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J. Bryan Wood

ATTORNEY

Bryan Wood joined Kaplan Law Firm in March 2024 to launch its Chicago office, bringing nearly 25 years of experience practicing employment law.


Bryan’s experience includes representing small businesses, Fortune 500 companies and officers, executives, and employees of all types. He has represented predominantly employees for the majority of his career, helping them successfully transition jobs and recover for their losses without ever filing legal claims. But he’s not afraid of a good fight – and has also helped employees win multi-million-dollar settlements, verdicts, and awards after litigating vigorously on their behalf.


His experience, legal ability and work ethic have earned him a Martindale-Hubbel AV Preeminent® rating and a place on lists of notable attorneys, including “Super Lawyers,” the nation’s Premier Employment Lawyers and America’s Top 100 High Stakes Litigators®.


Bryan is committed to making sure employers treat employees legally and fairly. To that end, he counsels and litigates for employees ranging from blue-collar workers to the C-Suite regarding all aspects of the employment relationship. He also helps businesses and not-for-profits navigate their ever-growing compliance obligations through counseling, handbook reviews, and investigations, offering insight from the perspective of the attorney who may sue them for violations.

J. Bryan Wood

ATTORNEY

Bryan Wood joined Kaplan Law Firm in March 2024 to launch its Chicago office, bringing nearly 25 years of experience practicing employment law.


Bryan’s experience includes representing small businesses, Fortune 500 companies and officers, executives, and employees of all types. He has represented predominantly employees for the majority of his career, helping them successfully transition jobs and recover for their losses without ever filing legal claims. But he’s not afraid of a good fight – and has also helped employees win multi-million-dollar settlements, verdicts, and awards after litigating vigorously on their behalf.


His experience, legal ability and work ethic have earned him a Martindale-Hubbel AV Preeminent® rating and a place on lists of notable attorneys, including “Super Lawyers,” the nation’s Premier Employment Lawyers and America’s Top 100 High Stakes Litigators®.


Bryan is committed to making sure employers treat employees legally and fairly. To that end, he counsels and litigates for employees ranging from blue-collar workers to the C-Suite regarding all aspects of the employment relationship. He also helps businesses and not-for-profits navigate their ever-growing compliance obligations through counseling, handbook reviews, and investigations, offering insight from the perspective of the attorney who may sue them for violations.

Bryan’s employment law roots run deep. He quit his first grocery store job after being paid a sub-minimum wage but being required to (illegally) operate a meat grinder as a minor. He drafted the employee handbook at his college grocery store job – working his way up from stocker to shift supervisor.


After law school, good lawyers at Seyfarth Shaw convinced Bryan he could help protect employees’ civil rights best as the employer’s lawyer. Eager to change things faster, Bryan left Seyfarth Shaw for Stowell & Friedman, Ltd. – an employment discrimination class action firm – and quickly found himself face-to-face with General Counsel at major corporations discussing systemic changes beneficial to employees and those companies’ bottom lines. He saw how quickly executives’ careers could be ruined because they opposed illegal activities – and learned how to counsel executives to protect their careers without ignoring the workplace wrongs they observed.


Hoping for new experiences, Bryan decided to start his own firm and develop a practice where he could have his cake and eat it, too – advising companies on how to uphold the law and avoid risk through smart business decisions while helping employees protect their careers and being free from discrimination and retaliation. He’s excited to bring that practice and perspective to The Kaplan Law Firm, PLLC as it grows.

