James DeSimone is one of the founding partners of SCHONBRUN DESIMONE SEPLOW HARRIS & HOFFMAN, LLP, a civil rights firm with offices in Venice and Pasadena, whose profile can be found at www.losangelesemploymentlawyer.com. He represents employees who have been subjected to discrimination, harassment or other wrongful conduct, individuals whose civil rights have been violated by the police or government agencies and consumers in personal injury and products liability cases. Jim graduated from the UCLA School of Law and Johns Hopkins University. In 2009 and 2010, he was named as one of California's Top 10 Plaintiff Labor and Employment Lawyers by the Daily Journal.  In 2009, DeSimone was a finalist for Trial Lawyer of the Year by the Consumer  Attorneys Association of Los Angeles.  He was the lead appellate lawyer in the case of Johnson v. United Cerebral Palsy et al. Case No.: B198888 (Los Angeles County Superior Court Case No. BC 341 303), a precedent setting case involving the admissibility of evidence of discriminatory acts against other employees.   The Johnson case significantly advanced employment protections to California employees in that it provides instruction to trial courts as to what evidence is admissible at trial.    Trial courts will no longer have the discretion to exclude testimony and other evidence of the employer’s discrimination or harassment of other employees.      In 2008, DeSimone was counsel  for the employees on a wage and hour class action case in which $16 million was obtained on behalf of the Plaintiffs, computer software employees for AT&T.  In 2009, he played a key role in the litigation team that obtained $10.5 million on behalf of AT&T employees. Another case in which Jim and his partners made a difference, was Fontana v. St. Joseph Hospital of Orange, where, in 2006, the appellate court reversed the trial court’s denial of class certification in a case involving violation of FEHA’s prohibition on asking intrusive question regarding prior medical and psychological care.   After prevailing on the motion for class certification,  the case was resolved in 2008 with Defendant agreeing to injunctive relief insuring there would be no further FEHA violations in pre or post employment medical screening as well as paying damages to class members and $1,000,000.00 in attorneys fees and costs.     DeSimone was lead counsel for the plaintiff in the precedent setting case of Mogilefsky v. Silver Pictures (1993) 20 Cal App. 4th 409 which was the first published California decision to recognize that same sex harassment violated the California Fair Employment & Housing Act. He was also counsel for the plaintiff in Griffith v. Davis (1995) 161 F.R.D. 687 which held that an internal statement by a law enforcement officer who killed a civilian was discoverable in a civil rights action, despite the assertion of attorney-client and other privileges. In 2007, he obtained a $2,100,000.00 verdict on behalf of a woman who was falsely arrested and whose civil rights were violated in the cases of Benham v. Walgreens et al.   In 2010, he prevailed on appeal in this matter when the Second District Court of Appeal held that the loss prevention officer was acting in the course and scope of his employment when he violated Ms. Benham's civil rights.   In 2010, he argued the case of Xue Lue et al. v. United States of America, and obtained a 9th Circuit Published Decision establishing that an asylum officer was acting in the course and scope of employment when he harassed and extorted two Chinese asylum applicants and, as such, the United States could be held accountable for his conduct.