Peter F. Donati

Partner

2 North LaSalle Street
Suite 1300
Chicago, Illinois 60602
Tel
312.476.7590
Fax
312.346.8434
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Peter is a partner in the Litigation Practice Group and leads the Employment Service Group. He represents clients in a wide range of employment-related litigation, including discrimination claims, employment contract disputes, and claims involving restrictive covenants. He has appeared in state and federal courts at both the trial and appellate level throughout the country and represented clients before the EEOC, NLRB, and other government departments and agencies.

Additionally, Peter prepares employment policies, negotiates executive employment agreements, advises employers on union relationships, and conducts training for supervisors and managers. He also advises clients on employment-related matters in domestic and international transactions.  He has professional relationships and works frequently with employment lawyers in countries throughout Europe, the Middle East, South America, and Asia.

Some of his recent representations include:

  • Advising on the divestiture of a division with 25,000 employees in over 30 countries.
  • Obtaining dismissal of an age discrimination case in California on grounds of FAA preemption. This is one of only a handful of cases involving federal preemption of state employment laws and the first of its kind in the 9th Circuit.
  • Successfully enforcing various competitive restrictions against a former executive in emergency litigation in Texas state court.
  • Helping to lead a nationwide task force at a major pharmaceutical company that completely redrafted the company’s leave and absenteeism policies.

 

In addition to his listed education, Peter studied at St. Edmund Hall College, Oxford University.  He also clerked for the Hon. Frank J. Battisti in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio. In 2006, Peter was named by the Law Bulletin as one of Illinois’ “40 Attorneys Under 40 to Watch.” Peter is a member of the Board of Directors of the Human Resource Association of Greater Oakbrook, a local chapter of SHRM. Peter also has received an AV peer review rating from Martindale Hubbell, the highest rating conferred by that organization, and in 2008 was named an Illinois "Super Lawyer". Prior to joining Levenfeld Pearlstein, Peter was a partner with Winston & Strawn in Chicago.

Memberships

American Bar Association - Labor and Employment Law Section
International Bar Association - Employment and Industrial Relations Law Committee

Services
Related Information
Bar Admissions
  • Illinois, 1992
Court Admissions
  • U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois, Trial Bar
  • U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Wisconsin
  • U.S. Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit
Education
  • Cornell University School of Industrial and Labor Relations, B.S., 1989
  • University of Michigan Law School, J.D., 1992, cum laude