Douglas T. Schwarz

Doug’s clients include financial services firms (mutual funds, hedge funds, private equity, venture capital, commercial and investment banks, wealth management); educational institutions; and media, technology, and telecommunications, pharmaceuticals, and life sciences companies. 

He represents numerous non-US companies, from Japan and elsewhere in Asia, the United Kingdom, and Europe, regarding their US labor and employment matters, and US companies on international labor and employment issues.

Doug’s experience includes litigating claims of discrimination, harassment, and reasonable accommodation (race, gender, age, disability, pregnancy, sexual orientation, religion), whistleblower retaliation, wage and hour violations (bonus, commission, overtime and minimum wage), non-competition, non-solicitation, and trade secret breach, defamation and privacy; counseling on reorganizations, reductions-in-force, and executive hiring and termination matters; developing and implementing litigation-avoidance strategies, diversity and affirmative action plans, and training programs on harassment prevention, diversity, and performance management; and advising on government audits (by OSHA, the Department of Labor and OFCCP) and labor-management relations.

He also serves as an arbitrator and mediator.

Doug represents clients in a range of other matters, including housing, education and public accommodations discrimination.

Doug has served in government as commissioner of the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination (MCAD), as an assistant attorney general in the Civil Rights Division of the Massachusetts Office of the Attorney General and as a US District Court  law clerk.

• Recently obtained a dismissal from a US Department of Labor Administrative Law Judge in whistleblower action where client was co-defendant with a federal agency; plaintiff was a terminated senior professional at a major environmental clean-up site, who claimed the termination was in retaliation for complaining that employees were being exposed to unsafe amounts of a toxic substance
• Enforced restrictive covenant against departed fund portfolio manager
• Defended hedge fund against contract and whistleblower claim by terminated managing director
• Drafted hedge fund employment agreements rewarding successful investing
• Managed and conducted national employment litigation for Fortune 100 computer hardware and software manufacturer — with very low average per case costs

• Planned, documented and implemented major reduction in force for large quasi-public agency, resulting in zero legal claims
• Designed and implemented training programs on harassment prevention for all employees and on key legal concepts for managers and supervisors
• Conducted internal investigation of complaint of harassment in real estate development firm
• Obtained summary judgment for global telecommunications firm in federal court FMLA and ERISA action
• Provided regular advice on all employee relations matters to, e.g., large national financial services firm, large international printing company, small technology company, startup pharmaceutical company
• Successfully resolved dozens of cases as counsel for employer through early mediation (also have served as mediator in numerous cases)
• Prevailed in arbitration against employee challenging termination for cause based on workplace intoxication (also serve as AAA arbitrator in employment cases)
• Favorably resolved state court disability discrimination claim for major metropolitan newspaper after taking plaintiff's deposition that eviscerated his case
• Obtained summary judgment for employer in federal court sexual harassment claim; affirmed on appeal to Fourth Circuit
• Obtained summary judgment for employer in ERISA and disability discrimination claim; affirmed on appeal to First Circuit
• Successfully enforced one year non-solicitation agreement against former sales representative