SEATTLE (July 7, 2014) — The City of Seattle has hired litigation powerhouse Susman Godfrey in its high-profile dispute with the International Franchise Association over the city’s new minimum wage law. Seattle Mayor Ed Murray signed the landmark legislation in June, raising Seattle’s minimum wage to $15 per hour. The trade group’s lawsuit, filed last month in U.S. District Court in Seattle, aims to stop the law from going into effect April 1, 2015.
Susman Godfrey is regularly recognized as one of the nation’s top law firms for complex, high-stakes litigation; just last month, Vault’s annual Practice Area Rankings named Susman Godfrey the number-one litigation boutique in the country. The firm’s Seattle office, founded in 1995, has 20 lawyers, all of whom clerked for United States federal judges, and many of whom have been recognized as “Super Lawyers” by Washington Law & Politics or “Top Lawyers” by Seattle magazine.
“We are honored that the City of Seattle has selected our law firm to defend the legality of Seattle’s new $15 minimum wage law,” said Parker C. Folse, a Susman Godfrey partner and founder of the Seattle office. “We intend to defend this law vigorously, with the goal of making sure that it takes effect on schedule.”
Plaintiffs include Seattle franchise owners of AlphaGraphics, a printing company; BrightStar Care, a home-care company; Comfort Inn; and Holiday Inn Express.
In addition to Folse, the Susman Godfrey attorneys on the case are Edgar G. Sargent, Justin A. Nelson and Drew D. Hansen.
