Deborah S. Davidson

Partner

Deborah S. Davidson is a partner in Morgan Lewis's Labor and Employment Practice and the hiring partner for the Chicago office. Ms. Davidson represents clients on a wide range of labor and employment matters, with a primary emphasis on litigation arising under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), in particular class action and multi-party ERISA actions. Ms. Davidson has represented plan sponsors, fiduciaries, and service providers in lawsuits across the country involving employer securities, retirement plan investments, plan fees and expenses, retiree medical benefits, early retirement programs, top-hat plans, alleged cutback or elimination of accrued benefits, claims to recover plan benefits, preemption issues, and a variety of other ERISA claims. She has published and presented multiple articles and papers on ERISA litigation topics.

Ms. Davidson is a co-chair of the national Fiduciary Responsibility Subcommittee for the Employee Benefits Committee within the American Bar Association's (ABA) Labor and Employment Section and a member of the Programming Committee for the ABA Employee Benefits Committee. She has previously served as co-chair of the Ethics Subcommittee and the Retention Subcommittee for the ABA Employee Benefits Committee. Ms. Davidson is also a member of the national faculty of the ABA's Joint Committee on Employee Benefits. In addition, Ms. Davidson served as the 2006–07 chair of the Chicago Bar Association's Employee Benefits Committee after having served as vice chair (2005–06) and secretary (2004–05) of that committee. Ms. Davidson was a member of the Metropolitan Family Services Metro Board between 2006–09.

Ms. Davidson is a contributing author to Getting the Deal Through — Labour and Employment, an annual series of deskbooks that provide international analysis in key areas of employment law and policy for corporate counsel, cross-border legal practitioners, and global team leaders. Ms. Davidson has authored feature chapters in Getting the Deal Through — Labour and Employment 2007.

Ms. Davidson earned her J.D. from Washington University in St. Louis in 1998, where she served as the executive notes and topics editor of the Washington University Journal of Urban and Contemporary Law, in which she was also published. Ms. Davidson earned her B.A. in psychology, with honors, from the University of Tulsa in 1995.

Ms. Davidson is admitted to practice in Illinois and before the U.S. Supreme Court; the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the Sixth, Seventh, Ninth, and Tenth Circuits; the U.S. District Courts for the District of Colorado, Eastern District of Texas, Eastern District of Wisconsin, Eastern and Western Districts of Michigan, and Northern and Central Districts of Illinois; and the Illinois Supreme Court.