Overview

Thomas Lenz is a recognized authority on labor and employment law and all issues pertaining to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).  He advises, trains, and represents employers on a wide range of labor and employment matters.  He is bilingual in Spanish.  In a typical work day, Mr. Lenz might train Spanish-speaking supervisors on harassment prevention, participate in collective bargaining to negotiate a labor agreement, edit employment policies, respond to an NLRB investigation, help an employer prepare for labor arbitration, and review the terms of a corporate transaction for potential labor vulnerabilities, while also responding to calls and emails on day to day employee issues affecting our client employers.

Since beginning his career at the NLRB, and in over 30 years with the firm, Mr. Lenz has worked with a variety of clients and industries across California and regularly in other states.

Mr. Lenz is an Adjunct Lecturer at the University of Southern California Gould School of Law.  He is an advisor and former Chair of the Labor and Employment Law Section of the California Lawyers Association (CLA), formerly the State Bar of California.  He currently Chairs CLA’s Civics Education and Outreach Committee.  In 2023, Mr. Lenz was named a Fellow of the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers, a national organization for leading labor and employment attorneys.  He has been honored as one of the Top One Hundred Labor Attorneys in the United States by Labor Relations Institute, Inc.

Representative Matters

  • Advice and training on workplace issues
  • Defense of employee discharges and discipline
  • Workplace communication strategies
  • NLRB unfair labor practice and representation election proceedings
  • Grievances and arbitration arising under labor agreements
  • Collective bargaining
  • Strike and picketing activity
  • Union jurisdictional disputes
  • Advice and education for boards of directors on nonprofit governance
  • Due diligence review and strategy of labor issues in corporate transactions
  • Withdrawal liability involving multiemployer pension plans
  • Apprenticeship and other training programs

Practice Areas

News & Publications

Firm News

Events & Speaking Engagements

Mr. Lenz regularly presents seminars and training throughout California and other states. He is a frequently consulted source for reporters on labor and employment topics.  Mr. Lenz helps the State Bar’s Labor and Employment Law Section coordinate the “Your Legal Rights” program on KALW-FM (San Francisco), a weekly radio show which is broadcast state-wide on public radio and on kalw.org. Mr. Lenz has made several appearances on the show, including a summary of labor law basics in the episode "Labor Law 101," aired January 9, 2019, and a legal review in the episode "Your Legal Rights: A look back at the past year," aired February 27, 2019.

Other articles, podcasts, and news segments in which Mr. Lenz has appeared or has been quoted as a source or expert include the following: 

Publications

Mr. Lenz’s articles on labor and employment law topics have been featured in California Lawyer magazine, Construction Executive, the National Club Association’s Club Director magazine, and the Association of Workplace Investigators Journal, as well as other publications. He is a contributing editor of a leading labor law treatise, The Developing Labor Law. In 2017, Mr. Lenz was profiled by the OC Bar online and was featured in an article in Washington Lawyer Magazine.

Blog Posts

Multimedia

Mr. Lenz is a frequently contacted as a resource for the media.  He provides quotes and writes articles on a variety of workplace for numerous publications.  He wrote the Messages From The Chair column for the California and Employment Law Review during his term as Chair for California’s Labor and Employment Law Section.  He has made frequent appearances on the “Your Legal Rights” radio show (KALW-FM San Francisco and www.kalw.org). He has appeared on local and national broadcast media.

Community Involvement

Community & Professional

  • International Institute of Los Angeles
  • San Gabriel Valley Economic Partnership
  • Jericho Road Pasadena
  • Labor and Employment Relations Association

Education

J.D., Louisiana State University Law School
B.A., Marquette University

Admissions

  • 1988, Illinois
    1991, California
    2010, Alaska
    2010, Arizona
    2011, Oregon
    2011, Washington
    2011, District of Columbia
    U.S. Court of Appeals, D.C. Circuit
    U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit
    U.S. Court of Appeals, Tenth Circuit 
    U.S. District Court, District of Alaska
    U.S. District Court, District of Arizona
    U.S. District Courts, Central, Eastern, Northern, and Southern Districts of California
    U.S. District Court, District of Colorado
    U.S. District Court, District of Oregon
    U.S. District Court, Western District of Washington
    U.S. Supreme Court
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