Robin L.S. Burroughs
Labor and Employment Litigation
Robin manages all stages of litigation in both state and federal courts, including initial investigations, discovery management, depositions, drafting and arguing pre-trial and dispositive motions, trial preparation, trial, and appeals. She also represents clients in administrative forums, including mediation, arbitration, and actions before the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and similar state agencies. Robin has also assisted employers with investigations of workplace incidents (including harassment and discrimination complaints) and in responding to agency audits of workplace practices.
Labor and Employment Counseling
Robin counsels clients on compliance with relevant laws, including wage and hour laws, disability and discrimination laws, anti-retaliation laws, and leave laws. She works with clients to improve the quality and efficacy of employment-related practices, policies, and documents, including drafting or updating employment agreements, separation agreements, and workplace handbooks.
Robin’s experience includes counseling on such regulations as the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA), Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) and Older Workers Benefit Protection Act (OWBPA), Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA), the DC Human Rights Act, DC Accrued Sick and Safe Leave Act, DC Fair Criminal Record Screening Act, and many other federal, state, and local laws.
Traditional Labor
Robin has experience negotiating collective bargaining agreements, assisting clients with statutory and contractual impasse resolution procedures, and defending employers in labor-related arbitration (including both grievance and interest arbitration). She has particular experience in the complex laws governing public-sector labor relations in Maryland and Washington, D.C.
Education Law
Robin advises educational institutions, including independent schools, public charter schools, public schools, and higher education institutions. She counsels on various issues, including wage and hour compliance, counseling and discipline of employees and volunteers, employment agreements, student and family rights, policies related to state-mandated immunization requirements and permissible exemptions from those requirements, and prevention of and defense against wrongful termination claims. Robin also assists educational institutions in conducting internal investigations into student and employee complaints and in navigating administrative investigations. Robin has significant experience working with education clients on policies and issues arising out of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, and related state laws.
Experience
Representative Matters
- As trial counsel, successfully defended a medical practice in a jury trial in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland regarding overtime claims
- Assisted in conducting a large-scale investigation into potential workplace misconduct, which involved 18 witness interviews and a review of over 50,000 documents
- As first-chair counsel, successfully resolved a collective bargaining impasse between a Maryland local government and one of its unions during mandatory fact-finding; the fact finder recommended adoption of the employer’s total package, and the union decided not to further pursue statutory impasse procedures
- Drafted and argued a motion to dismiss that successfully obtained early dismissal of claims filed against a Maryland local government by one of its employee unions
- Assisted in the successful representation of a medical practice accused by an employee of wage and hour violations under the Fair Labor Standards Act, Maryland Wage and Hour Law, and Maryland Wage Payment and Collection Law, culminating in a significant summary judgment victory for the employer
- Represented a public school district in statutory impasse resolution procedures following negotiations and an impasse with its teacher’s union; assisted in reaching a collective bargaining agreement that preserved existing agreements and procedures important to the school system
- Assisted in obtaining summary judgment in a wage and hour matter for a large construction management firm, where a class of employees claimed to be third-party beneficiaries under the client’s project labor agreement
- Assisted numerous employers across the country with institution-wide audits of employee classifications to ensure compliance with federal and local wage and hour laws
- Conducted an investigation for a liberal arts college and provided a report concerning student complaints alleging Title VI and Title IX violations
- Drafted an employer position statement that resulted in a "no cause" finding and dismissal of an employee's age discrimination charges before a state workforce services agency
- Assisted in achieving an early and favorable settlement in mediation for a financial services company accused of discrimination
- Petitioned to vacate a labor arbitration award in federal district court on behalf of a multijurisdictional government agency
- Drafted briefs for an appeal to the Fourth Circuit in a wage and hour matter where the client received a favorable decision that abrogated prior Fourth Circuit case law
Insights
Credentials
Education
- J.D. magna cum laude University of Maryland School of Law 2013
- Articles editor, Maryland Law Review
- Judicial intern, the Honorable John D. Bates of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia
- Student attorney, National Association of the Deaf – represented clients in litigation arising under the Americans with Disabilities Act
- B.A. Sociology and History with honors Bucknell University 2008
Bar Admissions
- Maryland
- District of Columbia
Court Admissions
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
- U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia
- U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland
- U.S. Court of Federal Claims
Professional Memberships and Activities
- Former teacher, Prince George’s County Public Schools
Recognition
- Super Lawyers, Rising Star, Washington, DC, 2022 – 2023
- The Best Lawyers in America, Ones to Watch, 2024
Community
Personal Activities
- Plays clarinet in the Montgomery Symphony Orchestra