Debra Ellwood Meppen is known in the labor and employment bar as the “dragon slayer” for her track record of negotiating seemingly impossible and potentially explosive disputes that could tie up companies in endless litigation. Meppen is the chair of Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani’s National Labor and Employment Law Practice Group, with a particular focus on the entertainment industry. She has an active employment litigation and counseling practice defending celebrities, and both private and public entities against claims of discrimination, retaliation, FMLA, wrongful termination, defamation and harassment claims. In addition, she handles large-scale class action litigation throughout California and nationally. She regularly counsels employers on hiring practices, terminations, workplace investigations, reductions in workforce issues, and litigation avoidance practices. Her clients rely on her to provide a comprehensive plan that includes how to handle various types of litigation relating to labor and employment issues.
