Dennis is a partner in the firm's regional labor and employment practice group in the Tampa office. He represents employers in civil court litigation, arbitrations, and administrative proceedings regarding claims involving employment discrimination laws, wage and hour laws, family and medical leave laws, union-management relations, employee benefits, and various employment-related torts. Dennis also regularly represents employers in prosecuting and defending cases involving alleged breaches of non-competition agreements, misappropriation of trade secrets claims, and employment or business-related tort claims. Additionally, Dennis routinely counsels and assists employers regarding compliance with various applicable federal, state, and local labor and employment laws, including the preparation and/or review of employment contracts, severance agreements, and employee handbooks and policies. Dennis has represented a broad range of employers in the financial services, retail, hospitality, health care, transportation, construction, engineering, and manufacturing industries. Dennis currently serves on the firm's Operations Committee.

• University of Florida, J.D., with high honors, 1996; Board Member, Florida Law Review; Order of the Coif
• Florida State University, B.S. in Political Science, summa cum laude, 1993; Honors & Scholars Program

• Board Certified as a Specialist in Labor and Employment Law by The Florida Bar
• Admitted to Practice: United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit; United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit; United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida; United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida; United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida; and all state courts in Florida
• Member: American Bar Association (ABA), Section of Labor and Employment Law; Florida Bar, Labor and Employment Law Section
• Co-Chair, FLSA Subcommittee, Federal Labor Standards Legislation Committee of the ABA's Labor and Employment Law Section (2009-)
• Member, Wage and Hour Defense Institute of the Litigation Counsel of America (2009-)
• Board of Directors, Hillsborough County Bar Association (2003-04)
• President, Hillsborough County Bar Association Young Lawyers Division (2003-04)
• Board of Directors, Hillsborough County Bar Foundation (2005-06)
• Leadership Tampa, Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce (2006)
• Board of Directors, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Tampa Bay, Inc. (2005-08)

• "AV" rating by the Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory, which is the highest possible rating for legal ability and ethical standards
• Named in The Best Lawyers in America® in the area of Labor and Employment Law
• Recognized by Florida Trend magazine as a part of the "Florida Legal Elite," a select group comprised of only the top two percent of lawyers practicing in Florida
• Named a Florida Super Lawyer (in the area of Labor and Employment Law), an honor received by 5% of Florida lawyers
• Outstanding Young Lawyer Award, Hillsborough County Bar Association (2005)
• Special Recognition Award (for pro bono service to the courts) given by the Chief Judge of the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit (1997)

