Ami Wynne (left) and Jonathan Lotsoff of Morgan Lewis. (Courtesy photos)

Morgan, Lewis & Bockius on Wednesday announced it had added the global head of Sidley Austin's labor and employment practice as the firm fields a crush of cases and investigations related to workplace bias and misconduct.

The firm needs more people who can help manage the firm's high volume of #MeToo investigations and cases, which is why Ami Wynne's experience in conducting internal investigations into allegations of discrimination, harassment and other misconduct makes her an ideal candidate, said Grace Speights, the head of Morgan Lewis' labor and employment practice.

"I can't tell you how many we're doing because we're doing so many. I get at least one or two calls every week for a #MeToo investigation," Speights said. "We see Ami as helping carry some of that load."

Joining Wynne in her jump to Morgan Lewis' Chicago office is Jonathan Lotsoff, an employment litigator. Their arrivals at Morgan Lewis comes nearly a year after the Philadelphia-based law firm scooped up eight Sidley Austin lawyers in Los Angeles, including Jennifer Zargarof, who co-led the global labor and employment practice alongside Wynne, Speights noted.

"I don't think there is another law firm as large as we are that has a labor & employment practice as large as we have," Speights said. "The firm continues to invest in this practice."

Wynne in a statement indicated that her former colleagues played in a role bringing her to Morgan Lewis, saying they "reinforced how collaborative the global team is, and how the firm is committed to creating safe and inclusive workplaces, both within Morgan Lewis and for its clients."

Wynne, a longtime member of Sidley's diversity committee, said that was "so appealing to us on a personal level, as well as a professional one."

Morgan Lewis has about 300 lawyers in its global labor and employment practice, according to a firm spokeswoman. Of all of the firm's offices, the Chicago branch of the labor and employment practice group is the busiest in terms of productivity and hours, Speights said.

"They are tremendously busy," Speights said, regarding the Chicago office. "Adding Ami and Jon will help with the work overload that's out there."

Morgan Lewis opened its office in Chicago in 2003 with nine lawyers. It now has grown to around 100 lawyers, a firm spokeswoman said.

A Sidley Austin spokeswoman did not immediately respond to a request for comment.