Ogletree Deakins Grows Denver Office Adding Shareholder and Associate to its Ranks

DENVER, CO – February 1, 2011 – Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart, P.C. (Ogletree Deakins), one of the nation’s largest labor and employment law firms, continues to grow its Denver office in welcoming Jim Goh as shareholder and Austin Smith as associate.  Prior to joining Ogletree Deakins, Goh was a partner with Holland & Hart in Denver, while Smith was an associate at the law firm of Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, LLP in Denver.  Since opening in February 2010, the Denver office of Ogletree Deakins has grown to 13 attorneys.

“We knew that the Denver office would grow quickly and continuously as it is driven by client demand,” said Steve Moore, managing shareholder of Ogletree Deakins’ Denver office.  “We continue to attract and retain highly skilled attorneys with a focus on client service.  Jim and Austin will continue to deliver on our offering not only to clients in the Rocky Mountain West, but also throughout our national platform of 40 offices.” 

Goh’s practice focuses on employment litigation, class action defense, and occupational safety and health matters.  He also represents management in issues dealing with employment discrimination, whistle-blowing, wage and hour, employment contracts, and arbitration.  Particularly, Goh has significant experience in defending employers, including some of Colorado’s largest, in complex, multi-plaintiff cases and class actions.  

Goh is nationally-recognized in the area of diversity and inclusiveness in the legal profession.  During his career, he has received American Bar Association (ABA) presidential appointments to serve on two blue-ribbon commissions: the ABA Commission on Women in the Profession and the ABA Council on Racial and Ethnic Justice.  During the Clinton administration, Goh was invited to be a member of the Lawyers for One America initiative. 

Goh earned his J.D. from the University of Kansas in 1991.  He is AV rated by Martindale-Hubbell (the highest rating), is listed in Colorado Super Lawyers, and is a Fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America, a trial lawyer honorary society composed of less than one-half of one percent of American lawyers.  Goh is a frequent writer and lecturer on employment law topics throughout the United States and Asia.  He is the past Co-Chair for Electronic Evidence on the Trial Evidence Committee of the American Bar Association’s Litigation Section.  Goh is fluent in Hokkien, a Chinese dialect, and Malay.   

Austin Smith has significant experience in labor and employment litigation matters. He has counseled employers regarding both federal and state employment laws and regulations, and has defended clients against claims of violations of Title VII, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, Employee Retirement Income Security Act, the Fair Labor Standards Act, the Family and Medical Leave Act, the National Labor Relations Act, and the Occupational Safety and Health Act.  Smith also has experience defending employers against both single-plaintiff suits and collective and class actions in both state and federal courts, as well as representing employers in administrative proceedings before the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the National Labor Relations Board, and the U.S. Department of Labor.

Smith earned his J.D., summa cum laude, from the University of Alabama in 2005.  While in law school, he was the editor of the Alabama Law Review.  He is active in his community through his involvement with Arapahoe Community College and Denver Active 20-30 Children’s Foundation, a philanthropic fundraising organization dedicated to raising money to help at-risk and disadvantaged children in the Denver area and throughout Colorado.     

About Ogletree Deakins

Ogletree Deakins is the nation’s third-largest labor and employment law firm, representing management in all types of employment-related legal matters.  The firm has more than 500 lawyers located in 40 offices across the United States.  In addition to handling labor and employment law matters, the firm has thriving practices focused on business immigration, construction, employee benefits, environmental, 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, public relations manager, at (404) 870-1742.