Michelle Anselmo’s practice is focused on labor and employment litigation before federal and state courts and agencies, concentrating on the representation of employers in class and collective actions in all areas of labor and employment law.
She represents employers throughout the country in a wide range of industries, including corporations operating in the financial, medical, transportation, construction and information technology sectors.
A large portion of Ms. Anselmo’s practice is devoted to assisting clients with state wage and hour laws and federal claims under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). She has particular experience regarding issues involving preservation of exempt status under the FLSA’s white collar exemptions. Recently, Ms. Anselmo’s practice has included several high profile, multimillion-dollar worker misclassification cases involving thousands of potential class members.
Ms. Anselmo has effectively represented clients in actions involving employment discrimination claims brought under Title VII, state non-discrimination statutes and the Equal Pay Act. She has also successfully defended against claims involving the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), the Family Medical Leave Act, trade secret/noncompete issues and employment-related tort claims. She routinely handles internal investigations regarding allegations of discrimination, harassment and violation of company policies and has managed and overseen hundreds of such matters, both as an investigator and a legal advisor/advocate.
Prior to joining Baker Hostetler, Ms. Anselmo began her career as a lawyer with a boutique labor law firm in Chicago, where she represented management clients in employment-related disputes, charges and lawsuits. She moved on to become an employment litigator for one of the nation’s largest labor/employment firms, where she defended clients against claims filed in federal and state courts and with the EEOC and state administrative agencies. Ms. Anselmo also served as Associate Counsel for APCOA/Standard Parking, where she advised the company with regard to labor and employment issues, drafted and oversaw various human resources policies and managed the company’s employment litigation.
Ms. Anselmo’s varied career has given her the unique opportunity to anticipate and meet client needs, having experienced the practice of law from the perspective of both “outside counsel” and client. As a result, she is aware of the challenges facing in-house counsel and human resources professionals when dealing with the sensitive legal issues often involved in the labor/employment arena. To assist her clients in avoiding litigation, Ms. Anselmo regularly advises them on “best practices” and procedures for hiring, compensation, discipline and termination and assists employers in drafting and administering handbooks and policies.
Ms. Anselmo is a member of the Litigation and Labor and Employment Law Sections of the American Bar Association and the Employment Law Inns of Court.