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Chicago, Illinois Workplace Employment Law Lawyer |
An experienced employment law lawyer, Ronald B. Schwartz concentrates his legal practice on behalf of executives and other employees. Schwartz provides legal services in the areas of retaliation, overtime Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), Family and Medical Leave (FMLA), Retaliatory Discharge, In September, Schwartz attended the 8th Annual Taxpayers Against Fraud Education Fund Conference (TAF) in Washington, D.C., his fourth TAF conference. Schwartz is a member of TAF, a nonprofit public interest organization dedicated to combating fraud against Government through False Claims Acts and their qui tam provisions. Schwartz is a member of the Illinois Bar Association Labor and Employment Section Council. Schwartz is a lawyer with Katz, Friedman, Eagle, Eisenstein, Johnson & Bareck, P.C. Katz Friedman, concentrates its practice in Labor and Employment law, Workers' Compensation, and Personal Injury. See Schwartz's biography at the Katz Friedman website.
Schwartz wrote the NELA U.S. Supreme Court amicus brief in the 2003 [PDF] in the Desert Palace, Inc. v. Costa case. Desert Palace is a unanimous landmark decision favoring employees. Schwartz also wrote a Supreme Court amicus brief [PDF] in the first Family and Medical Leave Act case before the Supreme Court. This case was decided in 2002. Mr. Schwartz has practiced workplace law for 25 years. He was the 2003-04 Chair of the Labor
and Employment Practice Committee of the Chicago Bar Association. He is a proud and active member of NELA and its Illinois affiliate. NELA founded Workplace
Fairness. From 1998-2001 and 2003-05, Schwartz served on the Board of Directors
of NELA/Illinois. He is a former Chair of the Chicago Bar Ass'n Civil Rights Committee. Mr. Schwartz frequently gives speeches and presentations on employment law topics. Schwartz, who concentrates his practice in employment law, has been
licensed to practice law in Illinois since 1980. In addition, he is admitted to the federal trial
bar, U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois, Seventh
Circuit Court of Appeals, and Supreme Court of the United States. If you believe that you may have a legal claim against your former or current employer, we encourage you to call our law firm at (312)263-6330. In our initial telephone conference, we will briefly discuss, without charging a fee, whether a meeting should be scheduled in our office. We will not provide you legal advice by email or by telephone call until we have established a confidential relationship or an attorney-client relationship through a meeting in person. A referral may be made to another experienced attorney.
 Map for 77 W. Washington St., 20th Floor, Chicago, Illinois 60602. NOTICE: An employee has a duty to mitigate damages (seek similar work at similar pay).
IMPORTANT WHISTLEBLOWER INFORMATIONThe Illinois Whistleblower Act provides employees expanded protection against retaliation. Here's a summary of this new employee protection. The federal False Claims Act (FCA) is the most feared whistleblower law in the United States. Persons with personal knowledge of a fraud on the federal government can report it through the FCA’s procedures. If the government collects from the fraudulent contractor, the whistleblower shares in the proceeds. The law contains a qui tam provision which permits “original sources” (whistleblowers) to file suit under seal (secretly) on behalf of the U.S. to recover damages incurred by the federal government as a result of contractor fraud or other false claims. The whistleblower is entitled to a significant portion of the proceeds, if there is a recovery. The whistleblower must comply with the specific procedures of the FCA to be eligible for a monetary award. The FCA also contains an anti-retaliation provision prohibiting the discharge or harassment of a whistleblower who acts in furtherance of making protected disclosures or filing a qui tam suit. Section (h) permits the whistleblower to file a wrongful discharge suit for double back pay, other damages, and attorney's fees. Illinois has a similar False Claim Act. Also, Illinois law allows whistleblowers to bring lawsuits on behalf of private insurers and receive a percentage of the recovery. Chicago has also adopted its own false claim law. WorkplaceLawyer
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information about Mr. Schwartz's experience using computers. Revised: 12/26/2008
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