Denise Drake

Denise Drake is known for her creative and practical approach to employment law issues, as well as her sincere interest in helping employers improve their workplaces, proactively avoid litigation, and strategically defend against lawsuits. Ms. Drake has significant experience defending companies in employment lawsuits, including collective, class, multi-plaintiff, and multi-defendant employment actions. She has obtained defense verdicts in trials and arbitrations involving sexual harassment claims; sex, race, disability, and age discrimination; retaliation and whistleblower claims

Ms. Drake has also successfully obtained dismissals or summary judgments in cases filed across the nation. She has successfully defeated nationwide certification of wage and hour class and collective actions; convinced plaintiffs to voluntarily dismiss actions; and advantageously used offers of judgment and other strategic tools to appropriately position cases for efficient resolution.

Eric E. Packel

Eric E. Packel primarily focuses on trial work involving labor and employment law. Most recently, he has devoted a significant amount of his practice to representing employers in collective actions brought pursuant to the Fair Labor Standards Act, a topic on which he has also written and lectured. In one such case, he was lead counsel for a company defending a 742-member collective class. 

Throughout his career, Mr. Packel has represented employers in numerous discrimination lawsuits in state and federal courts in cases involving Title VII gender discrimination, race discrimination, sexual harassment, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, the Pregnancy Discrimination Act, the Family and Medical Leave Act, the Missouri Human Rights Act, the Kansas Act Against Discrimination, whistleblower claims, and workers compensation retaliation. He has tried jury trials in five states. Mr. Packel has represented management in arbitrations before the Public Employer-Employee Relations Board. He has also represented employers and employees in several cases involving non-compete covenants and non-solicitation agreements. 

In addition to employment claims, Mr. Packel has tried cases involving the Freedom of Speech clause of the First Amendment, negligent retention of employees, sexual assault, intentional infliction of emotional distress, products liability, and personal injury in Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma and Iowa. He has also defended securities brokerage firms before arbitration panels of the National Association of Securities Dealers.

In 2007, Mr. Packel obtained the sixth largest jury verdict in Kansas City-area courts, based upon claims against an employee for breaching fiduciary duties and misappropriating trade secrets. 

For more information about Ms. Drake and Mr. Packel, please visit:

http://www.polsinelli.com/professionals/ddrake and

http://www.polsinelli.com/professionals/epackel.