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I view my role as equal parts counselor and advocate. As counselor, I advise clients regarding the law and their strategic options, and as advocate, I aggressively defend or prosecute their legal positions. But in either role, my focus remains the ‘big picture’ and the client’s underlying objectives.

Benjamin S. Briggs counsels and represents clients in all aspects of labor and employment law, including matters pertaining to wage and hour, discrimination, and retaliation claims, risk mitigation, human resources training and internal audits, drafting and enforcing employment contracts, restrictive covenants, separation agreements and workplace rules and policies. 

Ben is Board Certified in Labor & Employment, by The Florida Bar Board of Legal Specialization and Education. Ben has received several accolades in labor and employment law, including Top Lawyers, Employment Law: Management by Tampa Magazine, and Legal Elite Up & Comer by Florida Trend. He is recognized by his peers among Florida Super Lawyers® Rising Stars.

Ben is a nationally recognized speaker and author on labor and employment law issues.

Benjamin S. Briggs is a Board Certified Specialist in Labor & Employment Law.  Ben counsels and represents employers in all industries, with a special emphasis on the construction and restaurant and hospitalities industries. Prior to becoming an attorney, Ben worked for a roofing company and a billboard construction firm, allowing him to use that experience as a labor and employment attorney representing companies within the construction industry.

While in law school at Boston University School of Law, Ben was a member of the J. Newton Esdaile Appellate Moot Court Program and was an editor for the American Journal of Law and Medicine. Ben was a law student practitioner for Greater Boston Legal Services, and he was a judicial clerk for Superior Court, Commonwealth of Massachusetts. He earned his J.D. with honors in litigation and dispute resolution.

Education

  • Boston University School of Law, 2011, with honors in litigation and dispute resolution
  • Taylor University, 2008, magna cum laude

Bar Admissions

  • Florida
  • Michigan
  • Georgia
  • Arizona

Court Admissions

  • United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida
  • United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida
  • United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida
  • United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan
  • United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan
  • United States District Court for the Middle District of Georgia

Community Involvement

  • The Charles Britt Academy, Pinellas County, Youth Mentor
  • The Children’s Home, Inc., Hillsborough County, Volunteer
  • Habitat for Humanity, Volunteer

Acknowledgements

  • Board Certified in Labor & Employment, The Florida Bar Board of Legal Specialization and Education
  • Tampa Magazine, Top Lawyers, Employment Law: Management, 2021-2024
  • Florida Super Lawyers® Rising Stars, 2018-2024
  • Florida Trend, Legal Elite Up & Comer, 2017-2021

Professional Affiliations & Memberships

  • The Florida Bar, Labor and Employment Law Section
  • Florida Chapter of the National Employment Lawyers Association
  • Hillsborough County Bar Association
  • Florida Supreme Court Jury Instruction Committee
  • American Journal of Law and Medicine, Note Editor
  • Obtained binding arbitration award and also award of attorneys’ fees and costs in favor of employer in unpaid wage claim brought by former employee 
  • Obtained dismissal with prejudice of multiple whistleblower retaliation claims brought by former employees and obtained fee judgment for defendant company
  • Obtained dismissal with prejudice of multiple unpaid wage claims brought by former salesperson and obtained fee judgment for defendant company
  • Obtained summary judgment in favor of defendant company, dismissing workers’ compensation retaliation claims brought by former employees
  • Obtained judgment and six-figure award of attorneys’ fees and costs in favor of clients in federal wage and hour lawsuit
  • Obtained dismissal with prejudice of all claims brought against client company and its officers regarding alleged breach of restrictive covenants, tortious interference and misappropriation of trade secrets
  • Obtained preliminary and permanent injunction and fee award against former employee of client company for violation of restrictive covenants
  • Obtained numerous No-Cause findings and dismissals of EEOC Charges brought by current or former employees against client companies, alleging unlawful discrimination, retaliation, harassment, and/or failure to accommodate
  • Obtained numerous No-Cause findings and dismissals of FCHR Complaints brought by current or former employees against client companies, alleging unlawful discrimination, retaliation, harassment, and/or failure to accommodate
  • Obtained numerous No-Cause findings and dismissals of OSHA Whistleblower Retaliation Complaints brought by former employees against client companies

