Robert L. Murphy

Robert Murphy is a Principal in the San Diego, California, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. With more than 40 years of experience as a practitioner in labor and employment law, he is considered to be one of the nation’s most highly respected and creative lawyers in his field.

Mr. Murphy’s practice is devoted exclusively to the representation of employers and, for many years, has been focused on the defense of discrimination and harassment cases, including claims of sexual harassment, disability and age discrimination, retaliation and wrongful termination. He has successfully defended clients in both state and federal courts in California, Texas, New York, Michigan, Washington, Minnesota and South Carolina and has represented clients in NLRB proceedings in more than 20 states including Hawaii. His clients include a wide variety of national corporations with facilities across the contiguous United States.

Mr. Murphy's current and recent experience includes defending a major real estate developer, a healthcare software company and a well known resort in discrimination cases pending in California. He successfully tried to a verdict a two month long sexual harassment case in San Diego against a major restaurant company and recently won a discharge arbitration in San Francisco on behalf of one of the world's largest hotel companies.

Mr. Murphy has created and supervised the implementation of a complete set of employment policies and procedures designed to reflect the unique culture envisioned by his client list that includes multi state corporations, luxury resorts, and private university and golf clubs. Without exception, these companies have remained union free and have experienced virtually no employment litigation.

In 2008, Mr. Murphy was the subject of a feature story in the Super Lawyers magazine in an article entitled: Tough Guy, detailing highlights in his career of negotiations with labor unions.

Honors and Recognitions

•San Diego Magazine Top Lawyer (2013)

Published Works

• The Injured Employee: A Guide to the Rights and Responsibilities of Employees Under California Law, Part II, CEB CBLR 149 Vol. III, Issue No. 8 (May 1982) [Author]
• The Injured Employee: A Guide to the Rights and Responsibilities of Employees Under California Law, Part I, CEB CBLR 129 Vol. III, Issue No. 7 (April 1982) [Author]
• A Review of Personnel Policies and Procedures for At-Will Employees, CEB CBLR 113 Vol, III, Issue No. 6 (March 1982) [Author]
• Recent Developments in Sex Discrimination Law: Pregnancy and Childbirth Policies and Claims of Sexual Harassment, CEB CBLR 17 Vol. II, Issue No. 2 (March 1981) [Author]
• Cleary v. American Airlines: A Sweeping Exception to the At-Will Rule in Employment Contracts, CEB CBLR 5 Vol. II, Issue No. 1(January 1981) [Author]
• Employee Appeals to Customers and Suppliers: Further Limitations on an Employer’s Disciplinary Prerogatives, CEB CBLR 92 Vol. I, Issue No. 6 (August 1980) [Author]

Robert L. Murphy In the News

The Best Lawyers in America 2020 Honors Jackson Lewis Attorneys

August 15, 2019 • Jackson Lewis

Paul Friedman and Robert Murphy Author The Mother of All Assessments May Be About to Hit Members of Private Clubs and It Won’t Be for Clubhouse Repairs

March 19, 2019 • Club Management Association of America

Jackson Lewis Attorneys Recognized in The Best Lawyers in America 2019

August 15, 2018 • Jackson Lewis

Robert L. Murphy Blog Posts

Labor & Collective Bargaining

Overruling Precedent, Board Finds Violation May Be Established Without Specific Unfair Labor Practice Complaint Allegation

July 28, 2016
Labor & Collective Bargaining

Ham-Handed Tactic? NLRB Says Union Giveaway Not Grounds for Setting Aside Election Victory

July 25, 2016