• Senior Editor, The Fair Labor Standards Act Cumulative Supplement, ABA Section of Labor and Employment Law and BNA Books (2003-)
• Senior Editor, Wage and Hour Law: A State-by-State Survey, Cumulative Supplement, ABA Section of Labor and Employment Law and BNA Books (2007-)
• Chapter Author, Wage and Hour Law: A State-by-State Survey, ABA Section of Labor and Employment Law and BNA Books (2004)
• Contributing Editor, The Fair Labor Standards Act Cumulative Supplement, ABA Section of Labor and Employment Law and BNA Books (2001 and 2002)
• Contributing Author, 2002 Midwinter Meeting Report of the Subcommittee on the Family and Medical Leave Act, ABA Labor and Employment Law Section (2002)
• Contributing Author, 2001 Midwinter Meeting Report of the Subcommittee on the Family and Medical Leave Act, ABA Labor and Employment Law Section (2001)
• Author, "Wage and Hour Law: When are Commission-Paid Salespersons Exempt from Overtime Pay?" Lawyer, Hillsborough County Bar Association (December 1999/January 2000)
• Panel Speaker, "Hot Topics in Wage and Hour Law," ABA Section of Labor and Employment Law and ABA Center for Continuing Legal Education (June 2009)
• Speaker, "Wage and Hour Laws in the United States," U.S. Employment Law, Lexis Nexis Conferences, London, England (November 2008)
• Panel Speaker, "Working With the Department of Labor," The Sixth National Forum on Wage and Hour Litigation: Expert Strategies for Pursuing and Defending Wage and Hour Claims and Class Actions, American Conference Institute (April-May 2008)
• Speaker, "Minimizing the Administrative Headaches That Accompany Intermittent and Reduced Schedule Leave," Florida FMLA Update 2005, Council on Education Management, Tampa, Florida (2005)
• Speaker, "Minimizing the Administrative Headaches That Accompany Intermittent and Reduced Schedule Leave," Florida FMLA Update 2004, Council on Education Management, Tampa, Florida (January 2004)
• Speaker, Current Issues in Employment and Labor Law: An Update For Legal Counsel and Staff in Florida, Lorman Education Services, Orlando, Florida (January 2004)
• Panel Speaker, Crossing the Pond: What Every Foreign Corporation Doing Business in the U.S. Needs to Know About U.S. Employment Law, American Bar Association Annual Meeting, New York, New York (July 2000)
• Speaker, "Overtime/Fair Labor Standards Act," Avoiding Lawsuits in the Workplace, Florida Chamber of Commerce, Tampa, Florida (November 2000)
• Speaker, "Job Interviews/Cross-Examination at Trial," Avoiding Lawsuits in the Workplace - Advanced Topics, Florida Chamber of Commerce, Orlando and Miami, Florida (June 1999)
• Speaker, "Overtime/Fair Labor Standards Act," Avoiding Lawsuits in the Workplace, Florida Chamber of Commerce, Boca Raton and Tampa, Florida (May 1999)

Wage and Hour

• Lead counsel for national furniture company in FLSA collective action challenging the application of the Section 7(i) exemption to the company's sales associates; putative class included hundreds of sales associates
• Lead counsel for mortgage brokerage firm in FLSA collective action seeking unpaid overtime for loan officers; putative class included over 100 loan officers
• Lead counsel for petroleum company in FLSA collective action in which assistant managers challenged application of the fluctuating workweek method of computing overtime compensation; putative class included hundreds of assistant managers
• Lead counsel for securities brokerage firm in FLSA collective action brought by sales assistants alleging unpaid "off the clock"; putative class included over 1,000 employees employed in multiple states
• Lead counsel for debt collection company in FLSA collective action brought by debt collectors seeking unpaid overtime for alleged off the clock work; putative class included over 100 employees
• Lead counsel for proprietary trading firm in a series of investigations by the U.S. Department of Labor in multiple states in which the DOL claimed commission-paid members of LLC were covered by the FLSA and entitled to unpaid minimum wage and overtime and various other FLSA issues; the investigation included claims by over 550 alleged employees
• Lead counsel for securities brokerage firm in U.S. Department of Labor investigation involving claims of alleged off the clock work by over 100 office employees
• Lead counsel for cruise company in FLSA claim for unpaid overtime by crew employee challenging the application of the seaman exemption

• Representation of financial services firm in age discrimination class action brought by 14 former employees in Florida state court under the Florida Civil Rights Act of 1992 (putative class included hundreds of employees)
• Representation of financial services firm in defending Title VII retaliation claim in federal court through trial and successful appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
• Representation of package delivery company during trial of Americans with Disabilities Act claim in federal district court in which defense verdict was rendered

• Lead counsel for package delivery company in hybrid Section 301 action brought in federal district court in Louisiana through summary judgment proceedings and appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
• Representation of package delivery company in numerous labor arbitrations involving claims of unjust discharge and/or contract language interpretation under the company-union collective bargaining agreement

• Representation of pharmaceutical company in ERISA action involving the denial of severance benefits
• Representation of petroleum company in action to recoup overpayments made to employee from employee retirement plan

• Representation of financial services firm in action enforcing non-competition agreement and protecting trade secrets through preliminary injunction phase and damages trial
• Representation of technology company in enforcing unsigned non-competition agreement through application of the doctrine of reformation