Galen Baynes focuses his practice on representing employees in wage theft cases, litigating employment discrimination claims, and advising clients in resolving employment disputes and negotiating severance and separation agreements.
Galen is a skilled litigator who has represented clients in proceedings before the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, the federal district courts in New York and New Jersey, the American Arbitration Association, and government agencies. Some of Galen’s notable litigation results include securing:
- A $400,000 offer of judgment on behalf of two kitchen workers at a Vietnamese restaurant in Queens;
- A $118,000 settlement on behalf of factory workers and drivers at H Mart;
- A $102,500 offer of judgment on behalf of two workers at a pizzeria on Long Island;
- Partial summary judgment on behalf of four waiters and bartenders in their wage theft litigation against a German restaurant in Manhattan;
- Dismissal of an employee’s retaliation claims against a Korean newspaper company under the Fair Labor Standards Act and New York Labor Law.
In addition to his litigation successes, Galen takes pride in providing thoughtful counseling to executive clients in negotiating severance and separation agreements, navigating issues with non-competition and other restrictive covenants in employment agreements, and resolving other employment disputes. He has represented executives in the banking and medical industries in navigating thorny employment disputes and separations from their employers.
Prior to joining PLG, Galen served for two years as a law clerk to Chief Judge Wilma A. Lewis at the United States District Court of the Virgin Islands on St. Croix. He received his J.D. magna cum laude from Case Western Reserve University School of Law in 2017, where he was a Frederick K. Cox International Law Center Fellow and senior editor of the Case Western Reserve University Law Review.
Before law school, Galen was an investigator with the New York City Civilian Complaint Review Board, where he conducted investigations into allegations of police misconduct. He also lived for five years in Managua, Nicaragua, where he worked for various nonprofit organizations including American Jewish World Service, World Learning, and Witness for Peace. He is a fluent Spanish speaker.