Widely recognized as an authority for bet-the-company labor and employment cases, Scott McLaughlin is a “go-to” litigator for clients facing trade secret, fiduciary, discrimination, wage and hour, and “C-Suite” matters. He also has deep traditional labor experience, having handled litigation against unions, union elections supervised by the National Labor Relations Board, strikes and many labor arbitrations.
Scott regularly files lawsuits under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act to recover information misappropriated by departing employees and has vast related experience in gathering, securing and preserving electronic evidence. He also has extensive experience in conducting internal sexual harassment, discrimination and fraud investigations, and provides day-to-day labor and employment advice and counsel to clients.
With a national litigation practice, Scott has a successful track record for defending Fortune 200 companies in multimillion-dollar claims before state and federal courts in numerous trials and arbitrations.
Scott is board certified in labor and employment law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization.
Awards and Rankings
Recognized as a stand-out lawyer by Acritas Stars: Independently Rated Lawyers (2019-2020)
Selected for inclusion in Texas Super Lawyers (2003-2019)
Named to The Best Lawyers in America in the areas of labor and employment law - litigation (2007-2020) and labor and employment law - management (2012-2020)
Recognized by Chambers USA: Guide to Leading Business Lawyers in the area of labor and employment (2018-2020)
Experience
Won a $1.7 million judgment with no liability for the client in a four-week jury trial of a complex executive fraud/breach of fiduciary duty case.
Secured a $5.7 million judgment and dismissal of counterclaims for $30 million in damages in a fraud and breach of fiduciary duty case.
Won decertification of a 100-plus plaintiff FLSA collective action and subsequently achieved a favorable settlement in a trial involving the first group of plaintiffs.
Won a case against a labor union that was seeking millions of dollars in allegedly unpaid benefits.
Settled a Computer Fraud and Abuse Act case against a former executive of a large, publicly traded company on exceptionally favorable terms.
Settled a Computer Fraud and Abuse Act case against two former employees of an oilfield services company and their new employer, a conglomerate of foreign companies.
Defends an energy infrastructure company against a whistleblower retaliation claim initiated by a former employee under the Pipeline Safety Improvement Act.
Represents a global manufacturing company in significant litigation stemming from the termination of a company executive.
Won summary judgment for a multinational chemical company in litigation involving claims including of race and age discrimination under federal and state laws, as well as retaliation claims under FMLA.
Multimedia
Post-COVID-19 re-entry planning (April 30, 2020)
Eversheds Sutherland’s Renewable and Transportation Fuels and Energy and Commodities Trading teams hosted a live Q&A conversation with Eversheds Sutherland Employment Partner Scott McLaughlin to ...
Webcast-Blocked Access: Seeing if your website is ADA compliant (April 25, 2018)
On April 25, 2018, Eversheds Sutherland (US) attorneys Lewis S. Wiener, Scott R. McLaughlin, Sarah Q. Chaudhry and Alexander P. Fuchs hosted a webcast titled, “Blocked Access: Seeing if your website ...
News
In the News
Movers and Shakers (May 1, 2018)
State Bar of Texas
Scott McLaughlin and Marlene Williams are mentioned in this State Bar of Texas article for recently joining Eversheds Sutherland's Labor and Employment Practice Group as partners in the Houston office.
Eversheds Sutherland Adds Litigators on Both Sides of the Atlantic (February 28, 2018)
CDR Magazine
Eversheds Sutherland is featured in this article published by CDR Magazine regarding the recent expansion of its Litigation Practice Group with the addition of veteran litigators to offices in both ...
Law Firm News for February 16, 2018 (February 16, 2018)
Bloomberg Law - Occupational Safety & Health Reporter
Partners Scott McLaughlin and Marlene Williams are mentioned in this Bloomberg Law article for joining Eversheds Sutherland’s Litigation Practice Group in Houston.
Eversheds Sutherland Adds Labor and Employment Pros (February 12, 2018)
Texas Lawbook
Scott McLaughlin and Marlene Williams are featured in this Texas Lawbook article for joining Eversheds Sutherland’s Litigation Practice Group as partners in the Houston office.
Eversheds Sutherland Snags Two Jackson Walker Attorneys in Texas (February 9, 2018)
Law360
In this article published by Law360, Scott McLaughlin and Marlene Williams are featured for joining Eversheds Sutherland’s Litigation Practice Group as partners in the Houston office, expanding its ...
Two Employment Lawyers Leave Jackson Walker and Move to Eversheds Sutherland (February 9, 2018)
Houston Chronicle
Partners Scott McLaughlin and Marlene Williams are mentioned in this Houston Chronicle article for joining Eversheds Sutherland’s Litigation Practice Group in Houston.
Eversheds Sutherland Lands Two Prominent Litigators in Houston Office (February 8, 2018)
Houston Citybizlist
Scott McLaughlin and Marlene Williams are featured in this Houston Citybizlist article for joining Eversheds Sutherland’s Litigation Practice Group as partners in the Houston office.
At Client's Bidding, Houston Litigators Talk to Eversheds Sutherland and Make Lateral Move (February 8, 2018)
Texas Lawyer
Scott McLaughlin and Marlene Williams are featured in this Texas Lawyer article for joining Eversheds Sutherland’s Litigation Practice Group as partners in the Houston office, expanding its service ...