Representative Publications

  • Updating Your Employee Manual for 2021, Roofing Magazine, February 2021
  • Understanding the FFCRA’s Small Business Exemption, Roofing Contractor Magazine, April 2020
  • Paying Employees During a Coronavirus-Related Project Suspension: What Do Federal Laws Say?, Construction Dive, April 2020
  • How Employers Should Respond to COVID-19, Roofing Magazine, March 2020
  • How Governments Are Responding to the COVID-19 Crisis, Roofing Contractor Magazine, March 2020
  • Problems and Pitfalls with Using Professional Employer Organizations or Working with Someone Who Does, Florida Roofing Magazine, May 2019
  • Understanding Piece Rate Compensation, Florida Roofing Magazine, September 2018
  • Workplace Safety and OSHA’s New Reporting Rule, Lawyer Magazine, March-April 2017, Vol. 27, No. 4
  • Websites and Mobile Applications: Do They Comply with Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act, The Computer & Internet Lawyer, February 2017, Vol. 34, No. 2.
  • Websites and Mobile Applications: Do They Comply with Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act, The Florida Bar Journal, September/October 2016, Vol. 90, No. 8
  • Suing a Foreign (International) Defendant: Initial Steps, Lawyer Magazine, March-April 2016, Vol. 26, No. 4

Representative Seminars and Presentations

  • Employee Overtime: Navigating the Landmines of Overtime Without Losing any Limbs, LegalCon Live, October 12, 2023, Chicago, IL
  • Until You Have Robots, You Need Employees: Top 5 Employment Issues in the Roofing Industry, LegalCon Live, October 11, 2023, Chicago, IL
  • Top 5 Immigration Issues in the Roofing, Western Roofing Expo, September 24, 2023, Las Vegas, NV
  • Top 5 Employment Issues in the Roofing Industry, FRSA Annual Convention, July 13, 2023, Kissimmee, FL
  • Impact of Marijuana on the Construction Industry, FRSA Annual Convention, July 13, 2023, Kissimmee, FL
  • Employee Work Authorization: New Compliance Requirements, Suncoast Association of Legal Administrators, May 18, 2023, Tampa, FL
  • Top 5 Employment Issues in the HVAC Industry, RACCA, May 16, 2023, Tampa, FL
  • Wage & Hour: Potential Pitfalls, Mississippi Bankers Association, May 2, 2023
  • Top 5 Employment Issues in the HVAC Industry, ACCA/CF, April 27, 2023, Maitland, FL
  • How to Navigate a Wage and Hour Audit, NRCA LegalCon, March 23, 2023
  • Wage & Hour: Potential Pitfalls, Manasota Air Conditioning Contractors Association, November 3, 2022, Sarasota, FL
  • Top 5 Immigration Issues in Roofing, National Roofing Contractors Association, October 28, 2022, Austin, TX
  • Top 5 Employment Issues in Roofing, Western Roofing Expo 2022, September 26, 2022, Las Vegas, NV
  • Navigating New Drug Laws and Combatting the Opioid Crisis in Roofing, NRCA Legal Conference, October 2021
  • Navigating Legal Issues of COVID-19, Western Roofing Expo, September 2021
  • Current COVID-19 HR and Vaccination Policies, Western States Roofing Contractors Association, August 2021
  • Top 5 Immigration Issues in Roofing, International Roofing Expo, August 2021
  • Top 5 Legal Issues in Employment, National Roofing Partners, July 2021
  • Wage & Hour: Potential Pitfalls, FRSA Annual Convention, July 2021
  • Shifting Regulatory Requirements: Temporary Policy Changes to Form I-9 and E-Verify Now Are in Effect, NRCA Professional Roofing, October 2020
  • OSHA’s Whistleblower Protections During the COVID-19 Crisis, RoofersCoffeeShop, May 2020
  • Everything Roofing Companies Need to Know About The Families First Coronavirus Response Act, RoofersCoffeeShop, March 2020