Cheryl Wilke Selected As One of the "Most Effective Lawyers of South Florida"

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (December 7, 2010) - Cheryl Wilke, a Partner in the Fort Lauderdale, Florida, office of Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP, as been selected as one of the “Most Effective Lawyers of South Florida” by the Daily Business Review, South Florida’s most influential business newspaper. Ms. Wilke was one of only 90 attorneys chosen for inclusion on the list, and of only three in the area of labor and employment. The “Most Effective Lawyers of South Florida” list was published in the December 6, 2010, issue of the Daily Business Review.

According to the Daily Business Review, “[t]he attorneys [selected as Most Effective Lawyers of South Florida] were measured on one critical benchmark: results for the client. . . . Only South Florida lawyers qualify for results achieved from October 2009 through Sept. 30, 2010.”The list is compiled at the conclusion of a rigorous selection process conducted over several months.

Ms. Wilke was selected for her defense of an employer, Toojay's Management Corporation, in Myers v. Toojay's Management Corp. The case was brought by a prospective employee who had sought, but failed to obtain, a management position with Toojay’s. The decision not to hire was based on the prospective employee’s poor credit history and a recent bankruptcy. It was made at the conclusion of an on-the-job evaluation for which prospective employee was paid a nominal daily rate, but not formally employed. The prospective employee sued for discrimination under the U.S. Bankruptcy Code.

In this case of first impression, Toojay’s obtained a unanimous jury verdict in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida. The case is currently on appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. Ms. Wilke defended Toojay’s at trial and is representing the employer on appeal.

Ms. Wilke is a co-chair of one of Hinshaw’s Business Transactions Departments, the Partner-in-Charge of Hinshaw's Ft. Lauderdale office, and a member of the firm’s national Labor & Employment practice Group. She focuses her practice in the representation of employers in labor and employment matters. Ms. Wilke also practices in the area of high-dollar commercial collections work and services and has experience representing clients in sports law matters. In addition to her trial work, Ms. Wilke also handles all of the firm’s workers’ compensation appellate cases, and has appeared in Florida Supreme Court, defending the constitutionality of Florida’s workers’ compensation statute. Ms. Wilke's clients include Culligan, Kellogg Company and The Tribune Company.

Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP is a national law firm with approximately 500 lawyers in 24 offices. The firm offers a full-service practice, with an emphasis in litigation, business law and corporate transactions, environmental, intellectual property, labor and employment law, professional liability defense, estate planning and taxation matters. Hinshaw provides services to a range of for-profit and not-for-profit clients in industries that include alarm and security services, construction, financial services, health care, hospitality, insurance, legal, manufacturing, real estate, retail and transportation. Firm clients also include government agencies, municipalities and schools. Hinshaw was founded in 1934 and is headquartered in Chicago. The firm has offices in 12 states: Arizona, California, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island and Wisconsin.
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