ct., filed Sept. 14, 2017).

She's helped obtain a stay in a Private Attorney General Action against the company claiming it fails to adequately support ethnic minority employees by arguing the case is duplicative of similar litigation. Cassel v. Google Inc., 17CV319202 (Santa Clara Super. Ct., filed Nov. 15, 2017).

Davis also helped beat a far-reaching class action filed against Disney alleging her client violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act when doing background checks on employees. Culberson v. Walt Disney Parks and Resorts U.S., Inc., BC526351 (L.A. Super. Ct., filed May 1, 2013).

She also helped Disney prevail on a defamation claim brought by an employee accused of inappropriate workplace behavior who sued the complainant who raised the alarm about his misconduct to Davis' client. Lipsitz v. Walt Disney Pictures, BC582284 (L.A. Super. Ct., filed May 19, 2015).

"That's a troublesome trend that I hope does not continue," Davis said. "If employees are worried they will become defendants in a lawsuit if they go to HR in good faith to complain, that could have a chilling effect on reporting, which no company wants."

-- Nicolas Sonnenburg