Roetzel & Andress - Barry Y. Freeman

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For 30 years, Barry has defended employers of all sizes in litigation and administrative disputes: Wage and hour collective and class actions, discrimination, harassment, retaliation, unfair competition and trade secrets, non-competes, employee benefits, workers’ compensation, defamation, privacy rights, and more. Focused on practical solutions, he draws upon creative legal strategies to help clients achieve their objectives in an efficient and cost-effective manner. In addition, clients rely on Barry to provide sensible counseling, strategic advice, and guidance on a broad range of compliance issues.

Barry has particular strengths defending wage and hour class and collective actions nationwide, including using offers of judgment as a precise tool to cut-off and end class and collective actions. Multiple times, he's resolved wage and hour cases for hundreds of thousands of dollars below what initially seemed feasible.

Clients appreciate Barry’s ability to identify the strengths and weaknesses of their position, honestly assess risks and potential rewards, and develop a practical approach to resolving the claim. Barry does not laud clients’ cases at the beginning, then ‘do a 180’ with a different perspective as the case progresses. His analysis stays steady and consistent. For example, in one case where Barry represented a plaintiff, he advised the client the chances of winning were slim. The employer was so confident it offered $0 to settle the claim. His client nonetheless chose to take the case to trial. Barry executed an aggressive strategy that led to a jury verdict in the client's favor, followed by a real settlement from the employer.

He is a Certified Labor and Employment Law Specialist by the Ohio State Bar Association. He regularly provides employment law training to employers, including EEO and wage and hour training.

Experience

Obtained favorable decision from the Ohio Court of Appeals for the Eighth District which unanimously affirmed the trial court’s ruling on the motion for summary judgment. Long v KeltanBW, Inc., 2024-Ohio-2359.
Successfully defended the trial court’s granting of motion for judgment on the pleadings in Ohio Court of Appeals for the Eighth District. Daher v. Cuyahoga Community College Dist., 2021-Ohio-2103.
Defended multiple Illinois BIPA class actions, including one dismissed with no liability or payment
Won summary judgment for Chicagoland logistics company on 15 count discrimination, harassment, and retaliation claim – despite employer’s admission it might be liable for discrimination for laying employee off
Defended Chicagoland health care company in FLSA collective action, resolving for ½ the cost of prior collective action
Defended dozens of Ohio FLSA collective actions, including many resolved for the cost of a single plaintiff case
Turned a discrimination and retaliation case against an Ohio municipality into a six-figure verdict in favor of the municipality on its counterclaim

Barry Y. Freeman

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