Riley Safer Holmes & Cancila LLP (RSHC) recently announced that renowned labor and employment lawyer Alan King '88 will join the firm and chair the national L&E practice.
For more than three decades, King has advised and defended clients in individual and class action litigation arising under federal, state, and local employment laws across multiple industries, including retail, airlines, healthcare, telecommunications, education, and financial services, as well as municipalities and minority-owned businesses.
“After spending my entire legal career at one law firm, I never anticipated making a move. However, like many in the profession, I have been watching with great interest and admiration the growth and development of RSHC as a top-tier law firm that is uniquely client-focused and one that has dared to be different when it comes to the traditional law firm model and serving client needs. It is clear to me that there is a tremendous energy surrounding RSHC, and I couldn’t be more excited about joining the firm and enhancing RSHC’s labor and employment practice. I believe my clients will greatly benefit from that energy, and from the client focus, flexibility and forward-thinking that exists at RSHC,” King said.
King is an accomplished trial lawyer with experience handling high-stakes cases for businesses and management, as well as highly sensitive workplace investigations. In one of his most highprofile trials, King defended the City of Chicago in a high-stakes employment discrimination action filed by a female police officer, which resulted in verdicts for the City and individual defendants on all counts after a two-week jury trial. King also uses his vast experience to assist clients in negotiating favorable resolutions of employment-related disputes. He is a certified mediator and a member of the American Arbitration Association’s (AAA) National Panel of Employment Arbitrators.
Of her law school classmate and friend, RSHC Managing Partner Patricia Brown Holmes '86 said, “We are extremely excited to have Alan join us. He has the experience and perspective necessary to immediately assume leadership of our labor and employment group. We pride ourselves on providing value to our clients as they define value—we know Alan fits that model and will be a true asset in our L&E practice. Between pandemic-related concerns, recent landmark Supreme Court decisions, and the sharpened focus on discrimination and equity matters, this is a real inflection point for workforce issues. The issues are important to our clients, and Alan has the experience and background to help them with these matters.”
A recognized leader and respected voice on issues of diversity and inclusion in the legal profession, King has trained and mentored other diverse lawyers throughout his long career. He is actively engaged in civic activities on behalf of his beloved Chicago, including currently serving as Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Children First Fund: The Chicago Public Schools Foundation.
The addition of King reflects continued growth for RSHC, which has more than tripled in size since first opening its doors in 2016. And, as with the arrival of partner Joseph McCoy, who joined the firm in 2017 to lead RSHC’s business transactions group, King’s entry continues to build the diversity of the firm’s senior leadership, which already stands above the industry average in multiple national rankings for inclusion and equity of opportunity. King was previously the Vice Chair of the Labor & Employment group at Drinker Biddle & Reath, which recently merged with Faegre Baker Daniels to become Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath.