Ogletree Deakins Attorneys Named Among The “Nation’s Most Powerful Employment Attorneys”

ATLANTA – June 18, 2013 – Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart, P.C. (Ogletree Deakins), one of the largest labor and employment law firms representing management, is pleased to announce that Kim Ebert, Ogletree Deakins’ managing shareholder, and Joe Clees, a shareholder in the firm’s Phoenix office, have been named to Human Resource Executive magazine’s 2013 list of the “Nation’s Most Powerful Employment Attorneys.” This is the fifth consecutive year that Clees has been selected for inclusion in the Most Powerful list. Ebert is named to the list for the first time.

Attorneys were named to the list based on their excellence in guiding employers through today’s ever-intensifying legal landscape. To make the list, attorneys must receive glowing recommendations from corporate counsel who have benefitted from their services and would hire them again. Listed attorneys typically also must have practiced for more than 20 years and have amassed a number of accomplishments, including defending companies in headline-making cases and holding leadership positions within employment groups both in and outside of their firms. 

Ebert, who has served as the managing shareholder of Ogletree Deakins since 2010, has defended employers in virtually all areas of labor and employment law for more than 35 years. He regularly represents employers in investigations and administrative proceedings before the National Labor Relations Board, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the U.S. Department of Labor, and other federal and state agencies. He also has significant experience handling litigation resulting from corporate reorganizations and acquisitions, developing union avoidance strategies, and coordinating the response of management to union organizing drives. A chief spokesperson in collective bargaining matters, he has defended employers in over 150 arbitrations.

Throughout his career, Ebert has been lauded for his accomplishments. He consistently earns a top-tier rating by Chambers USA (2005-present) and has been included in Indiana Super Lawyers (2004 to present) and the Best Lawyers in America (1995 to present). He was named by Best Lawyers as the Indianapolis Labor and Employment Lawyer of the Year in 2011 and 2012 and has been elected as a Fellow in The College of Labor and Employment Lawyers and Indiana Bar Association. Ebert has been singled out as one of “The Legal 500,” and in 2007, he was selected for the Distinguished Barrister award by The Indiana Lawyer.

Clees, who has practiced employment law for more than 25 years, represents employers throughout the United States. He also counsels clients on a wide array of state, federal, and tribal compliance laws. He has served as the chair of the Executive Committee of the State Bar of Arizona’s Employment and Labor Law section, as a member of the Board of Directors of the Arizona Affirmative Action Association and the Valley of the Sun Human Resource Association (VSHRA), and as employment law counsel to many industry and trade groups. Clees regularly speaks and trains on labor and employment law topics, both regionally and nationally.

Beyond the “Most Powerful Employment Attorney” award, Clees has been recognized as one of the Southwest Super Lawyers (2007-2013), including several years in the Top 50 Southwest Super Lawyers, and is regularly included in Chambers USA (2005-present). He has been included in Best Lawyers in America (2006-present), and this year, was named by Best Lawyers as the Phoenix “Employment Law – Management” Lawyer of the Year. Clees has also been singled out as one of the “The Legal 500.” Locally, Arizona Business Magazine rates him as one of the “Top Attorneys of Arizona,” and the Phoenix Business Journal designates him as a “Best of the Bar.”

About Ogletree Deakins
Ogletree Deakins is one of the largest labor and employment law firms representing management in all types of employment-related legal matters. The firm has more than 650 lawyers located in 44 offices across the United States and in Europe. Ogletree Deakins was named “Law Firm of the Year” in both the Litigation – Labor & Employment and the Employment Law – Management categories in the 2013 edition of U.S. News – Best Lawyers “Best Law Firms” list. In addition to handling labor and employment law matters, the firm has thriving practices focused on business immigration, employee benefits, and workplace safety and health law. Ogletree Deakins represents a diverse range of clients, including more than half of the Fortune 50 corporations in the United States. For more information, please contact Ryan King or Mary Lou Baxter.