Evan C. Blankenau

Board Certified in Labor and Employment, Evan Blankenau represents employers in a wide variety of labor and employment matters ranging from complex litigation and appeals to counseling employers on issues related to COVID-19, the FFCRA, WARN Act, Title VII, ADEA, ADA and FMLA.

Evan’s litigation experience includes representing local and multinational employers in single plaintiff and multi-plaintiff wage and hour claims under the FLSA, addressing issues such as joint employment, misclassification of employees and exemptions from the FLSA’s overtime provisions. Evan has also represented employers in WARN Act lawsuits, claims for benefits under ERISA, and against claims of discrimination and retaliation on the basis of race, disability, national origin and sex under Title VII, the ADA, ADEA, FMLA, and Chapters 21 and 451 of the Texas Labor Code. Additionally, Evan has prosecuted and defended against claims of misappropriation of trade secrets, employee raiding and breach of fiduciary duties in the employment context.

As for appellate work, Evan has represented national employers and ERISA plans before the Fifth Circuit, recently obtaining a favorable judgment in a breach of contract and claim for benefits under ERISA.

Evan also has significant experience drafting employment agreements, separation and release agreements, restrictive covenants such as non-disclosure, non-competition and non-solicitation agreements, voluntary early retirement programs, and conducting due diligence associated with employment matters in asset and equity transactions.

In addition to representing clients in litigation and transactions, Evan also works with companies to develop and implement employment practices and procedures, such as revising and drafting employment handbooks, drafting specific employment policies related to leaves of absence, teleworking, vacation and sick leave, social media use and the protection of company property, among other issues.

Evan also represents owners and operators of public accommodations against claims of inadequate access under Titles II and III of the Americans with Disabilities Act and related state laws.

His representative experience includes:

• Represented RISC Networks, an industry leader in cloud, data center and network operations analytics, in the company’s acquisition by Flexera