Team

Olivia Uzan

Admitted CA, United-States and Paris, France

Olivia has been working for over 20 years in Paris as an employment and labor attorney, and an international divorce proceedings attorney. She is currently one of the few attorneys admitted to both the France and California bar.

Olivia has worked with US-based clients for over 10 years. She teamed with US attorneys to handle international issues in many family law and employment law situations.

Having learned about the US legal issues many French residents and citizens faced in their ongoing litigation, she decided to sit for the California bar exam. She knew many American citizens working in American companies located in France. She knew there are also many French citizens working for French companies in California. She knew she needed to use her international legal skills to help all employees, no matter where they worked in the world.

Olivia is quite passionate about her cases. Some may even call her a “pit bull” in that she fights for her clients with fierce determination. She has been repeatedly recognized as a top, fiercely determined lawyer within France’s legal community. In a legal battle, you want her on your side.

Olivia was educated at the University La Sorbonne-Assas, Paris. Since then, she has dedicated her practice to helping employees in need of help when fighting for their rights. She believes in justice and looks forward to bringing her fierce attitude to her clients in California and worldwide.

One additional benefit of working with Olivia is her amazing French accent. Not only is she extremely talented and knowledgeable when dealing with legal issues. She also sounds great arguing any case. Imagine the award-winning French actress, Marion Cotillard giving an argument. Everyone would sit on the edge of their seats just to hear her beautiful accent when pronouncing such words as discrimination, harassment, and violation. Olivia’s amazing accent provides the same effect, making the argument as captivating to listen to as it is to win.

Olivia spent a year in Israel studying at Tel Aviv University. There, she studied Hebrew and the Israeli legal system.

Derek T. Smith

Admitted NY, PA, NJ, FL and CA, United-States

Derek Smith has practiced sexual harassment and discrimination law for over 25 years. He has obtained the largest emotional distress jury verdict ever to be sustained on appeal in the entire United States for an employment law case. Derek Smith has also secured a settlement in excess of $15,000,000 on behalf of a client.

From Derek: “A lawyer once told me many years ago not to get so emotionally involved in my cases. Well, I think the complete opposite is true! It makes me furious when I hear stories of employers discriminating against or sexually harassing their employees! If an employer treats you differently because of your race, religion, age, gender, or disability, I say, “How dare they??!” If your boss sexually harasses you or compels you to have a sexual relationship of any kind, I am outraged! We like to partner and become one with our clients. We represent them, and they represent us. We are a team. That is our philosophy. We are personally offended when injustice is done to our clients. So, to that lawyer, who said that many years ago to me, I say that you are so, very, very wrong! It is that emotional attachment to our cases that helps us to better represent our clients and get them the most that we can on their case. That is how we have obtained many, multi-million dollar jury verdicts and many multi-million dollar settlements for our clients. The results speak for themselves.”

Attorney Derek Smith is an experienced labor & employment law litigator who has particular experience in the areas of workplace discrimination, sexual harassment, wrongful termination, civil rights litigation, employment law, and civil litigation. Attorney Smith received his J.D. in 1994 from the Penn State Dickinson School of Law, his B.A. in 1991 from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Mich., and studied at the Université de Droit, d’Économie, et des Sciences d’Aix-Marseille in Aix-en-Provence, France.

Attorney Derek T. Smith is admitted to the state bars of New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Florida, and California. Derek Smith is admitted to the Federal Courts in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Florida and California. Derek Smith is also proud to be admitted to The Supreme Court of the United States in Washington, D.C.

Attorney Smith is also a Judge in the annual Robert F. Wagner National Labor and Employment Law Moot Court Competition as well as a Judge in the Charles W. Froessel Intramural Moot Court Competition.

Attorney Smith has personally litigated and resolved numerous high profile cases against multi-billion dollar corporations and has attained some of the largest employment law verdicts in workplace discrimination and sexual harassment, with his clients receiving millions in damages in these cases.

Derek T. Smith is fluent in English and French.