Barbara S. Van Ligten

Barbara Van Ligten has over 25 years of experience in employment law and defense of management in personnel and labor relations matters, such as discrimination, retaliation, harassment, ERISA, wage & hour and wrongful termination. Ms. Van Ligten also specializes in the defense of class actions involving wage and hour and other employment related issues. 

Ms. Van Ligten has clients in both the public and private sector. Her public sector clients have included the Regents of the University of California, the Orange County Transportation Authority, the City of Montebello, the City of Downey and the County of San Bernardino. She has represented clients before numerous state and federal administrative agencies, including the Department of Fair Employment and Housing, the Department of Labor, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement. Ms. Van Ligten has extensive experience with jury trials, mediations, and arbitrations.

• Obtained a favorable settlement in a wage and hour class action involving an overtime exemption misclassification case involving 150 employees, which was achieved only after the filing of defendant’s opposition to the motion for class certification.
• Achieved the denial of class certification of a breach of contract case brought on behalf of over 5,000 independent contractors.
• Obtained summary judgment in favor of the defendant in a discrimination and retaliation case involving a major public university.
• Obtained a favorable settlement in two coordinated wage and hour class action cases, which involved over 60,000 employees and included claims for unpaid vacation, missed meal and rest periods, unpaid wages at termination, and wage statement violations.

Practice Areas

Community & Professional

• Los Angeles County Bar Association, Member
• El Modena High School PSTA Treasurer
• El Modena Wrestling Booster Club Treasurer
• Orange County Constitutional Rights Foundation Mock Trial Coach for El Modena High School