Christine Burns

CHRISTINE BURNS / Managing Partner

christine@burnsbarton.com
Direct Line: 602-770-6342
2201 E. Camelback Road Suite 360
Phoenix, AZ 85016

Professional Experience

Christine Burns is the managing partner of BurnsBarton PLC, a firm she started with her partners after practicing for over sixteen years as an associate and partner at Quarles & Brady LLP. Christine’s practice includes a broad spectrum of litigation, specifically focusing on labor and employment.  She represents employers in all employment areas, with a special emphasis on providing front-end employment solutions, and on defending employers from civil rights, wrongful discharge, and class action litigation.  Christine has tried a wide variety of cases before state and federal courts and juries.  Christine also has significant appellate court experience.  Her experience includes:

• Counseling employers in all variety of employment and management issues, including potential discipline, employment policies, internal and external investigations, and dispute resolution.
• Representing of employers before administrative agencies and state and federal courts (including several jury trials) regarding a wide variety of employment matters, including hiring, termination, discrimination, civil rights, breach of employment contract (discharge, discipline, and contract interpretation), employment related torts (defamation, intentional infliction of emotional distress), harassment, and wage and hour disputes.
• Drafting and enforcing restrictive covenants, including non-competition, non-solicitation, and confidentiality agreements in the employment setting.
• Drafting comprehensive employment agreements, policies and handbooks for employers.
• Defense of product manufacturers in federal and state courts, including several jury trials.
• Drafting federal and state appellate court briefs.
• Defending class action litigation in the employment and commercial litigation contexts, and successfully obtaining decertification and denial of conditional class certification.

Education and Honors

• University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law (J.D., magna cum laude, 1996)
• Order of the Coif.  Arizona Journal of International and Comparative Law, Research and Development Editor.  Recipient, American Jurisprudence Awards.  Award of Excellence in Clinical Practice.  Assistant to Prof. Thomas A. Mauet, University of Arizona College of Law.
• Queen’s University, Ontario, Canada (B.A., 1993)

Bar Admissions

Arizona, 1996

Court Admissions

U.S. Supreme Court

U.S. Court of Appeals, 4^th Circuit

U.S. Court of Appeals, 9^th Circuit

U.S. District Court, Districts of Arizona, Nevada, and Wisconsin

Professional and Civic Activities

• • American Bar Association (Member).

• • State Bar of Arizona (Member).

• • Arizona Bar Association (Member, Litigation and Labor & Employment Law Sections).

• • Maricopa County Bar Association (Member).

• • Board of Visitors, University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law (Board member, 2010-present).

• • Board of Directors, Scottsdale Soccer (Board member 2011-present).

• • Volunteer Lawyer’s Program.

• • All Saint’s Episcopal Church and Day School (Member).