Labor & Employment Attorney

Burke, Williams & Sorensen, LLP

About us

For more than 95 years, Burke, Williams & Sorensen, LLP has served public agencies and private business entities across California. Today, with nearly one hundred and fifty attorneys and 10 offices across the state, we are fully prepared to meet your legal needs.

Our clients value not only our expertise and efficiency, but also our integrity and responsiveness. Our only focus is to serve our clients so that they may achieve the very best possible result.

From its inception in 1927, the firm specialized in corporate law and business litigation. In 1938, the firm also embarked on what was at the time a unique specialty - the representation of public entities. Always striving for excellence in its attorneys, two of the firm's founding partners went on to serve as California Supreme Court Justices.

Throughout its growth over the years, Burke has retained its roots in real estate, business law and litigation, and is one of the preeminent firms in the fields of public law, education law, and labor and employment law, and first-party insurance and ERISA defense law.

About this role

Burke, Williams & Sorensen, LLP is seeking a 3 – 8 year attorney to join its Labor and Employment Law Practice Group in its Bay Area offices to serve its public sector clients. The position will provide legal advice to public sector and private clients with respect to employment and traditional labor matters. Transactional and labor and employment experience, and excellent writing, research, and analytical skills required; prior employment litigation experience is preferred.

Compensation for associates at Burke ranges from $140,000 – $220,000 plus annual performance-based bonuses. The actual salary within those ranges will depend on the selected candidates years of practice and experience.

Seniority

3 -​ 8 years of experience in labor and employment transactional law

Work experience

Experience in labor and employment transactional work from boutique firms,​ Am Law,​ or the city attorney's office.​

Public law experience

Education

Juris Doctor (J.​D.​) from an ABA accredited law school.​

Minimum 3.​0 GPA if under 5 years of experience.​

Hard skills

Active membership in the California Bar.​

Excellent writing,​ research,​ and analytical skills.​

Soft skills

Interest in public law work and team fit.​

Miscellaneous

Located in California or willing to relocate.​

Traits to avoid

Frequent job changes (every 6 months to 1 year)

Candidates only interested in non-​public law work.​

Why candidates should join

Burke Williams & Sorensen is a unique public law firm that handles government work privately through competitive bidding. They're not your typical law firm - they focus on meaningful public sector work that actually impacts communities.

You'll get the flexibility most BigLaw firms can't offer - fully remote or hybrid work with 90-95% of teams working remotely. Plus they don't require a book of business for Tier 1 partnership and promote based on experience and drive not just rainmaking.

This Labor & Employment transactional role offers $140k-$220k (flexible not lockstep) with 1850 billable hours and the chance to work on diverse public sector matters while building your career in a supportive environment.

What to ask candidates

Please submit 1) resume, 2) transcript, 3) writing sample, and 4) salary expectations.

What is their salary expectation?

How actively are they recruiting?