Ethan White

Ethan White is a cum laude graduate of Northwestern University School of Law with more than a decade of pure litigation experience. Ethan’s practice focuses on counseling clients and litigating commercial and employment-related matters, with near daily courtroom experience in both state and federal courts. In addition, he frequently appears before the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the Illinois Department of Humans Rights, the Illinois Department of Labor, and various mediation forums. Ethan has tried cases in DuPage County, Cook County, and the Northern District of Illinois and has litigated matters in nearly every other county in the Chicagoland area.

In addition to business and employment-related cases, Ethan has filed or defended lawsuits in a wide variety of other subject matters, including breach of contract, legal malpractice, defamation, commercial disputes, antitrust, product liability, and international arbitration, among others.

Ethan began his law career at one of the largest law firms in the world, helping clients navigate dealings with both federal and state governmental authorities during civil and criminal investigations, particularly the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the U.S. Department of Justice. From there, he was a partner in another trial-focused firm where he litigated hundreds of cases in a variety of areas of law, with a strong focus on employment-related matters.

Prior to attending law school, Ethan graduated from the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business and worked for nearly five years as a business and IT consultant. Ethan’s unique skill set, based on his education and wide-ranging previous experience, gives him the ability to quickly understand the language and dynamics of his clients’ operations, whether large or small.

Ethan is an Adjunct Professor at Northwestern School of Law, teaching in its prestigious trial practice program, where he has also coached its mock trial teams.

Northwestern University School of Law

J.D. (2008)

2005 - 2008

Honors: Cum Laude

University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

B.B.A. (2000) | Information Systems, Finance

1996 - 2000

Managing Partner

Emery Law, Ltd.

2018 - Current

Adjunct Professor - Trial Advocacy

Northwestern University School of Law

2013 - Current

Partner

LeonardMeyer LLP

2013 - 2018

Associate

Mayer Brown LLP

2010 - 2013

Judicial Law Clerk

United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan

2008 - 2009

State Bar of Illinois

Member

Current

Illinois State Bar Association

Member

Current

DuPage County Bar Association

Member

Current

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Q. Can a person be terminated for consensually dating a co-worker that is not a supervisor?

February 7, 2019

A: Simple answer is probably yes. Illinois is an "at will" employment jurisdiction, meaning your employer can fire you for any reason or no reason at all, so long as it is not discriminatory. But firing a person because the employer does not like the dating between employees is unlikely to be discriminatory. Based on what you've described above, the firing is likely legal. I hope that helps.

Q. Can my temp agency that i work for deny me direct deposit saying they dont do that.

January 4, 2019

A: In short, yes. So long as your employer is paying you all the compensation you've earned, there is not a legal requirement that it be paid in a particular way.

Q. I worked in Kansas and I currently live in Illinois I filed a complaint with the EEOC in Kansas and received a right to

November 19, 2018

A: You could likely file in the Federal district court of either state, but there is a strong possibility it would get transferred from Illinois to Kansas since that is where the events occurred and where many witnesses will reside. Good luck.