Rachhana T. Srey
No Company Is Too Big to Play Fair
About
Rachhana T. Srey is a Partner at Nichols Kaster, PLLP who has extensive litigation experience, primarily dedicating her legal practice to national wage and hour complex class and collective action employment litigation. She has been a zealous advocate for thousands of employees over her 16-year career, representing a wide variety of workers in many industries including those who work in healthcare, insurance, financial services, communications, retail, manufacturing, and security industries as well as federal sector employees.
Rachhana’s exceptional case management and advocacy skills, dedication to her clients, strong work ethic, and outgoing personality have earned her the respect of her clients and of her colleagues in the legal community. Rachhana has tried several wage and hour cases, most notably obtaining a jury verdict that was upheld by the Sixth Circuit in favor of a group of nearly three hundred cable installers. In addition to her wage and hour practice, Rachhana is also currently litigating a large age discrimination class case venue at the EEOC.
She is active in several organizations, holding leadership positions in a few. Rachhana is currently the Co-Chair of the National Employment Lawyer Association's (“NELA”) Wage & Hour Committee and Practice Group and the Co-Chair of the Association of Justice's (“AAJ”) Wage & Hour Litigation Group. She is also an active Board Member of Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid. Rachhana is often invited to speak nationally and locally on a wide range of topics including class and collective action litigation strategies, wage and hour litigation, discovery issues, recent developments in the law, and age and gender discrimination.
Education
- J.D., William Mitchell College of Law, 2004, cum laude
- B.A., University of Minnesota, 2000
Admissions
- United States Supreme Court
- Minnesota Supreme Court
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
- U.S. District Court – District of Colorado
- U.S. District Court – Eastern District of Michigan
- U.S. District Court – District of Minnesota
- U.S. District Court – Western District of Tennessee
- U.S. District Court – Eastern District of Wisconsin
- U.S. District Court – Western District of Wisconsin
- U.S. District Court - Western District of New York
Memberships & Honors
- Named to "Top Lawyers List," Minnesota Monthly 2022 - 2024
- Named one of “The Best Lawyers in America”, 2021-2025
- Named to the Super Lawyers list, Minnesota Super Lawyers, Minneapolis/St. Paul Magazine, and Twin Cities Business, 2019 - 2024
- Named to the Rising Stars list, Minnesota Super Lawyers, Minneapolis/St. Paul Magazine, and Twin Cities Business, 2013-2018
- Named to The Top Women Attorneys in Minnesota List, 2016-2019
- Named to Lawdragon 500 Leading Plaintiff Employment & Civil Rights Lawyers list, 2018-2024
- American Bar Association Member
- Federal Bar Association Member
- Hennepin County Bar Association Member
- Minnesota Employment Lawyers Association Member
- Minnesota State Bar Association Member
- National Employment Lawyers Association Member
Presentations & Publications
- “Pain In The Mass…Arbitrations On The Front Lines” National Employment Lawyers Association 2021 Spring Seminar: New Issues, Creative Solutions—Emerging Issues in Wage & Hour Law, Virtual 2021
- “Strategies to Secure or Defeat FLSA Collective Action Certification” Practising Law Institute: Wage & Hour Litigation and Compliance 2021, Virtual 2021
- “Independent Contractors and Joint Employments – Litigating These Classifications in a Changing Landscape” 2020 Upper Midwest Employment Law Institute, Virtual 2020
- “Employment A to Z: Wage and Hour - Proper Classification of Employees” Employment A to Z Webcast Series, Minnesota CLE, Minneapolis, MN 2019
- “Strategies After Decertification” National Employment Lawyers Association 2018 Annual Convention: Connect, Build, Advance, Chicago, IL 2018
- “FLSA Update – New Cases and Current Issues for Plaintiff and Defense” 2018 Upper Midwest Employment Law Institute, St. Paul, MN 2018
- “Wage & Hour Case Law Update” Practising Law Institute: Wage & Hour Litigation and Compliance 2017, New York, NY 2017
