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Michelle Lappen

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Michelle Lappen is an associate in the Labor & Employment Department and a member of the Employment Litigation & Arbitration Group. Her practice addresses a wide range of labor and employment issues, including matters involving alleged discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wage-and-hour issues, whistleblowing and wrongful termination. Michelle has represented clients in a variety of industries, including entertainment, healthcare, financial services, professional services and technology.

Michelle has defended nationwide employers in connection with complex, overlapping wage-and-hour class and representative actions. Michelle also has defended single-plaintiff discrimination, harassment, retaliation and wage-and-hour cases in both arbitration and state and federal courts. Michelle has comprehensive experience in litigation, including propounding and responding to written discovery, defending depositions, drafting dispositive motions and managing preparation for trial. In addition to Michelle’s employment litigation practice, she advises clients on various employment issues, including litigation avoidance, pay data reporting and compliance with federal, state and local laws.

Michelle earned her J.D. from Columbia Law School, where she was an articles and submissions editor for the Columbia Journal of Law & the Arts. She also served as a teaching fellow for the Advanced Negotiation Workshop and advocated for state and federal legislation as a clinical student in the Columbia Law Health Justice Advocacy Clinic.

Michelle was selected to be a Protégée for Proskauer’s Women’s Sponsorship Program, an initiative for high-performing, midlevel associates that champions future leaders. She also serves as a member of the Firm’s Summer Program Committee.

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Proskauer secured a victory for our client on a motion to compel arbitration in a sex discrimination action filed in the Los Angeles Superior Court. The plaintiff alleged sex-based discrimination and harassment; retaliation; failure to prevent harassment, discrimination, and retaliation; constructive termination; and intentional infliction of emotional distress. Although the plaintiff had executed an arbitration agreement before beginning employment, she argued the agreement was “unconscionable”…

As 2025 winds down, many employers are focused on year-end reviews, budget planning, and compliance checklists for the year ahead. But before turning the page on another year in California employment law, two recent jury verdicts serve as a sobering reminder of the continuing trend of nuclear verdicts as we have previously reported here, here, here, and here. Consider this your…

A California court recently threw the book at some lawyers for relying on artificial intelligence (“AI”) to generate what turned out to be fabricated citations and misstated authorities—that is, so-called “AI hallucinations.”

In Noland v. Land of the Free, L.P., a leasing agent/sales representative alleged no fewer than 25 claims, including violations of California’s wage and hour laws and wrongful termination. The trial court…

The California Civil Rights Council, which promulgates regulations that implement California’s civil rights laws, has published a new set of regulations concerning artificial intelligence (“AI”) in the workplace. These new rules (available here) are set to go into effect on October 1, 2025 and amend the existing regulatory framework of the Fair Employment and Housing Act (“FEHA”). This latest round of regulations is continuing a trend…

According to the Los Angeles Times, a retiring “prison supervising dentist” became a millionaire overnight when the state paid him $1.2 million for unused vacation benefits that he had been accruing for decades.  This mammoth payout represents just a drop in the bucket considering the more than $5.6 billion in unfunded liability the state has amassed for vacation and other leave benefits owed to…

Inspired by a push to repeal the Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) by ballot measure (which we previously covered here and here), and at the urging of Governor Gavin Newsom, stakeholders have reached an agreement in principle to reform PAGA and avoid a high-stakes showdown come November. If the Legislature passes the compromise into law by June 27, the measure will be pulled from…

A recent unpublished California Court of Appeal decision, Hegemier v. A Better Life Recovery LLC, Cal. Ct. App., 4th Dist., No. G061892, demonstrates the potential consequence of drafting an arbitration agreement without foreseeing every way a future plaintiff might attempt to pick it apart. 

Almost two years ago, in Viking River Cruises, Inc. v. Moriana, 596 U.S. 639 (2022),the United States Supreme…

To determine the minimum rate of pay or salary threshold applicable to certain exemptions from overtime regulations under California law, the Department of Industrial Relations (“DIR”) uses the California Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (“CCPI”).  The DIR has announced the 2024 rates (effective January 1, 2024) for the computer software employee exemption and licensed physicians and surgeons exemption. 

For…