Memberships, Awards, & Organizations

  • Super Lawyers – Plaintiff’s Employment (2016 to present)
  • National Employment Lawyers Association (2005 – present)
  • NELA-Illinois (2006 – present; Board Member 2008-Present; Secretary 2014-2019; Treasurer 2020-2023)
  • Illinois State Bar Association (2007 – present)
  • Chicago Bar Association (2004 – present, Co-Chair, Labor & Employment Committee 2011-2013)
  • Federal Bar Association (2013 – present)
  • Fellow, American Bar Association Foundation (2018-present)

Admissions

  • State Bar of Illinois (1999)
  • U.S. Court of Appeals Seventh Circuit (2014)
  • U.S. Court of Appeals Sixth Circuit (2001)
  • U.S. District Courts N.D. Ill. (1999)
  • U.S. District Courts C.D. Ill. (2002)
  • U.S. District Courts S.D. Ill. (2000)

Presentations & Publications

  • Jan. 2024 – Federal Bar Association Chicago Chapter Labor & Employment Seminar – The Impact of AI on Employment Law (Speaker)
  • Dec. 2021 – NELA-IL Lunch & Learn – Maximizing Economic Damages – Calculating Tax Gross-Up Awards
  • Feb. 2020 – Annual Seventh Circuit Employment Law Conference – Civility Now! Being Civil and Effective – What Ethics Can Teach Us About Civility (Speaker)
  • May. 2019 – NELA-IL Spring Employment Law Seminar (Faculty Planner)
  • Feb. 2018 – NELA-IL Lunch & Learn – Ethical Issues for Solos and Small Firms
  • Dec. 2017 – CBA Labor & Employment Committee – Cook County & Chicago Paid Leave Ordinances (Speaker)
  • Feb. 2017 – Annual NELA Seventh Circuit Conference – Written Advocacy (Speaker)
  • Dec. 2015 – CBA Labor & Employment Committee – FRCP Amendments and Their Impact in Labor & Employment Law – Chicago (Speaker)
  • Oct. 2015 – Impact Fund’s Class Action Training Institute (Faculty)
  • Oct. 2015 – Northwestern Law School and Chicago Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law Symposium – Over Coming Our Unconscious Implicit Bias in Policing, Employment & Education (Speaker)
  • Feb. 2015 – NELA Seventh Circuit Conference -Valuing Employment Cases: Plaintiff and Defense Perspectives – (Co-Author)
  • May 2014 – CBA Labor & Employment Committee – Employment Contracts: The Ones You Want and The Ones You Don’t (Moderator)
  • Aug. 2014 – FMLA Liability for Individuals The “Public” Debate-Illinois Employee Advocate, Vol. 3, No. 3 (Author)
  • Dec. 2014 – CBA Labor & Employment Seminar – E-Discovery Issues in Employment Litigation: One Lawyer’s Thoughts on Emerging Issues (Speaker)
  • Nov. 2013 – CBA Labor & Employment Seminar – Employment Law Update-2013 (Moderator)
  • May 2013 – CBA Labor & Employment Seminar – Legal Issues and Pitfalls in Hiring (Moderator)
  • Feb. 2013 – NELA Seventh Circuit Conference – Technology & The Law: The Ever-Evolving Ethical Landscape (Moderator)
  • Nov. 2012 – CBA Labor & Employment Seminar – A Year in a Review (Moderator)
  • Oct. 2012 – Bias 2.0 What Every Employee Advocate Should Know-National Employment Lawyers Association Seminar (Seminar Faculty Committee & Speaker)
  • June 2012 – NELA-IL Lunch & Learn – IHRC Procedural Irregularities Exhausting Administrative Remedies and Pleading Exhaustion for Charges Filed with The EEOC In Light of The 2008 And 2011 IHRA Amendments- (Speaker)
  • Mar. 2012 – Impact Fund Annual Class Action Conference – Disparate Impact After Dukes – Post-Wal-Mart Disparate Impact Challenges to Delegated Discretion or Subjective Decision-Making: Describing The “Practice” That Causes the Disparities (Speaker & Author)

Education

University of Virginia School of Law, J.D. 1999


University of Virginia, B.A. 1996 (American Government)

