Julie Totten

Partner

Sacramento


Read full biography at www.orrick.com
Julie Totten, who leads Orrick’s Global Employment Law and Litigation Practice Group, built her reputation by helping companies prevent and resolve their most challenging litigation and compliance issues in the employment law arena.

In doing so, Julie closely collaborates with each client, gathering an in-depth understanding of their specific tensions, challenges and objectives. Legal 500 noted she “truly understands corporate politics and works with in-house counsel to understand the intersections of legal advice and business objectives.” Julie then draws upon nearly three decades of experience to guide clients towards the best possible resolution. Her client-focused approach is one of many reasons she was selected to lead Orrick’s global employment practice, which Chambers ranks as one of the country’s foremost practices and describes Julie as “a big thinker and a thought leader.”

Julie has experience litigating and arbitrating both class actions and individual plaintiff cases. She defends clients in all types of employment matters, including complex wage-and-hour class, collective and representative actions, pay equity and promotion cases, whistleblower retaliation actions, discrimination, harassment and retaliation litigation and trade secret and non-complete matters. She also guides clients through sensitive investigations, as well as government agency audits and litigation. Julie is proactive in helping clients avoid litigation by assisting them with the development of policies and practices designed to minimize exposure, including advice and counseling work in the areas of AI and DEI in selection and recruiting. Julie is honored to be a Fellow of the College of Labor and Employment and a member of the American Employment Law Council. She also served as a Council Member of the American Bar Association Labor and Employment Law Section.

Posts by: Julie Totten

“Judges Are Appointed For Life, Not For Eternity”: SCOTUS Rules That Judge’s Vote in Equal Pay Case Does Not Count Due To Judge’s Passing

In April 2018, an en banc Ninth Circuit held in Rizo v. Yovino that an employer cannot justify a wage differential between male and female employees under the Equal Pay Act by relying on prior salary. Before the Ninth Circuit published its decision, though, Judge Stephen Reinhardt passed away. On February 25th, the U.S. Supreme Court vacated the Ninth Circuit’s decision, reasoning that the appellate court should not have counted Reinhardt’s vote because he passed away before the decision was issued. Instead, the Ninth Circuit should not have released the opinion. READ MORE

Legislative Updates Employers Should Know About to Avoid Wringing in the New Year

The California legislature played an active role in 2015 by enacting new rules and amendments in many employment areas.  The following covers some of the key highlights, some of which became effective on January 1, 2016.

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