The donors listed below have enabled The Employee Rights Advocacy Institute For Law & Policy to advance equality and justice in the American workplace.  We gratefully acknowledge their generous support of The Institute's work.

We extend our gratitude to our 2011-2012 Visionary Circle members ($1,000 or more). Contributions of any amount are welcome, and will make a difference to our work toward workplace equality and justice. To make a donation, please click here or contact Leah A. Hofkin, Director of Development (E-mail: lhofkin@employeerightsadvocacy.org; Tel: (415) 296-7629, Ext. 221).

Jules Bernstein & Linda Lipsett
Eileen M. Bissen
Cashdan & Kane, PLLC
Terisa E. Chaw & James A. Hendriksen
Wade B. Cowan
James M. Finberg
Bruce A. Fredrickson & Kristin L. Fredrickson
Barry Goldstein
Haynes & Haynes, PC
Thomas J. Henderson
Kator, Parks & Weiser PLLC
King & Greisen, LLP
Lewis, Feinberg, Lee, Renaker & Jackson, PC
Karen Maoki
Patrick J. Perotti/Dworken & Bernstein Co., LPA
Albert & Doris Pitt Foundation
Rebecca L. Salawdeh
Schall & Barasch, LLC
The Texas FLSA Posse
Paul H. Tobias

We also gratefully acknowledge this growing list of donors to our 2011 year-end Vision + Action Campaign:

Alan Banov & Associates David A. Bieging & Nancy A. Bieging Bornn & Surls Lawrence R. Chaban Cynthia Y. Chaw Debra P. Chaw Elinor C. Chaw & William H. Chaw Karen A. Chaw Michael Chaw & Stacy Kobayashi Victoria Chin Susan M. Coler Colorado PELA Craig A. Crispin Timothy E. Cupp, Cupp & Cupp, PC Doris J. Dabrowski Latif Doman Mary Dryovage Ronald G. Dunn & Linda M. Pelosi-Dunn Brian East Dennis E. Egan & Judy Egan Paul Glusman Colleen Goodin Leon Greenberg Nancy Grim Caryn Groedel and Associates Co., LPA Mark P. Herron Janet E. Hill Lee Holen Patricia Ito Alan Kansas Katz, Marshall & Banks, LLP Walter F. Kelly Linda Lautenberg & Mitch Lautenberg Dolores Y. Leal Judy Mansfield & Vince Treacy Joan Meyers In Honor Of Elissa J. Hobfoll John Thomas Moran, Jr.

Felicia Nestor Suzanne M. Nigro Christopher C. North George R. O'Connor Herbert G. Ogden O'Malley & Madden David Oppenheimer & Mary Kates Outten & Golden LLP Christine L. Owens & Sanford A. Newman Katherine S. Piscitelli Planet Depos Adam M. Porter Jonathan C. Puth Robert A. Richardson Nancy Richards-Stower Marilou M. Righini Brian Rochel Michael Rubin Sapir & Frumkin LLP Schaefer Law Firm, LLC The Schulman Law Firm Liane Scott & Eric Scott Donna A. Seid Joseph M. Sellers & Laurie B. Davis Dan Siegel Martin Silberman Stephen L. Smith Henry L. Strong Jamie G. Sypulski Ivan L. Tamarkin Michael Warecki & Shirley Warecki Michelle A. Welsh Jenny Yang In Honor Of Kil Huh Lewis A. Zipkin Jason Mark Zuckerman

2011 Cy Pres Awards

Applegate et al. v. Olan Mills, Inc.($28843.92)
The Institute extends our gratitude to the NELA members who made this cy pres award possible: NELA Executive Board member Marguerite M. Longoria and her partner, Sam Smith, of Burr & Smith (Tampa, FL) and David Borgen, of Goldstein, Demchak, Baller, Borgen & Dardarian (Oakland, CA). In 2009 and 2010, Marguerite, Sam, and David represented a nationwide class of portrait studio managers employed by Olan Mills on state and federal claims for unpaid minimum and overtime wages. The court approved the parties' settlement agreement, which included plaintiffs' proposal to award any unclaimed funds to The Institute.

