Duane Morris LLP helped Geico defang a sweeping collective action claiming it underpaid call center workers and defeated a harassment class action targeting tortilla maker El Milagro, allowing the companies to dodge millions in potential damages and earning it a spot among the 2025 Law360 Employment Groups of the Year.

The firm's employment, labor, benefits and immigration practice group has become known for its innovative lawyering, partner and chair of the firm's class action defense team Gerald L. Maatman, Jr. told Law360. That's why companies often turn to Duane Morris' employment lawyers when faced with class challenges that present millions of dollars in exposure, he said — especially when a case isn't going their way.

Geico replaced its prior counsel with Duane Morris attorneys after losing key rulings in a collective action that aimed to represent thousands of call center workers who claimed they were stiffed on overtime for pre-shift, post-shift and downtime duties, Maatman said. In June, the court denied the workers' bid for conditional certification after Duane Morris collected extensive deposition testimony from call center workers demonstrating that there was no common policy requiring additional, uncompensated work.

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