Swen Prior

Swen Prior focuses his practice on defending employers (including Fortune 500 companies) in a wide variety of litigation arising under common law and numerous employment-related statutes. He represents and counsels clients in many industries, including hospitality, healthcare, manufacturing, construction, higher education, telecommunications, waste management, transportation, warehousing and distribution, financial services, and retail.

As a labor and employment partner, Swen has been involved in individual and class/collective actions involving:

•Race, national origin, religion and gender discrimination (including sexual harassment) and retaliation under Title VII and state statutes
•Age discrimination and retaliation cases under Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) and state statutes
•Misclassification and overtime claims under the Fair Labor Standards Act and state statutes
•Discrimination and retaliation claims under the Americans with Disabilities Act and state statutes
•Discrimination claims under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)
•Restrictive Covenants (non-compete and non-solicitation)
•Retaliation claims under both federal and state statutes (including whistleblower actions under the Surface Transportation Assistance Act)
•Claims arising under the National Labor Relations Act, and a variety of other federal and state employment related laws
•Employment torts, contractual claims, employment agreements, separations, and collective bargaining issues

Swen assists clients with revisions to employee handbooks, employee-related policies, non-competition and intellectual property ownership agreements, and other employment-related documents. He also conducts both employment investigations and training seminars for a variety of clients.