Memberships, Awards, & Organizations

  • Super Lawyers – Plaintiff’s Employment (2016 to present)
  • National Employment Lawyers Association (2005 – present)
  • NELA-Illinois (2006 – present; Board Member 2008-Present; Secretary 2014-2019; Treasurer 2020-2023)
  • Illinois State Bar Association (2007 – present)
  • Chicago Bar Association (2004 – present, Co-Chair, Labor & Employment Committee 2011-2013)
  • Federal Bar Association (2013 – present)
  • Fellow, American Bar Association Foundation (2018-present)

Admissions

  • State Bar of Illinois (1999)
  • U.S. Court of Appeals Seventh Circuit (2014)
  • U.S. Court of Appeals Sixth Circuit (2001)
  • U.S. District Courts N.D. Ill. (1999)
  • U.S. District Courts C.D. Ill. (2002)
  • U.S. District Courts S.D. Ill. (2000)

Presentations & Publications

  • Jan. 2024 – Federal Bar Association Chicago Chapter Labor & Employment Seminar – The Impact of AI on Employment Law (Speaker)
  • Dec. 2021 – NELA-IL Lunch & Learn – Maximizing Economic Damages – Calculating Tax Gross-Up Awards
  • Feb. 2020 – Annual Seventh Circuit Employment Law Conference – Civility Now! Being Civil and Effective – What Ethics Can Teach Us About Civility (Speaker)
  • May. 2019 – NELA-IL Spring Employment Law Seminar (Faculty Planner)
  • Feb. 2018 – NELA-IL Lunch & Learn – Ethical Issues for Solos and Small Firms
  • Dec. 2017 – CBA Labor & Employment Committee – Cook County & Chicago Paid Leave Ordinances (Speaker)
  • Feb. 2017 – Annual NELA Seventh Circuit Conference – Written Advocacy (Speaker)
  • Dec. 2015 – CBA Labor & Employment Committee – FRCP Amendments and Their Impact in Labor & Employment Law – Chicago (Speaker)
  • Oct. 2015 – Impact Fund’s Class Action Training Institute (Faculty)
  • Oct. 2015 – Northwestern Law School and Chicago Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law Symposium – Over Coming Our Unconscious Implicit Bias in Policing, Employment & Education (Speaker)
  • Feb. 2015 – NELA Seventh Circuit Conference -Valuing Employment Cases: Plaintiff and Defense Perspectives – (Co-Author)
  • May 2014 – CBA Labor & Employment Committee – Employment Contracts: The Ones You Want and The Ones You Don’t (Moderator)
  • Aug. 2014 – FMLA Liability for Individuals The “Public” Debate-Illinois Employee Advocate, Vol. 3, No. 3 (Author)
  • Dec. 2014 – CBA Labor & Employment Seminar – E-Discovery Issues in Employment Litigation: One Lawyer’s Thoughts on Emerging Issues (Speaker)
  • Nov. 2013 – CBA Labor & Employment Seminar – Employment Law Update-2013 (Moderator)
  • May 2013 – CBA Labor & Employment Seminar – Legal Issues and Pitfalls in Hiring (Moderator)
  • Feb. 2013 – NELA Seventh Circuit Conference – Technology & The Law: The Ever-Evolving Ethical Landscape (Moderator)
  • Nov. 2012 – CBA Labor & Employment Seminar – A Year in a Review (Moderator)
  • Oct. 2012 – Bias 2.0 What Every Employee Advocate Should Know-National Employment Lawyers Association Seminar (Seminar Faculty Committee & Speaker)
  • June 2012 – NELA-IL Lunch & Learn – IHRC Procedural Irregularities Exhausting Administrative Remedies and Pleading Exhaustion for Charges Filed with The EEOC In Light of The 2008 And 2011 IHRA Amendments- (Speaker)
  • Mar. 2012 – Impact Fund Annual Class Action Conference – Disparate Impact After Dukes – Post-Wal-Mart Disparate Impact Challenges to Delegated Discretion or Subjective Decision-Making: Describing The “Practice” That Causes the Disparities (Speaker & Author)

Education

University of Virginia School of Law, J.D. 1999


University of Virginia, B.A. 1996 (American Government)

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