Shawn N. Butte focuses his practice on representing employers in a variety of labor and employment matters. He crafts creative and practical business solutions to complex legal challenges faced by corporations and emerging companies in a range of industries, including hospitality, technology, financial services, retail and pharmaceuticals.
Shawn regularly represents employers in high-stakes litigation involving restrictive covenants and trade secret misappropriation, breach of contract, wage and hour class and collective actions, and more. He has experience in both federal and state court, as well as in alternative dispute forums such as the American Arbitration Association.
In addition to his litigation practice, Shawn advises management on a variety of workplace issues, including hiring and terminations, employee mobility, trade secret protection, wage and hour policies, employee classification, workplace investigations, personnel policies and compliance with employment laws and regulations.
Shawn uses his experience as a litigator to help clients proactively avoid protracted legal disputes. He is recognized by Super Lawyers as a New York Metro area “Rising Star.”
Experience :
- Negotiated a settlement on behalf of New York City hotel in a wage and hour matter involving allegations of unpaid wages and violations of New York Labor Law.
- Represented municipal administrative agency in collective action alleging unpaid overtime and off-the-clock work.
- Defended financial services company in a federal wage and hour lawsuit alleging misclassification of managers.
- Defeated a TRO application alleging violations of a non-competition agreement and theft of trade secrets by the director of a large pharmaceutical company.
- Successfully defended New York City hospitality company against misclassification lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court (Southern District of New York).
- Second-chaired representation of a large retail company in a 10-day hearing before the American Arbitration Association involving claims of hostile work environment and retaliation.
- Second-chaired collective bargaining negotiations on behalf of a Massachusetts hospital against SEUI 1199.
Memberships :
- New York State Bar Association, Labor and Employment Section, Wage and Hour Committee
- Boston College Law School Alumni Association, New York City Chapter: Leader
- New York City Bar Association
- Cornell Alumni Association
- South Asian Bar Association of New York
Community :
- Philip C. Jessup International Regional Moot Court Competition: Judge
- CivicXcel (Accelerator of Civic Hall Labs): Facilitator for start-ups focused on social impact and civic engagement.
Education :
- J.D., Boston College Law School, 2013
- B.S., Cornell University, School of Industrial and Labor Relations, 2010
Admissions :
- U.S. District Court, District of Massachusetts
- U.S. District Court, Eastern District of New York
- U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York
- Massachusetts
Cost
Rate : $$$