Representative Presentations and Publications

• Employees' Refusal to Work Over Coronavirus Concerns, Co-Author, Snell & Wilmer Legal Alert (May 14, 2020)
• Updated EEOC Guidance for Employers Permits Testing for COVID-19, Co-Author, Snell & Wilmer Legal Alert (April 30, 2020)
•Reopening or Resuming Business During a Pandemic: What Employers Need to Know, Presenter, Webinar to Firm Clients (April 29, 2020)
• A Roadmap to Reopening or Resuming Business in the Midst of a Pandemic, Co-Author, Snell & Wilmer Legal Alert (April 22, 2020)
•“Managing Business Needs During a Pandemic (Nevada), ” Co-Presenter, Telephone Presentation to Firm Clients (March 27, 2020)
• The DOL Updates Its Model Notice of Employee Rights Under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, Co-Author, Snell & Wilmer Legal Alert (March 27, 2020)
•“Employment 101 During a Pandemic, ” Co-Presenter, Telephone Presentation to Firm Clients (March 23, 2020)
• Nevada's New Employment Laws in 2020, Author, Snell & Wilmer Legal Alert (November 26, 2019)
• Construction Industry Update Regarding Marijuana: Arizona and Nevada Laws Continue to Evolve, Co-Author, Snell & Wilmer Under Construction Newsletter (July 2019)
• ' Times They Are [Still] a-Changin': The Developing Landscape of Marijuana Legalization in Nevada and What This Means for Nevada Employers, Author, Snell & Wilmer Legal Alert (June 19, 2019)
•“Nevada Firms Barred from Using Marijuana Test to Reject Job Seekers, ” Quoted, Las Vegas Review-Journal (June 12, 2019)
•“Employment Hot Topics for 2018: Legal Update and Best Practices for Preventing Bullying and Harassment,” Presenter, Nevada Medical Group Management Association, Reno, Nevada (May 3, 2018)
• Reviewing Sexual Mores in a Time of High Sexual Impropriety, Quoted, Vegas Legal Magazine (Spring 2018)
•“Cannabis and the Workplace: Legal Update and Best Practices for Employers in the World of Weed,” Presenter, Las Vegas Valley Paralegal Association’s Annual CLE Seminar, Las Vegas (April 14, 2018)
•“Cannabis and the Workplace: Legal Update and Best Practices for Employers in the World of Weed,” Presenter, American Board of Vocational Experts (ABVE) Seminar, Salt Lake City, Utah (April 7, 2018)
•“'Times They Are a-Changin'': Recent Developments Regarding Marijuana Use by Employees in Nevada, Author, Snell & Wilmer Legal Alert (April 2, 2018)
• Reviewing Societal Mores in a Time of High Sexual Impropriety, Quoted, Vegas Legal Magazine (Spring 2018)
•“Employment Hot Topics for 2018: Legal Update and Best Practices for Preventing Bullying and Harassment,” Presenter, Henderson Chamber of Commerce’s Roadmap to Success Seminar Series, Henderson, Nevada (March 1, 2018)
• Business professionals offer advice on asking for a raise, Quoted, Vegas Inc. (August 21, 2017)
•“The Impact of Legalized Marijuana In Nevada: What Employers Need to Know,” Presenter, Nevada Contractors Association Up In Smoke Safety Forum, Las Vegas (June 15, 2017)
• The Impact of Legalized Marijuana in Nevada: What Employers Need to Know, Speaker, American Society of Safety Engineers Southern Nevada Chapter, Las Vegas (April 20, 2017)
• Labor & Employment Toolkit, Co-Presenter, Snell & Wilmer seminar, Reno (March 30, 2017)
• The Impact of Legalized Marijuana Use for Nevada’s Employers, Author, The Silver State CPA (February 2017)
•“Cannabis Conflict,” Panelist, Nevada Contractors Association Quarterly Luncheon, Las Vegas, Nevada (January 27, 2017)
• Nevada Supreme Court Issues Important Opinions Concerning Nevada’s Minimum Wage, Co-Author, Snell & Wilmer Legal Alert (November 16, 2016)
• New DOL Overtime Rules and Employment Law Update, Co-Presenter, Snell & Wilmer seminar, Las Vegas (November 1, 2016)
• Accommodations in the Workplace: What Employers Need to Know,” Speaker, Northern Nevada Business Weekly’s Live Breakfast Series, Reno, Nevada (May 5, 2016)
•“Medical Cannabis Employment Issues,” Speaker, Clark County Medical Society’s Medical Marijuana Symposium, Las Vegas, Nevada (April 16, 2016)
• The New EEO-1 Pay Reporting Burdens Employers, Co-Author, Snell & Wilmer Workplace Word Newsletter (February 22, 2016)
• Nevada’s Recent Minimum Wage Ruling and Best Practices for Employers, Co-Author, Snell & Wilmer Legal Alert (October 1, 2015)
•“e-Discovery, a Legal Perspective,” AIIM Capture Shoot Out, SWITCH Innevation Center, Las Vegas, Nevada (June 24, 2015)
•“Legal and Medical Perspectives of Medical Marijuana,” an Ethics CME Panel Seminar, Presenter, Washoe County Medical Society, Reno, Nevada (January 15, 2015)
•“Balancing Employee Monitoring With Privacy Concerns, ” Quoted, Nevada State Bank newsletter and web posting (October 2014)
• Employment Law: Attorneys Speak Out, Featured, Nevada Business Magazine (September 2014)
• 2014 Employment Tool Kit: Understanding Employment Law in Nevada; Issues Affecting the Workplace Today Including Discrimination, Retaliation, FMLA, ADA, Wage and Hour Issues, Proper Classifications of Employee and Independent Contractors, Enforcing Non-Compete Agreements, Social Media and Medical Marijuana Presenter and Panel member, Snell & Wilmer seminar (Reno, September 18, 2014; Las Vegas, September 23, 2014)
• Department of Labor Now Accepting Comments on Regulations Establishing a Minimum Wage for Contractors and Subcontractors, Co-Author with Bryan M. Gragg, Construction Ally-Snell & Wilmer (July 1, 2014)
• Hiring & Terminating: The Ins and Outs of Employment Law: The Termination Process, Speaker, Sterling Education Services CLE, Las Vegas, Nevada (October 4, 2013)
• Ninth Circuit Joins Second and Eighth Circuits in Rejecting D.R. Horton, Co- Author with Karl O. Riley, Legal Alert-Snell & Wilmer, (September 13, 2013)
• Promoting a Welcoming and Courteous Work Environment, Presenter, Employment Seminars, Las Vegas, Nevada (May 2013)
• Tax Twister: How Employee Misclassification and Other Tax Fraud Distort Markets - and What Subcontractors Can Do About It, Panel Moderator, Las Vegas Nevada, American Subcontractors Association Convention (focusing on employee misclassification issues) (March 22, 2013)
• Recognizing, Addressing and Preventing Sexual Harassment, Discrimination and Retaliation, Presenter, Employment Seminars, Las Vegas, Nevada (2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013)
• Promoting a Welcoming and Courteous Work Environment, Presenter, Employment Seminars, Kaanapali, Hawaii (October 2012)
• FLSA/Wage and Hour Compliance, Presenter, Labor and Employment Law 2012, Sterling Education Services, Inc., Las Vegas, Nevada (April 2012)
• Privacy Issues in the Workplace, Presenter, Labor and Employment Law 2012, Sterling Education Services, Inc., Las Vegas, Nevada (April 2012)
• Successful Implementation of Records Management, Presenter, AIIM Nevada Chapter and ARMA Silver State Chapter, Las Vegas, Nevada (April 2012)
• Failure to pay wages? Now there's an app for that, Co-Author, Daily Journal (September 15, 2011)
• Prevailing Wage Law, Presenter, Lorman Education Services, Henderson, Nevada (September 2011)
• Nevada Domestic Partnership Act: What Employers Should Know, In Business Las Vegas TV (Oct. 2, 2009)
• Electronic Document & Records Management: Lessons Learned, Panel Member, AIIM Nevada Chapter, Quarterly Chapter Meeting (August 2009)
• eDiscovery, AIIM Nevada Chapter, Quarterly Chapter Meeting (May 2009)
• Document Retention Keeping Ahead in the Digital Age, Presenter, Employment Seminar, Sedona and Scottsdale, Arizona (2009)
• Charges of Discrimination Based on Religion Have More Than Doubled Since 1992, Author, Work Place Word (September 2008)
• Recognizing, Addressing and Preventing Sexual Harassment, Discrimination and Retaliation, Presenter, Employment Seminar, Las Vegas, Nevada (2008, 2009, 2010, 2011)
• What's The Bottom-Line? Author, Work Place Word, discussing damage awards in employment discrimination cases (September 2007)
• Nevada/Federal Minimum Wage Law, Legal Alert, Author (June 2007)
• Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA), Focus On the Workplace, Managing Litigation Risk, Las Vegas, Nevada (2007)
• Focus on Document Retention Keeping Ahead in the Digital Age, Panel Member, Focus On the Workplace, Managing Litigation Risk, Las Vegas, Nevada (2007)

