Amanda A. Sonneborn

Amanda advises and represents clients across a number of industries in strategic employment related issues in the United States, including employment, employee benefits, labor relations, and diversity issues. Amanda has handled a wide-variety of bet the company litigation matters, labor organizing campaigns and collective bargaining, high level executive investigations, and projects relating to workforce reorganizations and diversity, equity, and inclusion strategy. She has advised employers on complex issues relating to harassment and discrimination claims, pay equity strategy, and worker misclassification.  Amanda has a particular focus on technology companies and the issues that they face with their workforces. 

Amanda’s employment related counseling and litigation experience includes serving as lead defense trial counsel in "bet the company" employee litigation matters, as well as addressing executive level, harassment and discrimination allegations, independent contractor risks, and union organizing campaigns. Amanda provides strategic guidance to clients regarding key employee issues, such as workforce reorganizations and diversity, equity, and inclusion program development, including management of potential brand impact of such issues. She has also served as outside counsel and independent counsel to boards of directors and executive team members in connection with internal investigations and highly sensitive government investigations.

Amanda also has considerable experience in the area of employee benefits risk management. Amanda has advised high level executives regarding their fiduciary obligations for effective management of their employee benefit plans. Her ERISA and employee benefits experience includes defense of and advice regarding claims for benefits, breach of fiduciary duty claims, cash balance plan claims, breach of contract claims, and ERISA Section 510 employment discrimination claims. Amanda has handled class actions, as well as hundreds of single-plaintiff cases, brought in federal court under ERISA. Amanda has also counseled clients regarding Department of Labor investigations and issues relating to their benefit plans’ investment strategy. She often speaks on ERISA risk management issues and has served as a chapter editor for the American Bar Association's book on employee benefits.

Within the arena of labor relations law, Amanda has served as national counsel to several corporations facing targeted corporate campaigns. She has experience advising clients during all aspects of union organizing campaigns, including public relations, government relations, and investor relations issues that arise during the course of these campaigns. In addition, she provides clients with day-to-day labor relations advice on a wide spectrum of topics, including independent contractor issues and neutrality agreements. She also frequently negotiates collective bargaining agreements on behalf of clients. Finally, Amanda has handled several appellate cases seeking review of National Labor Relations Board decisions.