Justin Metcalf et al. v. FCI and Associates, Inc. et al.( $2,500)
Thanks to NELA member Rob Wiley (Dallas, TX), The Institute received cy pres funds in Justin Metcalf et al. v. FCI and Associates, Inc. et al., which involved unpaid wages under the Fair Labor Standards Act. This is the second time Rob has designated us as a cy pres recipient; we used the first cy pres award in 2008 to launch The Institute.

Thornton et al. v. Amtrak ($15,714.05)
Thornton et al. v. Amtrak was a race discrimination class action case. This award was made possible by NELA members Steven Sprenger and Michael Lieder of Sprenger & Lang (Washington, DC) and their co-counsel, Susan Huhta of the Washington Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs (Washington, DC), and Maia Caplan (Washington, DC). Beginning in 1997, they represented a class of African-American track workers along Amtrak's Northeast Corridor claiming race discrimination in job assignment, training, overtime and disciplinary decisions as well as the maintenance of a hostile work environment. The case was settled in 2000 for monetary and broad injunctive relief.  

2010 Cy Pres Awards

Casas v. Conseco Finance Corp.
The Institute received a generous cy pres distribution from NELA member Michele R. Fisher (MN) and her firm, Nichols Kaster, LLP as a result of class settlement in Casas v. Conseco Finance Corp. Nichols Kaster had initiated this action in 2000 on behalf of loan officers denied overtime compensation in violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act. The case was settled several years ago on behalf of more than 2,200 plaintiffs for $21 million.

Velez v. Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation
On November 30, 2010, the court in Velez v. Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation approved The Institute as one of seven charitable organizations designated as cy pres recipients in the $152.5 million settlement of a gender discrimination class action brought by NELA member David Sanford (DC), and his firm, Sanford, Wittels & Heisler, LLP, on behalf of 5,600 female employees of Novartis. The litigation was initiated in 2004 and resulted in a jury verdict of $250 million in punitive damages against Novartis in May 2010 before the settlement, which also includes significant non-monetary relief, was reached.

Brasfield et al. v. Source Broadband Services, LLC
The Institute received a generous cy pres award stemming from a collective action on behalf of installers and technicians of Source Broadband and C-COR who were denied overtime pay. Nichols Kaster worked with NELA members Don Donati and Billy Ryan (Donati Law Firm) of Memphis to bring this case in February 2008 in the Western District of Tennessee. This is the third cy pres award The Institute has received thanks to the efforts of Nichols Kaster since The Institute was founded in 2008.

2008-2009 Cy Pres Awards

Martin v. Grange Mutual Insurance Co. ($222,684.04)
The insurance policyholders of this 1994 class action suit alleged that they were incorrectly charged for uninsured motorist insurance. Using the doctrine of cy pres, Dworken & Bernstein and Grange Insurance Charitable Fund designated over $10 million of unclaimed settlement funds to 33 local, state, and national nonprofit organizations, the largest cy pres donation in U.S. history.

Stanfield, et al. v. First NLC Financial Services ($75,000)
This contribution was made possible from a cy pres fund established in a class and collective action case that NELA members Paul J. Lukas (MN) and Donald H. Nichols (MN) of Nichols Kaster, LLP settled in late 2007 involving violations under the FLSA and California law. The firm represented loan officers who were employed by First NLC Financial Services. The defendant failed (1) to pay the plaintiffs overtime compensation, (2) to provide them with accurate itemized wage statements and (3) to give them rest breaks and meal periods.

Fraiser v. Citigroup ($812.68)
This cy pres award was made possible by former NELA Executive Board member Cliff Palefsky (McGuinn, Hillsman & Palefsky) and NELA member Michael Rubin (Altshuler Berzon, LLP), who brought a wage and hour class action on behalf of brokers who were improperly assessed fines by Citigroup for various work-related issues.