Celesq® Presenters

Steven J. Pearlman is a partner in the Labor & Employment Law Department and Co-Head of the Whistleblowing & Retaliation Group and the Restrictive Covenants, Trade Secrets & Unfair Competition Group. 

Employment, Whistleblower, Restrictive Covenant and Trade Secret Practice. Steven’s practice focuses on defending companies in court and arbitration against claims of discrimination, retaliation and harassment, including claims brought by high-level executives; whistleblower retaliation; restrictive covenant violations; theft of trade secrets; and wage-and-hour violations (including class, collective and PAGA actions). 

Illustrating his versatility, Steven has: successfully tried cases before juries in multiple jurisdictions; defended one of the largest Illinois-only class actions in the history of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois; and prevailed following his oral arguments in matters of importance before the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit and California state courts. In the restrictive covenant and trade secret arena, he has: secured one of the few ex parte seizure orders that have been issued under the Defend Trade Secrets Act; obtained a world-wide injunction in federal litigation against a high-level executive who jumped ship to a competitor; and obtained an order reducing a non-competition agreement to one-third of its original duration. And in the whistleblower arena, he has successfully defended claims before state and federal courts and at all levels of the U.S. Department of Labor (OSHA, OALJ, ARB). Steven brings his litigation experience to bear in regularly counseling clients to minimize risk and avoid or prepare for litigation.