- “The Best Laid Plans: Crafting Effective Trial Plans” 15th Annual Impact Fund Class Action Conference, San Francisco, CA 2017
- “Who Is an Employee? Who Is an Employer?” – New Developments & Key Takeaways, Minnesota CLE, Minneapolis, MN 2016
- “Wage & Hour Law—FLSA Basics: Exemptions Galore & Much, Much More!” National Employment Lawyers Association 2016 Annual Convention #NELA16, Los Angeles, CA 2016
- “What Every Civil Litigator Should Know About Multi-District Litigation and Class Actions.” Minnesota CLE, Minneapolis, MN 2016
- "New U.S. and Minnesota Supreme Court Cases." The 42nd Annual Labor & Employment Law Institute, Labor & Employment Law Section of the MSBA, Minnesota CLE, Minneapolis, MN 2015
- "Age Discrimination Update – The Cases and Their Impact." 2015 Upper Midwest Employment Law Institute, St. Paul, MN, 2015
- “Ex parte Contacts with Employees: Insider Informants, Hostile Company Witnesses and ‘Gag Orders’ Pressure on the Privilege, Minnesota CLE, Minneapolis, MN, 2015
- “Locating And Ethically Communicating With Putative Collective & Class Members.” National Employment Lawyers Association Protecting Pay: Representing Workers With Wage & Hour Claims, Washington, D.C., 2015
- "10 Tips for Tackling the Heart of the Beast - Written Discovery." A Checklist Approach to Successful Civil Litigation, Minnesota CLE, Minneapolis, MN, 2014
- “Best Practices for Wage and Hour Compliance.” American Bar Association’s 8th Annual Section of Labor and Employment Law Conference, Los Angeles, CA, 2014
- “Keeping The Heat On Employers In FLSA Cases.” NELA’s 2014 Annual Convention: Blazing the Trail – Courage, Challenge, Change, Boston, MA 2014
- “New U.S. and Minnesota Supreme Court Cases.” The 41st Annual Labor & Employment Law Institute, Labor & Employment Law Section of the MSBA, Minnesota CLE, Minneapolis, MN 2014
- “American Hustle: Why Wage and Hour Cases Are Here to Stay.” Eighth Circuit National Employment Lawyers Association: New Frontiers, The Fight for Employment Equality, Des Moines, IA, 2014
- "New U.S. Supreme Court Cases." The 40th Annual Labor & Employment Law Institute, Labor & Employment Law Section of the MSBA, Minnesota CLE, Minneapolis, MN, 2013
- Panelist at the Mid-South Region of the Fellows of the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers program, Memphis, TN 2013
- “A Day in the Life of an FLSA Collective Action.” National Employment Lawyers Association Law & Policy Institute: Preventing Wage Theft, Chicago, IL, 2013
- “Everything but the Kitchen Sink? Conducting Effective and Efficient Written Discovery.” 2013 New Lawyer Experience, Minnesota CLE, Minneapolis, MN, 2013
- “Cutting-Edge Issues in Winning Section 216(b) Collective Actions.” National Employment Lawyers Association Annual Convention, San Diego, CA, 2012
- “How to Handle Written Discovery and Discovery Disputes without Undue Cost & Delay.” American Bar Association’s 5th Annual Section of Labor and Employment Law Conference, Seattle, WA, 2011
- “Wage & Hour Trial Practice 101.” National Employment Lawyers Association Wage & Hour Seminar: Securing Wages, Protecting Hours: Representing Workers in Individual & Collective Actions Under the FLSA, Washington, D.C., 2011
- “Class & Collective Actions 101.” National Employment Lawyers Association: Charting the Future of Employee Rights Advocacy, New Orleans, LA, 2011
- “An Ounce of Prevention is Worth a Pound of Cure – Preventive Strategies to Enhance Compliance with Wage and Hour Laws.” American Bar Association’s 4th Annual Section of Labor and Employment Law Conference, Chicago, IL, 2010
- “Labor and Employment Law Today: Evolution or Revolution.” University of Memphis Law Review Symposium, Memphis, TN, 2010
- “The Nuts & Bolts of Class & Collective Actions.” National Employment Lawyers Association 20th Annual Convention: Change We Can Believe In, Rancho Mirage, CA, 2009
- “Class Actions and Multi-Plaintiff Claims Regarding Wage and Hour Issues and Exemptions.” Minnesota CLE Employment Law Webcast Series, 2008
- “High-Caliber Litigation of Employment Cases in an Ever Expanding E-World.” Eighth Circuit National Employment Lawyers Association Conference, Kansas City, MO, 2008