Daniel S. Field

Overview

Dan Field represents employers in a variety of labor and employment matters. As a litigator, Dan defends clients against virtually all kinds of employment disputes, with a particular focus on wage and hour class and collective action lawsuits, as well as government audits. Businesses also hire Dan to handle litigation involving claims of discrimination, sexual harassment, trade secret violations, torts and breach of contract. An experienced trial attorney, Dan has served as lead counsel in numerous jury trials.

As the former Chief of the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Fair Labor Division, which is Massachusetts’ principal labor law enforcement authority, Dan’s responsibilities included overseeing the enforcement of Massachusetts’ wage and hour and prevailing wage laws. He represented the Attorney General before the legislature and prepared legislation on labor standards, as well as regulatory guidelines. Working with the United States Department of Labor, he prosecuted multiple civil and criminal cases involving overtime, pension-benefit and tax violations as well as insurance fraud. He also previously served as an assistant district attorney with the Middlesex District Attorney.

Dan has extensive experience advocating for and defending his clients.  A sampling of his recent work includes:

• Obtained affirmance of dismissal of wage lawsuit before Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court in Melia v. Zenhire, Inc. 462 Mass. 164 (2012), which established the standard for forum selection clauses in Massachusetts Wage Act cases.
• Obtained summary judgment for defendant on all counts, including claims alleging disability discrimination under the Americans With Disabilities Act and related claims in Fiumara v. President & Fellows of Harvard College, 526 F.Supp.2d 150 (D. Mass. 2007)
• As co-counsel for consultant client, obtained affirmance of summary judgment in U.S. Court of Appeals for First Circuit based on FLSA highly-compensated exemption in Litz v. Saint Consulting Group, 772 F. 3d 1 (1^st 2014)
• McCord v. Commonwealth, CA 96-0828 (Suffolk Superior Court) (defense jury verdict)
• Babcock v. City of Newton CA 07 -2389 (Middlesex Sup. Ct.) (summary judgment for defense)
• Dukov v. Prince Telecom, LLC et al, CA No. 09-CV-05498, (U.S. Dist. Ct. E.D. N. Y.) (obtained dismissal of case in its entirety by class plaintiffs)
• Obtained partial dismissal in U.S. District Court of Massachusetts disposing of substantial wage hour claims on behalf of national hospitality corporation involving employee gift card program.
• Achieved favorable resolution of large tip-pooling class action claims against restaurant group.