Scott Shibayama

Attorney, entrepreneur and law firm founder/owner. Background in employment and labor law, business, accounting, finance, information technology with and for large companies, now for small/medium business. 30+ years' experience in employment and labor law representing management, including: • 6+ years' "big firm" litigation experience, over 50 cases defending employers (including Fortune 50 companies) for the largest management-side only employment and labor law firm in the country (Littler Mendelson, PC). • 24+ years' business experience growing a law firm representing employers only, over 375 small/medium business clients helped to date. 4+ years' financial accounting & audit experience, including w/ former "Big 8" accounting firm. Specialties: Protecting small/medium businesses from employee lawsuits. Goals for small/medium employers: prevent employee lawsuits in the first place because once you’re sued, you’ve already lost. Even if you “win” it’s going to take up months of your valuable time, cause you sleepless nights, and cost you money (way more than preventing the problem in the first place). And should you lose, you get to pay your employee plus their attorneys’ fees in most cases. Prevention is the name of the game! Specific extensive legal experience includes: • Wage & Hour Law (minimum wage, overtime, rest/meal periods, Labor Code 203 and 226 penalties, etc.) • Preventing Employee Lawsuits • Employer Lawsuit Defense • Independent Contractor Misclassification Issues (Dynamex and AB 5 and AB 2257) • Background Checks • Drug Testing • Employee Handbooks • Breach of Contract/Covenant of Good Faith and Fair Dealing • Discrimination (based on disability, sex, race, religion, pregnancy, etc.) • Unlawful Harassment and Preventive Training • Workplace Investigations • Leave Laws (including family/medical, disability, pregnancy disability, etc.) • Reasonable Accommodation Law • Wrongful Termination, Retaliation and Whistle Blowing • Trade Secrets and Unfair Competition • Employment Torts (privacy, defamation, fraud, misrepresentation, emotional distress) • Interference with Contract/Economic Advantage • Reductions in Force/Plant Closings • Separation and Severance Agreements • Unemployment Insurance • Mandatory Arbitration • Administrative Claims and Hearings (Labor Commissioner, EDD, DFEH, EEOC, etc.) • Audit Representation (for example by the EDD, DLSE, DOL) • Results Focused Lawsuit Defense and Litigation