Aaron Buckley

Trial-tested employment defense counsel with wage and hour focus

Aaron Buckley has over 25 years of experience representing employers. A member of the Wage & Hour Defense Institute, an invitation-only group consisting of top management-side wage and hour litigators throughout the United States, he focuses on:

• Employment counseling
• Employment litigation, including class and PAGA actions

Aaron is known for providing practical, common-sense advice to clients facing litigation in California’s state and federal courts, focusing on each client’s unique needs and objectives. He also works closely with clients on compliance and litigation avoidance strategies, helping them navigate California’s complex web of often-confusing Labor Code requirements.

Prior to beginning his legal career, Aaron was an infantry officer in the U.S. Army.

• Defending employers from a wide range of employment claims, including wage and hour, wrongful termination, discrimination, harassment and retaliation.
• Representing employers in class actions in California and federal courts involving wage and hour and other issues.
• Advising employers on a full range of employment law compliance issues, including wage and hour, employee discipline and termination, and other human resources matters.
• Representing employers in dozens of cases involving representative claims for civil penalties brought under the California Labor Code Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA).
• Providing training to management on human resources and litigation avoidance topics.

• Achieved defense verdict in a wage and hour misclassification trial on behalf of an insurance provider.
• Achieved dismissal of a statewide PAGA lawsuit involving retail workers.
• Successfully opposed class certification in a wage and hour class action involving shipyard workers; denial of certification affirmed by Court of Appeal.
• Achieved dismissal of a Fair Credit Reporting Act class action on behalf of a shipyard contractor.
• Achieved summary judgment in an employment discrimination case on behalf of a temporary staffing company.
• Achieved decertification of a class of technology workers in a wage and hour misclassification case; decertification affirmed by Court of Appeal.
• Achieved dismissal of a wage and hour class action on behalf of a public entity employer based on constitutional immunity (U.S. District Court, Southern District of California).
• Achieved defense verdict in a wage and hour misclassification trial on behalf of a wireless communication company; judgment affirmed by Court of Appeal in published opinion.
• Defense counsel in over 50 statewide class actions based on alleged violations of the California Labor Code, including claims for unpaid wages, misclassification, meal and rest breaks, and wage statements.