Daniel L. Nash

Partner

Areas of Focus

Daniel L. Nash

Partner

dnash@akingump.com

Areas of Focus

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Biography
  • Nationally recognized trial lawyer focusing on labor and employment matters.
  • Previous co-chair of the firm’s labor and employment practice and member of the firm’s partnership admissions committee.

Daniel Nash has successfully litigated a number of widely publicized class and complex cases in federal and state courts and administrative agencies throughout the country.

He is a member of the Litigation and Labor and Employment Law sections of the American Bar Association, as well as the Sports Lawyers Association.

Dan has served as a member of the adjunct faculty at the law school of the American University in Washington, D.C. Following law school, he served as an extern law clerk to the Honorable Stanley Mosk of the California Supreme Court.

Representative Work

Reported Cases

  • Successfully defended a large retail company’s store tipping policies in a class action brought in California state court. (To read about Mr. Nash’s trial strategy featured in The American Lawyer, click here.)
  • Won a dismissal of class action claims challenging a large accounting firm’s classification of junior accountants as exempt from overtime.
  • Obtained a dismissal of a petition before the National Labor Relations Board that sought a nationwide union election of insurance agents on the ground that the agents were independent contractors and not employees.
  • Trying a nationwide class action in federal court in Florida challenging a large retail company’s policy of compensating store managers; class certification was denied and complete defense verdict returned by the jury on the claims of
    19 individual plaintiffs.

Sports Representations

  • Successfully defended several court challenges to the suspensions of players for conduct detrimental to the game filed in Minnesota, Texas and New York courts.
  • Obtained a favorable trial verdict in lawsuits brought in federal and state court in Minnesota challenging the suspension of several players under the league’s policy against steroids.
  • Obtained orders from an arbitrator and a federal court in California requiring a retired professional athlete to withdraw his claim for workers’ compensation filed under California state law in favor of the law of the state where his team was located.
  • Successfully defended a professional sports team in a grievance challenging the suspension of a player for publicly criticizing his teammate, and later obtained an award finding the player in breach of his contract and requiring him to repay a portion of his signing bonus.

Education
  • J.D., University of California College of Law, San Francisco, magna cum laude, 1983

  • B.S., State University of New York College at Cortland, cum laude, 1976

Bar Admissions
  • District of Columbia

Recognitions
  • Sports Business Journal, Power Players, 2021.
  • Washingtonian, “Top Lawyer” for Employment Defense, 2015, 2017, 2018 and 2020.
  • The National Law Journal – Sports and Entertainment Law Trailblazers, 2019.
  • Chambers USA - Labor & Employment, 2007, 2009 to 2015 and 2017 to 2023, and Sports Law, 2013 to 2023.
  • Akin Gump’s sports practice was named as Law360’s Sports Practice Group of the Year in 2016.
  • Akin Gump’s labor and employment practice has been named as Law360’s Employment Practice Group of the Year four times in seven years: 2009, 2013, 2015 and 2016.
  • The Legal 500 US - Labor and employment, 2017 to 2018; Labor and employment disputes (including collective actions): defense, 2019 to 2022; Sport; 2021-2022 and Workplace and employment counseling, 2022.
  • The Best Lawyers in America, Litigation - Labor and Employment, 2023.
  • The Best Lawyers in America, Sports Law, 2023.
Affiliations and Public Service
  • Member, Litigation and Labor and Employment Law sections, American Bar Association.
  • Member, Sports Lawyer Association.

Insights and Achievements

      Publications | Alerts

      March 13, 2024

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          Publications | Alerts

          March 13, 2024

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