Photo of Charles O. Thompson

Charles O. Thompson

Charles Thompson is a dynamic and creative trial lawyer serving national and global clients in high-stakes litigation. He focuses his practice on employment litigation and counseling representing clients through all phases of Class Actions and Single Plaintiff cases. Charles has wide-ranging experience litigating employment-related issues for public and private companies, having handled over 1,000 employment matters for clients ranging from Fortune 500 companies to Silicon Valley startups. He has tried employment, commercial, and professional liability cases to verdict and directed verdict, has litigated and appealed cases from California State Courts to the United States Supreme Court, and is a Fellow of the prestigious College of Labor and Employment Lawyers. His case load includes cutting edge technology companies, air and space and retail.

Charles represents employers in wage and hour cases, as well as EEOC class actions, in state and federal courts across the United States and has broad experience appearing before the California Civil Rights Department, the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement, the Employment Development Department, and the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Department of Labor.

In addition to his trial and counseling work, Charles serves as a private and judicial mediator and arbitrator, and has acted as a pro-tem judge upon request of the court. He has broad experience in binding arbitrations and trial. He has taught trial advocacy, diversity, employment cross border conflicts and substance abuse to clients and industry organizations.

Throughout his career, Charles has been a champion for diversity and has served on the Executive Committee of the board of Directors for the Justice & Diversity Center of The Bar Association of San Francisco. He actively supports and promotes diversity efforts and collaborates with clients on diversity issues.

Follow:Read more about Charles O. ThompsonCharles O.'s Linkedin Profile

California Labor Code section 1102.5 authorizes employees to recover attorneys’ fees if they bring a successful action. However, the employer may preclude an award of attorney’s fees to the employee by establishing the same-decision affirmative defense outlined in Labor Code section 1102.6.
Continue Reading Court of Appeals Decision May Offer Employers Relief for Attorneys’ Fees Under California Labor Code Section 1102.5

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued Opinion Letter FMLA2025-01-A, clarifying the complex interaction between (1) the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), (2) state-paid family and medical leave program (PFML) benefits and (3) employer-provided accrued vacation, paid time off, and/or paid sick time (employer-paid leave). …
Continue Reading The DOL’s New Guidance on the Interplay of the Federal FMLA and State-Paid Family Medical Leave Programs

While the Golden State has most everything you’d ever want to enjoy, employers doing business in California know that a Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) lawsuit is not one of…

Continue Reading When Good Intentions Become PAGA: Initiative to Repeal PAGA on November 2024 Ballot in CA

A bill introduced in the California Assembly in February 2022 would prohibit employers from discriminating against workers and job applicants for off-duty marijuana use.

Assembly Bill (AB) 2188 would amend…
Continue Reading New California Bill Would Prohibit Employers From Acting Against Workers for Off-Work Cannabis Use

In Waters v. Day & Zimmerman NPS, Inc., the First Circuit has seemingly muddied the waters on Bristol-Myers Squibb’s applicability to FLSA collective actions.

Click here to read the …
Continue Reading First Circuit Court of Appeals Rejects Bristol-Myers Squibb’s Applicability to FLSA Collective Actions; Creates Circuit Split