Professional Recognition and Awards

•Top 100 Lawyers of the Year, Readers' Choice, MYVEGAS Magazine (2020)
•Top 100 Men of the Year, Readers' Choice, MYVEGAS Magazine (2015)
•Distinguished Women & Men in Nevada, Distinguished Publishing (2015)

Other Professional Experience

•United States District Court, District of Nevada, Judicial Clerk to Hon. Robert Clive Jones
•United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary, Counsel
•Senator Orrin G. Hatch, United States Senate, Staff Assistant and Nominations Clerk
•United States Court of Federal Claims, Judicial Extern to Hon. Lawrence J. Block
•Senator Robert F. Bennett, United States Senate, Staff Assistant
•Congressman Chris Cannon, Legislative Intern/Correspondent

Related News & Events

• Mar 15
Snell & Wilmer Partner Swen Prior to Speak on Cannabis and the Workplace at American Board of Vocational Experts National Conference

• Feb 27
Snell & Wilmer Partner Swen Prior to Speak on Employment Law at Henderson Chamber of Commerce Breakfast

• Apr 20
Southern Nevada Chapter of American Society of Safety Engineers Welcomes Swen Prior as Presenter on the Impact of Legalized Marijuana

• Mar 01
The Impact of Legalized Marijuana Use for Nevada's Employers

• May 12
Snell & Wilmer Partners Marek Bute and Swen Prior Named Distinguished Men in Nevada for 2015

• Oct 01
Balancing Employee Monitoring With Privacy Concerns
Nevada State Bank newsletter - NevadaSmallBusiness.com

• Sep 19
Employment Law: Attorneys Speak Out
Nevada Business Magazine

• Jan 03
Snell & Wilmer Names 11 New Partners

• Sep 15
Failure to pay wages? Now there's an app for that

Related Publications

• May 14
Employees' Refusal to Work Over Coronavirus Concerns

• Apr 30
Updated EEOC Guidance for Employers Permits Testing for COVID-19

• Apr 22
A Roadmap to Reopening or Resuming Business in the Midst of a Pandemic

• Mar 27
The DOL Updates Its Model Notice of Employee Rights Under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act

• Nov 26
Nevada's New Employment Laws in 2020

• Jul 01
Under Construction - July 2019

• Jun 19
Times They Are [Still] a-Changin': The Developing Landscape of Marijuana Legalization in Nevada and What This Means for Nevada Employers

• Apr 02
“Times They Are a-Changin’”: Recent Developments Regarding Marijuana Use by Employees in Nevada

• Nov 16
Legal Alert - Nevada Supreme Court Issues Important Opinions Concerning Nevada’s Minimum Wage

• Feb 22
Workplace Word - The New EEO-1 Pay Reporting Burdens Employers