Attorneys

She defends employers against alleged civil rights, tort, contract, and statutory violations, including discrimination and retaliation under Title VII and the FEHA, wage and hour, PAGA, and wrongful discharge claims under federal and state laws. Her other areas of specialty include commercial contract negotiation and disputes, protection of intellectual property rights, and real estate matters.

She also has particular proficiency with obtaining extraordinary remedies when necessary, including prejudgment remedies (writs of attachment and possession), appointments of receivers, and injunctions.

Representative Litigation Experience

• Obtained a decision, order and award in favor of our client on all counts in an administrative hearing before the California Labor Commissioner (Labor Commissioner’s Office, Stockton, February 10, 2021).
• 2020: obtained a judgment quieting title to property, and granting our client declaratory relief, against an adverse party’s claimed entitlement to a significant percentage of the sales price upon sale of the property, and a right of first refusal to purchase the property. The property at issue was more than 150 acres of undeveloped land in Alameda County, California.  The adverse party’s claims were based on an alleged contract with the owner’s predecessor for work performed prior to the predecessor owner’s death, and our efforts removed a major impediment to our client’s ability to perform under a contract to sell the land to a third party. (Party names not used to protect client privacy).
• After settling a hotly-contested case involving alleged fraudulent business practices and real estate transactions, the other party attempted to back out of the settlement. Shauna brought a motion to enforce the agreement, which was contested, and won a court judgment for our client. The other party appealed, and Shauna (working with our appellate specialist Brendan Begley) successfully opposed the appeal. The Third District Court of Appeal issued its order on March 15, 2019, affirming the judgment in full and awarding costs to our client.
• Obtained a decision, order and award in favor of our client on all counts in an administrative hearing before the California Labor Commissioner (Labor Commissioner’s Office, San Francisco, November 14, 2018).
• In December 2017, Shauna (and Paul Gaspari) tried a three-week age discrimination case to a jury in San Francisco Superior Court. During the bench trial phase, the court agreed with our client, as a matter of first impression, that a non-profit religious corporation operating a high school independent from a church and not on church grounds was exempt from the provisions of the Fair Employment and Housing Act.
• Obtained a Temporary Restraining Order and won a contested Motion for Issuance of a Preliminary Injunction against our client’s competitor and three individual former employees of our client who accepted jobs at the competitor and allegedly stole $55 million in trade secrets and breached non-disclosure agreements. The TRO was granted on September 28, 2017 and the Preliminary Injunction was granted on October 26, 2017 by the Alameda County Superior Court, and the case settled shortly thereafter favorably for our client.
• Won a summary judgment motion on behalf of the employer-defendant in a wrongful termination and whistleblower retaliation case (San Francisco Superior Court, December 16, 2016).
• Won a special motion to strike (also known as an anti-SLAPP motion) on behalf of two individual defendants in a multi-party case, resulting in a dismissal of the defamation claims against those defendants. The motion was granted by the Contra Costa Superior Court on November 14, 2016.
• Obtained summary judgment on behalf of a major retailer defendant in a 9-count disability discrimination/harassment and retaliation case, also alleging Labor Code violations. The motion was granted by the U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, on May 9, 2013.
• Obtained summary judgment on behalf of all entity and individual defendants in an 11-count sexual harassment, gender discrimination, and retaliation case. The motion was granted by the U.S. District Court, Central District of California, on March 13, 2013.
• Acted as trial counsel in 2011 on behalf of a 570-unit homeowners’ association in Los Angeles County (South District), in an action to set aside a special fee assessed by the property developer since 1973. The assessment was set to increase from $30 per month to several hundred dollars per month, per unit. After a multiple-week bench trial, Shauna’s client won a judgment valued at approximately $95 million (overturned in part and affirmed in part on appeal). It was a case of first impression involving California Civil Code section 1098 et seq.
• Acting as sole trial counsel for the defendant, Shauna obtained a total defense verdict on all counts after a week-long jury trial against a major retailer (Butte County Superior Court).  The plaintiff, a store customer, sought over $500,000 in damages in a case alleging that the defendant’s employee negligently or intentionally caused her to fall and suffer a compound fracture of her arm and severe emotional distress.
• Negotiated nuisance-value settlement on behalf of our client, a building material manufacturer, in a products liability class action.
• In a Private Attorney General Action (PAGA) case alleging Labor Code violations against our client, a restaurant chain that employed hundreds of employees, Shauna obtained full indemnity and defense from the third-party payroll processing company because the payroll processing company’s errors caused the alleged itemized wage statement violations.

Shauna enjoys giving back to the community, including by acting as the Girl Scout Troop Leader for both of her daughters’ troops, and by serving on the Twin Creeks Elementary School Learning Fund Executive Board.