Saskia Nora Bryan

Saskia Nora Bryan is an experienced litigator who knows that obtaining favorable outcomes for her clients requires more than just well-honed advocacy skills. The employment law issues that are the primary focus of Saskia’s practice are often as much about personalities and relationships as they are the law. That is why Saskia tailors her representation to fit the unique dynamics of each matter, listening closely to clients’ concerns, understanding their objectives, and crafting effective and practical strategies for the workplace as well as the courtroom.

Knowing that the best way to avoid disruptive employment conflicts is to prevent them from arising in the first place, Saskia provides counsel to clients in corporate transactional matters that intersect with employment issues, including drafting employment agreements and handbooks, and crafting personnel policies, non-compete agreements, restrictive covenants, separation agreements, and releases. She also guides employers through a wide range of issues, including wage claims and unemployment claims, mandatory employment training, and compliance with workplaces laws and standards.

When litigation does occur, Saskia represents employers in federal and state court and administrative forums, as well as in pre-litigation dispute resolution efforts. She represents both employers and employees in contractual disputes, such as restrictive covenant litigation.  Saskia’s litigation experience also includes a wide range of commercial disputes in federal and state courts, from contractual actions to tortious interference to fiduciary duty claims.

A graduate of the University of North Carolina at Asheville, Saskia earned her law degree from Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law.  When not serving her clients, Saskia enjoys settling in with a good book. 

Education

• Northwestern University, J.D., 1998
• University of North Carolina at Asheville, B.A., 1995

Admissions

• Illinois, 1998
• United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, 2005
• United States Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Illinois, 2005

Professional Affiliations

• Chicago Bar Association

Experience

• Conducted contested hearings for injunctive relief seeking to enforce restrictive covenants (non-compete, non-solicit, and confidentiality provisions).

• Briefed and argued numerous contested motions for summary disposition or appeal in State, Federal, Bankruptcy, and Appellate Courts.

• Tried cases successfully defending student loan creditors from adversary claims in bankruptcy seeking undue hardship discharge.

• Oversaw, coordinated, and conducted discovery for multi-party, complex commercial litigation matters, including reviewing, organizing, and tendering thousands of documents, defending and taking depositions of party witnesses and unrelated parties, and briefing and negotiating resolutions to discovery disputes such as electronic format, scope, cost, and privilege.

• Advised on and drafted organizational documents for corporations and limited liability companies, including shareholder agreements, operating agreements, minutes, and resolutions.

• Counselled clients on all matters of employment: complaints, morale issues, wage and paid time off disputes, Family and Medical Leave Act requests, worker’s compensation claims, confidentiality concerns, personnel records and access, allegations of and investigations into harassment or discrimination, vacation/sick/paid time off policies, and navigating the process of discipline, suspension, demotion, transfer, and discharge.

• Defended employers at the Department of Labor, the Illinois Department of Human Rights, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and the Illinois Department of Employment Security against charges for wages, discrimination, harassment, and other employment disputes.

• Successfully defended a tax assessment at the Illinois Department of Revenue against an individual shareholder of the taxpayer corporation.

• Drafted and negotiated settlement agreements, employment agreements and handbooks, various personnel policies, non-compete agreements, restrictive covenants, separation agreements, and releases.