Philip A. Toomey - Leech Tishman: Legal Services

Philip A. Toomey is a Partner at Leech Tishman and Chair of the firm’s national Employment & Labor Practice Group, where he also leads the Public Sector Employment Group. Phil is also a member of the Litigation Practice Group, where he co-leads the Restrictive Covenants / Non-Competes Group. He is based in the firm’s LAX office.

Phil serves as the trusted outside general counsel for international, privately held, and small to mid-market companies in the aerospace, transportation, manufacturing, food production, office and retail services industries, among others.

Phil has more than 37 years of successful business and courtroom experience in helping business owners and organizations sustain and build their enterprises. Clients rely on his rare combination of business experience and legal expertise to meet their needs. Phil regularly advises clients on issues involving commercial & civil litigation, employment law, insurance and risk management, ethics and business compliance, real estate, intellectual property, internal/external investigations, strategic transactions, corporate structure issues and other business law matters.

Phil is in demand as a frequent panelist, moderator, and expert speaker at industry events and seminars, and has authored professional articles offering business and legal advice in numerous publications including Accounting Today, PEO Insider, Progressive Grocer, Nation’s Restaurant News, and The Deal Magazine.

Employment & Litigation
Phil is a well-respected litigator in employment and business law matters, and has a successful track record of litigating claims for both public and private employers involving:

Affirmative Action and OFCCP compliance
Arbitration
Collective bargaining agreements/grievance administration
Defense of class action wage and hour claims
Disability accommodation & ADA compliance
Disciplinary action and termination
Discrimination claims involving disability, race, age and ethnicity
Diversion of corporate opportunities
Drugs/alcohol in the workplace
Employment agreements, hiring and contracts
Employee benefits consulting
Employee handbooks/policies & procedures
Family/medical leaves of absence
Misuse of confidential information
Payment practices
Performance appraisals
Planning and defending reduction in force initiatives, corporate campaigns and union organization activity
Pre-employment testing and background checks
Public policy/whistleblower claims
Restrictive covenants and confidentiality agreements
Severance agreements, waivers and releases
Sexual harassment
Strikes, picketing & boycott advice
Theft
Trade secret/unfair competition
Unemployment compensation claims
Unfair labor practice complaints
Unionized employee arbitrations
Use of temporary/leased/contract employees and independent contractors
Violation of civil rights
Workplace investigations
Workplace violence/safety
Workplace privacy
Wrongful termination/employment at-will
Wrongful inducement

Phil regularly advocates on behalf of public and private employers before federal and state agencies include the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the National Labor Relations Board, the U.S. Department of Labor, the Public Employee Retirement Board, the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing, and the California Employment Development Department.

Phil is also a Los Angeles Superior Court trained mediator. In addition, he has investigated and resolved numerous sensitive in-house matters, involving corporate ethics, senior level management and key employees. Phil has successfully closed several senior level separations, and advised management and boards on successor employer liability, Sarbanes-Oxley, and fiduciary obligations.

Corporate
On the corporate side, Phil has set up, dissolved, kept compliant, merged and acquired hundreds of privately held businesses. He has negotiated and documented exit strategies, including leveraged management buy-outs. Phil has also successfully negotiated with a host of Fortune 1000 companies.

Insurance & Risk Management
From the perspective of risk management, Phil has reviewed hundreds of insurance policies and negotiated coverage disputes.

Phil regularly handles Employment Practices Liability Insurance (EPLI) covered claims as pre-approved counsel. He has also managed outside or assigned attorneys, driving discussions of risk, strategy, planning, cost and impact.

Academics
J.D., cum laude, Loyola Law School
Los Angeles Superior Court Mediator Training, Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution, Pepperdine University
B.A. in Sociology, cum laude, Loyola Marymount University

Admissions
California
U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Texas
U.S. Court of Appeals, District of Columbia

Experience
Carico Johnson Toomey LLP
City of Redondo Beach (Designated Outside Employment Attorney)
Artiano, Guzman & Toomey LLP

Professional Memberships
Alpha Sigma Nu Merit Society
American Bar Association (Member, Section on Labor and Employment)
American Inns of Court (Master)
California Lawyers Association (Executive Committee Member, Public Law Section)
National Public Employer Labor Relations Association (Faculty Member)
Professionals in Human Resources Association
Society for Human Resource Management
State Bar of California (Member, Employment Law Section)
St. Thomas Moore Merit Society

Professional Accolades

Nation’s Top One Percent, National Association of Distinguished Counsel

Martindale-Hubbell

Martindale-Hubbell Rating, AV® Preeminent

Best Lawyers

Best Lawyer, Best Lawyers Magazine

Super Lawyers

Super Lawyer, Labor and Employment Law, Southern California Super Lawyers Magazine, (2005-2022)

Publications
Accounting Today
Nation’s Restaurant News
PEO Insider
Progressive Grocer
The Deal Magazine

Community Involvement
City of Redondo Beach (Designated Outside Employment Attorney; Former Commissioner; Former Chair of Planning, Harbor, Budget and Finance, Tax and Budget Commissions; Former Member, Charter Review Committee)
Center for Women in the Law (Former Faculty Member)
Child Hope International
Invisible Children
Liberty in Korea
Livestrong Foundation
White House Conference on Small Business (California Delegate)

Certifications & Designations
Certificate, Advanced Studies- State and Local Taxation, University of California, Davis
Certificate, Advanced Studies- Corporate Taxation, University of Southern California Gould School of Law
Certificate, Advanced Studies- Criminal Law, University of Southern California Gould School of Law

Speeches & Presentations
Los Angeles Trade Tech College
National Public Employer Labor Relations Association
Public Employer Labor Relations Association of California