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Attorney Profiles
W. Mark Gavre 
Salt Lake City, Utah
phone 801-532-1234
fax 801-536-6111
email mgavre@parsonsbehle.com
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Mark Gavre is a member of the Employment Law Department. His practice covers the full range of employment-related areas, including employment discrimination, sexual harassment, wrongful termination, ERISA (employee benefits), COBRA, FMLA, HIPAA as well as other workplace disputes and litigation. Mr. Gavre counsels managers and employers on how to comply with the myriad of laws regulating the workplace, and on how to prevent small problems from becoming big legal disputes. Recently Mr. Gavre defeated a major class action wage and hour lawsuit in California.

Mr. Gavre is a frequent speaker on employment and benefits topics. Prior to becoming an attorney, Mr. Gavre was a professor of political science at the University of Utah. He has taught employment and benefits law at the University of Utah College of Law. Mr. Gavre received his J.D. from the University of Utah in 1985, his Ph.D. from UCLA in 1978, and his B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley in 1968. Mr. Gavre was given a "First" ranking as an Employment and ERISA lawyer in the 2007-2011 Chambers USA Client's Guide.

Related Activities and Skills:

  • Utah State Bar Association: Labor and Employment Law Section
  • American Bar Association: Labor and Employment Law Section; Health Law Section; State Labor Law Developments Committee
  • Mr. Gavre has been an adjunct professor at the University of Utah Law School, teaching Employment and Benefits Law

Published Works:

Substantive & Tactical Issues in Obtaining Summary Judgment, Salt Lake County Bar Bulletin November-December, 1986

Impact of Indian Claims on Public Lands: A Perspective for Users of Federal and State Land," Proceedings of the American Mining Congress, 1988

Utah Employment Law After Berube: The Demise of the At-Will Doctrine?, Utah Bar Journal August-September, 1989

E-Mail Sexual Harassment, Company Liability and Document Production, January 2000 by W. Mark Gavre

Areas of Practice:
Employment Law
Employment Litigation
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
Employee Pension & Benefits
Labor Law
Preventive Counseling
Privacy & HIPAA
Reductions in Force
Whistleblower Complaints
Wrongful Discharge Claims
Labor Arbitration
Unfair Labor Practices
Bar Admissions:
Utah, 1985
U.S. District Court District of Utah, 1985
U.S. Court of Appeals 10th Circuit, 1986
U.S. Court of Appeals 9th Circuit, 1990
U.S. Supreme Court, 1990
Education:
University of Utah College of Law, Salt Lake City, Utah, 1985
J.D. degree


University of California at Los Angeles, 1978
Ph.D.


University of Madrid, Spain
Fulbright Scholar, 1968-1969


University of California, Berkeley, 1968
B.A. degree


Representative Cases:
Chicas, et. al. v. Stericycle, Inc., No. RG10497864 (Cal. Sup. 2011)
Buckardt v. Albertson's, Inc., et al., 221 Fed. Appx. 730 (10th Cir. 2007)
Callery v. U.S. Life Insurance Co., 392 F. 3d 401 (10th Cir. 2004)
Waddoups v. The Amalgamated Sugar Company, 54 P. 3d 1054 (Utah 2002)
Carter v. AMAX Coal Corp., 748 F. Supp. 812 (D. Utah 1990)
Branson v. Price River Coal Company, 853 F.2d 768 (10th Cir. 1988)
Representative Clients:
American Airlines, Inc.
Barrick Gold Corp.
Dyno Nobel
Fairchild Semiconductor
Rio Tinto
Second Nature Wilderness Program
Stericycle, Inc.
Tesoro Refining
The Weir Group
Classes/Seminars Taught:
"How to Lose a Charge of Discrimination", April 27, 2011


"Sarbanes-Oxley? - It's Not Just for Public Companies", Panel Member, May 11, 2010


"Wellness Programs: Benefits, Costs and Legal Contraints", March 17, 2009


"Employee Benefits 2008", March 18, 2008


"Best Practices: The Family and Medical Leave Act", August 3, 2007


"Utah Supreme Court's Latest Word on Public Policy Wrongful Discharge'", June 12, 2007


"New EEOC Guidance on Discrimination Against Workers With Caregiving Responsibilities'", June 1, 2007


"New Issues in Employee Benefits", May 3, 2007


"The Cutting Edge in Employment Discrimination: Unlawful Retaliation, Sexual Orientation Harassment, and Employee Grooming Standards", November 2, 2006


"Supreme Court Broadens Meaning of Employer Retaliation' Under Title VII", June 30, 2006


"English Only Policies in the Workplace", March 30, 2006


"Limitations on an Employer's Right to Terminate", September 15, 2005


"Independent Contractor or Employee?", April 13, 2005


"Safely Terminating the High-Risk Employee", September 17, 2004


"HR Compliance: Are you up to date?", April 31, 2003


"Retaliation Claims", August 15, 2002


"E-Mail and the Internet: The Cyber-Workplace and What Employers Can Do About It", April 10, 2001


"Employment Tort Claims: Creative Lawyers Are Finding New Theories for Suing Employers", May 17, 2000


"Will Someone Please Clarify When an Employer Will Be Liable for Supervisory Misconduct?", April 4, 2000


"One More Time: The FMLA Continues to Challenge Employers", April 7, 1999


"Paramours, Same Sex and Employer Liability: New Issues in Sexual Harassment", April 22, 1998


"E-Mail and the Internet: Issues, Problems and Solutions", April 23, 1997


"Recent Developments in Federal and State Employment Law", March 18, 1997


"Current Issues Affecting Employee Benefit Plans", April 19, 1996


"Employee Medical Benefits: Anatomy of an Employee Benefit Claim", April 17, 1995


"The ADA and Employee Medical Benefits", November 15, 1994