EstebanShardonofsky

Partner

Esteban (“Steve”) counsels clients on HR and workplace compliance issues, conducts internal investigations, and defends clients in government investigations, administrative charges, and high-stakes employment litigation.­


More About Steve

Steve is chair of the firm’s Houston labor and employment practice, and is board certified in labor and employment law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization—a distinction held by less than 1% of practicing attorneys in Texas. He is a trusted and respected litigator, and has successfully represented employers and management in federal and state court, arbitration, and before administrative agencies, such as the US Department of Labor, the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and the Texas Workforce Commission in connection with all aspects of employment litigation—from inception through trial, as well as on appeal. Steve’s clients appreciate that he can break down the most complex of employment law issues to basic, practical terms that the most novice of employer representatives can understand and apply. He works equally well across HR and in-house teams with varying levels of experience with employment law.

He devotes much of his time to defending wage-and-hour cases, including lawsuits brought by overtime-exempt employees who claim they are entitled to overtime pay, claims by independent contractors who allege they are entitled to be treated as employees, and lawsuits brought by employees claiming miscalculation of the regular rate and/or that they were required to work off-the-clock. He has successfully defeated conditional and class certification, and has obtained decertification of collective actions in overtime cases. Steve has also successfully defended employers in all other aspects of employment litigation, including disputes over breach of contract, non-compete and non-solicitation agreements, discrimination, harassment, wrongful termination, retaliation/ whistleblower, failure to accommodate, unpaid bonuses/compensation, and countless other claims.

Steve also has an extensive advice and counseling practice that focuses on helping employers avoiding litigation. He is a trusted advisor to executives, managers, human resources professionals, and in-house counsel on a full range of HR and compliance topics, including personnel handbooks and policies, employee relations, internal complaints and investigations, discipline and terminations, hiring, background checks and drug screens, FMLA and ADA leaves and accommodations, wage-and-hour compliance, distinguishing employees from independent contractors, non-competition agreements, employment contracts, arbitration agreements, separation agreements, and reductions in force. When clients have serious employee complaints, he also assists with investigations—either advising in-house counsel and HR or conducting the investigation himself. He also regularly trains managers, leaders, executives, HR departments, and legal teams on the full suite of labor and employment compliance topics.

As head of the Houston L&E group, Steve leads a team of dedicated employment-law specialists, increasing the team's profile through client events, publications, and other means, managing productivity and performance matters, recruitment and hiring, mentoring and coaching, strategic planning, increasing diversity and inclusion, cross-selling and marketing across the office, and administrative tasks. Entrusted to serve as the Houston office's EEO Partner, Steve is also responsible for internal complaint resolution and investigations—and is able to understand, first-hand, how clients feel when dealing with similar matters.

Steve is a frequent presenter at seminars for HR professionals and in-house employment attorneys, regularly contributes to the firm's various employment law blogs, and was a contributor to Seyfarth's definitive treatise on wage and hour litigation, Wage & Hour Collective and Class Litigation.

Steve has lived in five different cities in three different countries, so he brings a true appreciation for working with diverse groups and the ability to connect quickly and build rapport with clients, opposing counsel and parties, witnesses, government officials and investigators.

Clients benefit from Steve's dedication to technology and process improvement solutions. For example, Steve is a regional lead on various innovative, national counseling hotlines used by clients to obtain real-time, practical advice and counseling on all aspects of employment law compliance and best practices. In addition to receiving day-to-day counseling advice, these clients can access tracking data through intuitive dashboards to identify problem areas where additional employee training or policy updates may be necessary. He also uses Seyfarth Link, Survey Center, document automation, process mapping, and other innovative tools to increase communication and transparency, and enhance the services he provides to his clients.

  • JD, University of Houston Law Center

    Houston Journal of International Law, head articles editor
    Order of the Barons

  • BA, University of Houston
    Classical Studies

    Summa cum laude
    The Honors College

  • Texas
  • US Court of Appeals, Third Circuit
  • US Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit
  • US Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit
  • US Court of Appeals, Tenth Circuit
  • US District Court, District of New Mexico
  • US District Court, Eastern District of Texas
  • US District Court, Northern District of Texas
  • US District Court, Southern District of Texas
  • US District Court, Western District of Texas
  • Texas Supreme Court
  • Texas Court of Criminal Appeals
  • Texas Courts of Appeals