Photo of Christopher J. DeGroff

Christopher is a partner in the Labor and Employment Department in the Firm’s Chicago office, with a practice largely focused on multi-plaintiff and class/collective actions. Mr. DeGroff’s class action experience spans the scope of employment law theories. Mr. DeGroff also has extensive experience litigating against the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), both at the early charge stage and in large-scale EEOC pattern-and-practice litigation. Mr. DeGroff has developed innovative strategies for addressing wide-ranging governmental requests for information and has handled complex regional and national EEOC investigations, typially resulting in no action being taken against our clients at all. When the EEOC has resorted to litigation, Mr. DeGroff has been instrumental in defending our clients against these often high-profile systemic cases, working with any number of class action teams to achieve efficient and effective case resolution. Mr. DeGroff’s class experience also includes a significant understanding of emerging electronic discovery issues, and has conducted speeches and published articles on electronic discovery and other high-technology issues.

supreme court sealSeyfarth Synopsis: Yesterday the U.S. Supreme Court handed down its long-awaited decision in McLane Co. v. EEOC, No. 15-1248, 2017 U.S. LEXIS 2327 (U.S. 2017), a decision that clarifies the scope of review for employers facing EEOC administrative subpoenas. The Supreme Court held that such decisions are reviewable under the abuse-of-discretion standard, which is a relatively high bar of
Continue Reading U.S. Supreme Court Holds That An Abuse-Of-Discretion Standard Applies To Review Of EEOC Subpoenas

200px-NDAla_sealSeyfarth Synopsis: An Alabama district court granted a temporary staffing company’s motion to dismiss all claims in one of the EEOC’s most high-profile lawsuits asserting hiring discrimination and abuse of vulnerable workers. The ruling illustrates the procedural defenses that employers possess to ensure that pre-lawsuit investigations undertaken by the EEOC accord with its obligations under the law.

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A recent
Continue Reading Keys To Successor Liability: EEOC Discrimination Suit In Alabama

f41e0e294d1b6ebf550c2badccce4b68Seyfarth Synopsis: In the high-profile EEOC race discrimination litigation against Bass Pro, the Court denied the EEOC’s motion for a ruling that would have allowed it to include in its § 706 claims those individuals who had not yet applied to work for Bass Pro when the mandatory Title VII conciliation process took place.

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The latest chapter
Continue Reading No Means No – Judge Limits The EEOC’s Claims In Bass Pro Case (Again)

2017 EEOC Book Cover Design (3)We are once again pleased to offer our loyal readers our annual analysis of the five most intriguing developments in EEOC litigation in 2016, along with a pre-publication preview of our annual report on developments and trends in EEOC-initiated litigation. That book, titled EEOC-Initiated Litigation: FY 2016, is a thorough analysis of the lawsuits that were filed by the
Continue Reading 2016’s Top 5 Most Intriguing Developments In EEOC-Initiated Litigation (And A Preview Of Our Annual EEOC Litigation Report)

th870JF4SQSeyfarth Synopsis: The EEOC recently released its annual Performance and Accountability Report for the fiscal year 2016, a must-read for employers regarding statistical data on EEOC litigation. Continuing a trend from recent years, the EEOC has reaffirmed its commitment to targeting companies in high-profile systemic litigation, albeit with uninspiring results.

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On November 16, 2016, the EEOC released its annual
Continue Reading Bullseye On Big Business: EEOC’s 2016 Performance And Accountability Report Shows Target On Systemic Litigation

Seal_of_the_President_of_the_United_States_svgSeyfarth Synopsis: The Trump Presidency will undoubtedly impact how the EEOC pursues its enforcement agenda. Although it is impossible to predict exactly what changes are in store, we think that it is a good bet that they will be driven by changes in personnel, resources, and substantive and procedural focus.

President-elect Trump is on his way to serving his first
Continue Reading EEOC Shakeup? Top Ways Trump Presidency Could Impact The EEOC

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Seyfarth Synopsis: On October 17, 2016, the EEOC unveiled its updated Strategic Enforcement Plan (“SEP”) for Fiscal Years 2017-2021. It ought to be required reading for every employer and their executive teams.

The New SEP

The 2017 SEP can be viewed here. This plan replaces the first SEP, issued in 2012, which provided strategic direction for the agency through
Continue Reading A Look Through The Crystal Ball: The EEOC’s Updated 2017-2021 Strategic Enforcement Plan

clockSeyfarth Synopsis: With the end of another EEOC fiscal year employers look with anticipation to what the year-end trends can tell us about the sometimes elusive EEOC litigation agenda. In years past, the EEOC has engaged in a “filing frenzy,” with dozens of lawsuits filed in the waning days of the fiscal year. Although there was an uptick in filings
Continue Reading The Clock Has Struck 12 On The EEOC Fiscal Year-End Countdown – Surprising Revelations For FY 2016

By Christopher DeGroff, Matthew Gagnon, and Gerald L. Maatman, Jr.

Judge John Darrah of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois issued a decision this week in the EEOC’s landmark case against CVS Pharmacy. As we have previously blogged about here, in EEOC v. CVS Pharmacy, Inc., Case No. 14-CV-863 (N.D. Ill.), the
Continue Reading Not Impressed By The Chutzpah: Court Refuses To Bless The EEOC’s Attempt To Create A New Form Of Pattern Or Practice Litigation

eeocseal.jpgOn May 1, 2013, the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) secured a jury award of $240 million in an ADA case. The verdict is the largest ever obtained by the EEOC, a fact it is already touting on its website.

The verdict was handed down in EEOC v. Hill Country Farms, Inc., No. 3-11-CV-41 (S.D. Iowa) with
Continue Reading EEOC Obtains Record-Smashing $240 Million Verdict In ADA Case