CHRISTOPHER S. MAILE
Partner

Tel: (818) 205-9955
Fax: (818) 205-9944
Email: cmaile@tharpe-howell.com

CHRISTOPHER S. MAILE is an AV Rated Senior Partner of the Firm in the Sherman Oaks office, having achieved the highest rating available to attorneys nationwide. He represents management in all aspects of employment law, including litigation and counseling. He also regularly defends insurance companies against claims of bad faith and breach of contract. Mr. Maile also specializes in defense of auto dealerships. An accomplished litigator, Mr. Maile brings his clients substantial jury trial experience.

Mr. Maile’s experience includes:

• Representing management in all aspects of employment law including wrongful discharge, discrimination, sexual harassment, whistle blower, unfair labor practices, restrictive covenants and non-compete agreements, and proceedings before the EEOC, California Fair Employment and Housing Commission, California Labor Commission and California Wage-Hour Compliance agencies.



• Counseling employers in all aspects of the employer-employee relationship, including policies, discipline, compensation, workforce reduction, employee terminations, disability accommodation and compliance with various federal and state laws and regulations.



• Representing insurance companies in disputes with independent insurance agents.



• Defending insurance carriers in all aspects of claims handling practices and denial of policy benefits.



• Defending auto dealerships in matters involving consumer remedies, including Truth In Lending Act, Auto Sales Finance Act and Consumers Legal Remedies Act.

Recent matters that Mr. Maile has handled include:

• Successfully defending an auto dealership against allegations of violations of the Auto Sales Finance Act, Consumers Legal Remedies Act and Unfair Business Practice Act.



• Winning an eight week jury trial for a major insurance carrier regarding the termination of an agent who claimed breach of contract and conversion.



• Successfully defending a nationally-known company in a six-week jury trial against claims of wrongful termination, discrimination and retaliation.



• Obtaining a defense verdict for a national insurance company in a consolidated case involving breach of contract, misappropriation of trade secrets and fraud.



• Defending a large trucking company in a lawsuit brought by a terminated employee involving allegations of age discrimination, medical condition discrimination and wrongful termination.



• Representing a major insurance carrier in a lawsuit by a policy holder involving wrongful denial of policy benefits.

Mr. Maile speaks and writes frequently on employment law matters as well as insurance and risk management issues. His numerous publications include: New Cases Shield Employers from Wrongful Termination Lawsuits, published in “Southern California Defense Counsel Verdict” and Wrongful Termination, The Tort of the Eighties Enters the Nineties, published in “LACMA Physician Journal.”


AREAS OF EXPERTISE

• Employment Law and Litigation



• Insurance Claims Handling Disputes



• Auto Dealership Litigation

EDUCATION
J.D., Loyola Marymount University, 1984
B.A., University of California, Los Angeles, cum laude, 1980

BAR ADMISSIONS
State Bar of California

COURT ADMISSIONS
California Supreme Court
State of California
U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit
U.S. District Court, Central District of California

MEMBERSHIPS
Assistant Scout Master

LOCATION:
Los Angeles

PRACTICE AREAS:
Bad Faith and Coverage
Employment and Labor Law
General Litigation
Hospitality Law

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