Caroline J. Berdzik

Caroline J. Berdzik, chair of the firm’s Employment and Labor and Health Care Practice Groups, devotes her practice to helping businesses, organizations, and management navigate the panoply of employment law issues, from proactive counseling through alternative dispute resolution and trial.

She represents companies in diverse industries such as health care, transportation, retail, construction, insurance, and finance, as well as non-profit organizations and educational and religious institutions.

In every matter, Caroline draws upon her previous experience as an in-house counsel to bring a deep understanding of and sensitivity to the daily challenges and cost considerations companies face.

Accordingly, in her role as advisor and advocate, she functions as a virtual extension of clients’ in-house legal and human resources teams, working in integrated partnership with them to protect the company’s best interests and bottom line.

She regularly provides employers with strategic business advice on critical human resources issues that arise out of the employment relationship, from hiring to termination, with an emphasis on preventing future disputes and minimizing risk. Toward this end, she frequently provides practical in-house training on a multitude of human resources topics for employers and insurance companies.

When needed, Caroline brings a proven track record to the defense of self-insured and insured companies in discrimination, harassment, retaliation, family medical leave, whistleblower, and wage/hour actions in federal and state courts, alternative dispute resolution forums, and state and federal administrative agencies. She also routinely advises businesses in the critical areas of wage and hour compliance and in drafting and enforcing restrictive covenants.