Throughout his more than 30-year career, Tom has represented employers in a broad spectrum of employment matters, including wage and hour, discrimination, and employee termination. He is known particularly for his employee defection work, including drafting and enforcing non-competes and other employment-based restrictive covenants, and litigating related contract, fiduciary duty, trade secret, tortious interference, conspiracy, and unfair competition disputes.
Tom’s clients include national and international companies, as well as numerous local companies based in the Washington, D.C. area. He has particularly deep experience counseling technology and government contracting companies on employment issues and representing them in related litigation.
Prior to joining the firm, Tom was the head of the Labor & Employment practice of an 1,100-attorney, international law firm and the co-founding partner of its Northern Virginia office.
Tom has long been recognized as a leading employment lawyer, including by Chambers USA, Best Lawyers in America, International Who’s Who of Management Labour & Employment Lawyers, and Martindale-Hubbell. He is also regularly asked to speak on employee defection and other employment law topics by law and industry groups, including the American Bar Association, Association for Corporate Counsel, and the Washington Metropolitan Area Corporate Counsel Association.
Thomas J. Sawyer, Shareholder
- LL.M., Labor & Employment Law, Georgetown University Law Center
- J.D., William & Mary Law School
- B.A., Economics, University of Virginia
- Virginia
- District of Columbia
- Maryland
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
- U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia
- U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia
- U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia
- U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland
- U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Virginia
- U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Columbia
- U.S. Court of Federal Claims
- U.S. Tax Court
- Employee Defection
- Non-competition, Non-solicitation, Non-disclosure, and other Employment-based Restrictive Covenants
- Wage & Hour, including FLSA and State and Local Wage & Hour Laws
- Employment Discrimination, including Title VII, ADA, ADEA, FMLA, USERRA, and State and Local Human Rights Acts
- Employment Termination, including WARN
- Employment Agreements, including Commission Plans and other Incentive Compensation Agreements
- Defended an 8,000-employee, global logistics company against an Iraq-based employee defection lawsuit involving multiple non-compete, tortious interference, and other related claims in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia
- Defended a Northern-based government contractor against an employee defection lawsuit involving multiple tortious interference, trade secret, and other related claims in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia
- Represented a Northern Virginia-based software company in a tortious interference, trade secret, contract, and business conspiracy lawsuit against its former chief technology officer and other former employees in Virginia state court
- Defended an international corporate housing company against a multi-party non-compete, trade secret, and tortious interference lawsuit in Ohio state court, and against a tortious interference, unfair competition, and declaratory judgment lawsuit in California state court
- Defended a 65,000-employee, national insurance and financial services company against multiple discrimination and other employment lawsuits in the United States District Court for the District of Maryland, United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia, and Maryland state court
- Defended a New York Stock Exchange-listed, national home builder against multiple discrimination, contract, and other employment lawsuits in the United States District Court for the District of Maryland, United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, and Maryland state court
- Defended a NASDAQ-listed, national retail company against multiple discrimination, contract, and other employment lawsuits in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, United States District Court for the District of Maryland, and Superior Court of the District of Columbia
- Defended a Northern Virginia-based government contractor, including obtaining a complete defense verdict in a multi-day trial, against a former employee’s FLSA and False Claims Act lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia
- Defended a Northern Virginia-based government contractor against a tortious interference and business conspiracy lawsuit in Virginia state court
- Defended the chief financial officer of a Florida-based commodities trading firm against a multi-million dollar employment defamation lawsuit by a former employee in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida
- Represented a Northern Virginia-based convention management company in enforcing a non-compete and other restrictive covenants against a former sales employee in Virginia state court
- Defended a Northern Virginia-based early education company against a non-compete and tortious interference lawsuit in Virginia state court
- Defended a Maryland-based video conferencing company against a multi-count, state labor law claim in the United States District Court for the Western District of New York
- Employment at Will: A State-by-State Survey, First Edition, Virginia, Bloomberg BNA ( December 1, 2011 )
- 2008-2022, Chambers USA, Labor & Employment, Virginia
- 2014-2023, The Best Lawyers in America® – Employment Law-Management / Litigation-Labor & Employment
- AV Preeminent® Peer Rated by Martindale-Hubbell® Peer Review Ratings™
- 2022, Arlington magazine's Top Attorneys - Employment Law (Employer)
- 2012-2021, International Who’s Who of Management Labour & Employment Lawyers
- 2006-2022, Virginia Super Lawyers - Employment Law
- 2007-2022, D.C. Super Lawyers - Employment Law
- 2011: “Employee Defection and the Multi-jurisdictional Employer: Drafting and Enforcing Non-competes in a Disparate Legal Environment,” Washington Metropolitan Area Corporate Counsel Association, Tysons, VA
- 2011: “30(b)(6) Depositions,” Washington Metropolitan Area Corporate Counsel Association, Tysons, VA
- 2008: “Employee Defection and the Multi-jurisdictional Employer: Practical Advice for In-house Counsel on Using Non-competes,” Association for Corporate Counsel, Tysons, VA
- 2006: “Covenants Not to Compete and Trade Secrets,” American Bar Association Committee on Employee Rights and Responsibilities Midwinter Meeting , Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
- 2006: “Document Retention and Destruction: To Shred or Not to Shred,” National Business Institute, Fairfax, VA
- American Bar Association, Section on Labor & Employment Law, Committee on Employee Rights and Responsibilities, Subcommittee on Covenants Not to Compete and Trade Secrets, 2005-15
- Lex Mundi, Labor & Employment Law Committee, 2008-10
- Greater Washington Board of Trade, Virginia Public Affairs Committee, 2006-07
- Northern Virginia Technology Council, Co-chairman, Human Resources Advisory Board, 1998-99
- Tysons Regional Chamber of Commerce, Chairman, 1996-97, and Director, 1993-98
- Fairfax Area Disability Services Board, Co-chairman, Standing Committee on Americans with Disabilities Act, 1992-93