Press Releases
24 Eversheds Sutherland Practice Areas, 63 Attorneys Named Among Nation’s Best in 2020 Chambers USA (April 23, 2020)
Eversheds Sutherland is pleased to announce that 24 practices and 63 attorneys have earned recognition in the 2020 edition of Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business. Chambers USA, a ...
Acritas Stars Recognizes 26 Eversheds Sutherland Attorneys for Outstanding Client Service (April 2, 2020)
Eversheds Sutherland is pleased to announce that 26 attorneys have been recognized as stand-out attorneys in the 2020 Acritas Stars: Independently Rated Lawyers report. The annual report, based on ...
19 Eversheds Sutherland Practice Areas, 55 Attorneys Named Among Nation’s Best in 2019 Chambers USA (April 25, 2019)
Eversheds Sutherland is pleased to announce that 19 practices and 55 attorneys have earned recognition in the 2019 edition of Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business. Chambers USA, a ...
Acritas Stars Recognizes 22 Eversheds Sutherland Attorneys for Outstanding Client Service (March 20, 2019)
Eversheds Sutherland is pleased to announce that 22 attorneys have been recognized as stand-out lawyers in the 2019 Acritas Stars: Independently Rated Lawyers report. The annual report, based on ...
Four Eversheds Sutherland Attorneys Recognized by Texas Super Lawyers (September 7, 2018)
AUSTIN and HOUSTON-Eversheds Sutherland (US) LLP is pleased to announce that four Texas-based attorneys have been selected as top attorneys in the state by Super Lawyers. Eversheds Sutherland’s 2018 ...
19 Eversheds Sutherland Practice Areas, 59 Attorneys Named Among Nation’s Best in 2018 Chambers USA (May 3, 2018)
Eversheds Sutherland (US) LLP is pleased to announce that 19 practices and 59 attorneys have earned recognition in the 2018 edition of Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business. Chambers ...
Eversheds Sutherland Lands Two Prominent Litigators in Houston Office (February 8, 2018)
HOUSTON-Eversheds Sutherland (US) LLP is pleased to announce that Scott R. McLaughlin and Marlene C. Williams have joined the Litigation Practice Group as partners in the Houston office, expanding ...
Publications
Legal Alerts
Legal Alert: COVID-19 Update: President Trump signs federal paid leave law (March 20, 2020)
On Wednesday, March 18, President Trump signed the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, which includes new requirements for paid sick leave, an expansion of the Family and Medical Leave Act ...
NLRB issues new rule regarding joint employer status (February 26, 2020)
After notice of proposed rulemaking and request for comments, the NLRB released its final rule for governing joint employer status under the NLRA-which takes effect on April 27, 2020. Per the ...
Legal privilege of corporate internal investigations under US law-2019 caselaw update (December 19, 2019)
Understanding the boundaries of legal privilege in corporate internal investigations is critical. When counsel, either internal or external, misunderstands these boundaries, the result can be ...
Legal Alert: Department of Labor unveils new overtime salary requirements (September 24, 2019)
On September 24, 2019, the DOL announced new rules regarding the salary requirement for exempt employees under the FLSA. The DOL stated that the new rules would make 1.3 million American workers ...
SCOTUS rules exhaustion of administrative remedies is not jurisdictional - Does it matter? (June 4, 2019)
On June 3, 2019, the Supreme Court issued a unanimous decision holding that Title VII’s administrative exhaustion requirement is not a jurisdictional bar to filing a lawsuit in court. The lawsuit ...
The evolving landscape of non-compete agreements-change is underway in New York State-could non-compete clauses become unenforceable? (April 30, 2019)
Employers commonly use non-compete agreements to protect the use of their trade secrets and other confidential business information from employers who leave to join competitors. New York State ...
Fifteen-yard penalty for failure to WARN (April 18, 2019)
The Alliance of American Football (AAF) is the latest victim in a long line of leagues that have attempted to offer professional football outside of the NFL. In early April of this year, the AAF ...
California’s Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 - The HR Perspective (July 18, 2018)
Businesses with consumers in California may soon find themselves subject to the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (the Act). The Act arrives on the heels of the expansive consumer protections ...
Auto dealers and the exempt service advisor (April 9, 2018)
Auto dealers finally have the answer they have sought regarding compensation for service advisors-and it is favorable. On April 2, 2018, the US Supreme Court issued its much-awaited decision in ...
Circuit split grows-Second Circuit expands protection under Title VII based on sexual orientation (February 28, 2018)
On February 26, 2018, the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit became the second federal circuit to hold that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII) prohibits sexual orientation ...
Articles
Eversheds Sutherland presents annual Industrial Foresight Report 2020 (February, 2020)
In collaboration with Eversheds Sutherland Managing Partner Dr. Matthias Heisse .
Our global Diversified Industrials sector team are proud to present our annual Industrial Foresight Report 2020. This report identifies key risks, legislation and commercial developments your company ...
Cybersecurity and Data Privacy review and update: Looking back on 2018 and planning ahead for 2019 (March 1, 2019)
From the implementation of the GDPR to the passage of the CCPA, the year 2018 proved to be a monumental one for cybersecurity and data privacy. Regulators from around the world responded to ...
