Patrick W. Spangler

Patrick Spangler is a labor and employment lawyer who helps companies with complex litigation, workforce change and compliance matters primarily in the manufacturing, aviation, and financial services industries.

Patrick advises companies on strategic employment and employee benefits issues and manages their complex disputes, which can range from class actions and restrictive covenants to executive compensation disputes. He has extensive experience handling ERISA and executive compensation litigation, and has served as lead counsel in a variety of class action matters.

With a focus on union and pension issues, including numerous high-profile transactions involving union workforces, Patrick also advises clients on labor and employee benefits aspects of M&A transactions and workforce integration. He is recognized for his work on multiemployer plans and labor relations in the context of strategic planning, M&A and bankruptcy. Wanting to understand the bottom line of complex legal issues and the best path to resolution, Patrick’s clients value his clear and straightforward advice on risk assessment, outcomes, and potential solutions.

Beyond the courtroom, Patrick often shares his industry expertise as a presenter on employment and employee benefits issues related to M&A transactions and has spoken as a faculty member at the ABA’s National Institute on ERISA Litigation. He has been an author and chapter editor of ERISA Litigation and served as Senior Editor of Employee Benefits Law, both published by Bloomberg/BNA. Patrick has also co-chaired the ABA’s Subcommittee on Multiemployer Plans and its subcommittee on Withdrawal Liability. Within the firm, Patrick is co-chair of the Firms’ pro bono program and serves as a member of the Compensation Committee.

Experience

• Represented a Fortune 500 financial services client in a $3.5 million dispute over the forfeiture of executive compensation benefits due to a breach of non-competition provisions in a top hat plan. Successfully obtained summary judgment.
• Represented Citadel Master Credit Fund as a secured creditor on union and pension issues in Yellow Corp. bankruptcy.
• Acted as lead counsel to plan fiduciaries in a 401(k) fee class action, which was successfully resolved through private mediation in the Northern District of Illinois.
• Guided AAR Government Services, Inc., a subsidiary of AAR Corp., in reduction-in-force litigation in the Middle District of Florida, seeking over $2 million in damages. Successfully obtained summary judgment on eve of trial.
• Served as special counsel to Arch Resources and its management team on multiemployer plan and legacy liability issues related to the $5 billion merger of Arch and Consol Energy.
• Advised numerous private equity and platform businesses in acquisition of businesses with union workforces. Recently, acted as primary labor and employment counsel to BTX Precision, an L-Squared portfolio company, in over 10 add-on acquisitions across the United States.