Philip Berkowitz

May 08, 2019 | The Recorder

The recent decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in Wadler v. Bio-Rad provides a good illustration of the intersection between FCPA enforcement and whistleblower claims.

By Philip Berkowitz

8 minute read

May 09, 2018 | New York Law Journal

In this Employment Issues column, Philip Berkowitz and Hironobu Tsukamoto write: Effective communication is key to being a good lawyer. But one cannot communicate effectively if one does not have a sense of the listener's values. And this may be particularly true when implementing codes of conduct across borders.

By Philip Berkowitz and Hironobu Tsukamoto

8 minute read

February 23, 2018 | New York Law Journal

Non-disparagement agreements are a tempting remedy. Clients want them. They are paying to put a matter behind them. But these agreements may be perceived as an effort to unfairly muzzle employees, so they must be written with care, and in the proper context.

By Philip Berkowitz

8 minute read

March 09, 2017 | New York Law Journal

In his Employment Issues column, Philip Berkowitz discusses the recent whistleblower case 'Erhart v. BofI Holding', writing that 'Erhart' does not represent an isolated occurrence. Banks and indeed all businesses must anticipate that a whistleblower may disclose highly confidential and even privileged records to an enforcement agency or third party. These disclosures, if carried out in good faith and in the reasonable pursuit of a legal claim, are likely to be held to be fully lawful.

By Philip Berkowitz

18 minute read

March 08, 2017 | New York Law Journal

In his Employment Issues column, Philip Berkowitz discusses a recent case in which an internal auditor at a bank provided highly confidential bank and customer documents and information to the SEC and other government enforcement agencies, along with The New York Times, his mother and his girlfriend.

By Philip Berkowitz

18 minute read

March 10, 2016 | New York Law Journal

In his Employment Issues column, Philip Berkowitz writes: New York City recently substantially limited employers' ability to run criminal and credit checks on employees and applicants. At the same time, banks and financial services companies are in many cases obligated by law to conduct background checks on employees. How do these various conflicting requirements reconcile with one another? Answer: with difficulty.

By Philip Berkowitz

10 minute read

September 10, 2015 | New York Law Journal

In his Employment Issues column, Philip Berkowitz of Littler Mendelson writes: In the United States, mandatory hiring quotas based on gender, or any other protected factor, may violate anti-discrimination laws. While the law encourages voluntary diversity and affirmative action, these efforts are subject to careful scrutiny to assure that they do not constitute unlawful "reverse discrimination."

By Philip Berkowitz

8 minute read

September 09, 2015 | New York Law Journal

In his Employment Issues column, Philip Berkowitz of Littler Mendelson writes: In the United States, mandatory hiring quotas based on gender, or any other protected factor, may violate anti-discrimination laws. While the law encourages voluntary diversity and affirmative action, these efforts are subject to careful scrutiny to assure that they do not constitute unlawful "reverse discrimination."

By Philip Berkowitz

8 minute read

September 12, 2013 | New York Law Journal

In his Employment Issues column, Philip Berkowitz of Littler Mendelson writes: These days, U.S. employers may be sued for alleged sexual harassment that occurs anywhere in the world, if the employee is a U.S. citizen. But in a recent Southern District case, the plaintiff employee was employed not by the defendant, but by a local Netherlands Antilles company, which was, in turn, a subsidiary of a Bermuda company, of which the defendant was also an affiliate.

By Philip Berkowitz

8 minute read