Licensed in California and Texas, Allison C. Williams represents and advises employers on all matters of labor and employment law in state and federal court. Allison also represents clients during investigations conducted by the U.S. Department of Labor, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the Texas Workforce Commission, the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing, and the California Division of Labor Standards Enforcement. Most recently, Allison successfully obtained the first finding by the Texas Workforce Commission that a marketplace platform qualified for the Marketplace Platform Exception under the Texas Administrative Code §815.134 since its inception in 2019.
Allison has significant experience in the following areas:
- Complex class and collective action litigation
- Independent contractor litigation
- Investigations conducted by the DOL, OSHA, and TWC
- White collar exemption litigation
- Wage and hour compliance under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and California state law
- Employment policies and practices, including commission plans, bonus plans, and on-call pay practices
- Nationwide wage and hour audits
- Discrimination, harassment, and retaliation under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. § 1981, the Americans with Disabilities Act, and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act
- Employment-related common law and tort claims under Texas law, including breach of contract, fraud and fraud in the inducement, promissory estoppel, unjust enrichment, and assault and battery
- Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA)
Allison has advised and defended clients across the county in multiple industries, including:
- Marketplace platforms, transportation network companies, gig economy
- Healthcare
- Financial services
- Transportation, including waste management, delivery, and trucking
- Aviation
- Manufacturing
- Retail
- Renewable energy
- Construction
- Staffing
- Upstream and midstream oil and gas production
- Government entities, including police departments, city government, and school districts
- Maritime
- Gaming
Before joining Littler, Allison interned with the Hon. Magistrate Judge Calvin Botley of the U.S. District Court, Southern District of Texas. After graduating from law school, she was a litigation associate at another national law firm in Texas where she represented state employers against Section 1983 claims, wrongful termination, failure to protect, failure to train, and negligent hiring claims. She also represented employers in various maritime disputes, including claims for maintenance and cure.
Selected Matters
- Successfully obtained Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals order affirming the district court’s order compelling arbitration of wage and hour claims based on alleged misclassification and confirming that a district court must consider and determine arbitration issue before entertaining arguments on conditional certification in collective action.
- Successfully obtained Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals order affirming the district court’s order granting complete summary judgment of employee’s claims for discrimination, harassment, and retaliation on behalf of healthcare and education industry client.
- Successfully obtained Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals order affirming the district court’s order granting complete summary judgment of employee’s claim for breach of contract and denying plaintiff’s motion to file amended complaint for gig economy / platform industry client.
- Successfully obtained Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals order affirming the district court’s order granting motion for judgment on the pleadings dismissing former employee’s claim for discrimination, harassment, retaliation, stalking, and tortious liability for alleged physical injury against national retail industry client.
- Successfully obtained complete defense verdict in bench trial of plaintiff's allegations for discrimination and failure to pay “deemed compensation” under USERRA for aviation industry client.
- Successfully obtained complete defense verdicts in eight individual arbitrations that each went to final hearing alleging misclassification (IC) resulting in failure to pay minimum wage and overtime as well as failure to reimburse for business expenses for a gig economy / platform economy client.
- Successfully obtained complete dismissal of claims for breach of contract, failure to pay wages under the FLSA, and various theories of breach of contract against client, with prejudice.
- Successfully obtained complete summary judgment on claims for disability discrimination and failure to accommodate for waste disposal industry client.
- Successfully obtained complete summary judgment on an assault, negligent hiring, negligent retention, negligent supervision, conspiracy, and fraud case for construction industry client.
- Numerous district court orders dismissing state law causes of action pled with claims under the Fair Labor Standards Act, whereby the court declined to exercise supplemental jurisdiction.
- Successfully obtained complete dismissal by the Texas Workforce Commission of claims for failure to pay commissions on behalf of retail industry client.
- Successfully obtained complete dismissal and finding that worker was an independent contractor under the Texas Administrative Code following tax audit by the Texas Workforce Commission for gig economy client.
- Numerous successes in defending against motions for Rule 23 class certification, including obtaining complete denials of certification for contentious wage and hour claims against national beverage client and transportation client.
- Successfully narrowed scope of putative class from alleged nationwide collective to statewide collective, thereby significantly reducing potential exposure.
- Successfully negotiated collective action settlements on behalf of clients in a variety of industries including, the oil and gas industry, energy industry, automotive technology and digitization industry, gig economy industry, and waste disposal industry.
- Multiple successful results following investigations from the Department of Labor – Wage and Hour Division, OSHA, Texas Workforce Commission, and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
Speaking Engagements
Live Event
Employee or Independent Contractor? Classification Under the FLSA
Employee or Independent Contractor? Classification Under the FLSA: Common Mistakes and Tips
Wage and Hour for Today, Tomorrow, and Beyond
Webinar
Where in the USA is Erin Winnebago: A Look At Nationwide Wage and Hour Compliance
Mass Arbitration and Litigation Management: Tips and Tricks to Overseeing Complex Litigation Matters
When Every Day is “Blursday” – Wage and Hour Compliance for a Remote Workforce
Employer Actions in a Post-Pandemic Climate
Employer Actions in a Prolonged Pandemic Climate
Effectively Navigating Employment Laws When Operating in Texas and California
Webinar
DOL’s PAID Program
Insider Education Series – DOL’s PAID Program
Navigating Ever-Evolving Times: Practical Solutions for Long-Term Workplace Sustainability
Webinar