Profile
Dr. Deborah Foster is a labor economist and an expert in applying data analysis to labor and employment issues in legal disputes. She has provided deposition testimony and expert reports in both state and federal court, as well as mediation, arbitration, and trial support. Her practice includes advising clients on matters relating to race and ethnicity, gender, and age discrimination claims as well as a wide range of wage and hour issues including misclassification, off-the-clock work, time-shaving, meal and rest break violations, rounding, and regular rate calculations.
In class action matters—including nationwide FLSA, state-specific, and hybrid actions—Dr. Foster frequently analyzes large data from multiple sources to address issues related to class certification and to quantify claims. She performs variation studies, examines the typicality of the named plaintiff(s), and calculates exposure under alternative scenarios and legal theories. Additionally, Dr. Foster performs critiques of opposing experts’ analyses and aids counsel in understanding the underlying assumptions and their impact on the results. She has worked on these cases in both an expert capacity where she has provided testimony and declarations and in a consulting role where she has helped attorneys understand the data and its implications on the litigation.
Dr. Foster also provides individualized analyses of job market opportunities, mitigation efforts, and damages related to discrimination and wrongful termination claims. She has been designated as an expert and provided deposition testimony in these matters.
In addition to her labor practice, Dr. Foster has experience in commercial litigation and intellectual property where she has assisted clients with matters related to bankruptcy, fraud, breach of contract, and patent infringement.
PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS
- American Bar Association
- Section of Litigation
- Labor & Employment Section
- American Economics Association
- Association of Public Policy Analysis and Management
- Society for Human Resource Management
- Women's Bar Association of the District of Columbia
PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE
- Economist, Welch Consulting
- Michigan State University, Instructor and Researcher
- Consultant, Navigant Consulting
Case Highlights
Case Highlights
Insights & News
Publications
Edgeworth Insights
Speaking Engagements
News
California
California
Wage and hour issues unique to California include daily overtime/double time/seventh day premiums, meal period and rest break requirements, and PAGA claims. Dr. Foster specializes in California’s unique wage and hour laws and has extensive experience analyzing time and pay data to address those issues. She has assisted clients in evaluating such claims, analyzing variation to address suitability of class treatment, and valuing the related damages and penalties. She has submitted declarations and provided deposition testimony on these issues in the Superior Court of California.
Dr. Foster's analysis has been cited by Judges in their court decisions in several wage and hours cases in which the Court has found in favor of the defendant, in part, relying upon Dr. Foster's careful analysis of the data as effective evidence to evaluate the wage and hour class action claims. Recent decisions include denying class certification related to meal periods and unpaid work time in Superior Court of California, the upholding of summary judgement in a rounding case in California Court of Appeal, and awarding summary judgement in a rounding case in California court.
Industries
Industries
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Practice Areas
Education
Dr. Foster earned her PhD in economics and her MA in economics from Michigan State University and her BS in business and economics from Trinity University.