Richard N. Appel has experience in all areas of management labor-relations and employment law. In recent years, Mr. Appel’s focus has been assisting employers in the development of key strategic labor initiatives related to corporate re-structuring, collective bargaining, litigation, arbitrations (both grievance and interest) and possible significant legislative and administrative changes.
In the employment area, Mr. Appel has concentrated on complex employment litigation, including federal, state and multidistrict class and collective actions under the EEO laws and the Fair Labor Standards Act. His work has included significant representations in varied industries, including retail, gaming, financial, warehouse and distribution, professional sports, entertainment and telecommunications. Mr. Appel’s long-term client relationships have enabled him to develop a keen understanding of the impact of labor and employment law issues on a company’s overall business operations.
Mr. Appel was elected to the honorary College of Labor and Employment Lawyers in 2001 and is a member of the American Bar Association’s EEO Committee. He served as a chapter co-chair for two chapters in the upcoming Employment Discrimination Law (C. Geoffrey Weirich et al. eds., 4th ed. 2007) (ABA, P.Kane ed.) He is also a co-author of a law review article, “Affirmative Action in the Workplace: Forty Years Later,” 22 Hofstra Lab. & Emp. L.J.549. He has served as a lecturer with the National Employment Law Institute.
Mr. Appel received his B.A. with honors in 1973 from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and his J.D. in 1976 from the Catholic University of America, where he served on the law review. After a state court appellate clerkship, he joined Akin Gump in 1977. He is a member of the District of Columbia and Maryland bars and is admitted to practice before numerous federal courts.