Brett P. Owens

Brett Owens is an attorney in the Tampa office. He devotes his practice to all aspects of labor and employment law. Brett has litigated employment disputes throughout state and federal courts in Florida, including, individual claims of discrimination, harassment, and retaliation, trade secret and restrictive covenant disputes, and class and collective actions under the Fair Credit Reporting Act and Fair Labor Standards Act.

When employers are faced with litigation, Brett strategically relies upon the discovery process to position disputes for an early resolution. When necessary, Brett has assisted with trying several cases to verdict in state court and has served as lead counsel before administrative agencies. Some of Brett’s favorite successes on behalf of clients include:

• The dismissal of three lawsuits with prejudice against a gig economy company in the early stages of litigation;
• The dismissal of a multicount complaint in the Middle District of Florida via dispositive motion practice;
• Dismissal with prejudice of dispute arising out of multiple collective actions under the Fair Labor Standards Act;
• Multiple dismissals of administrative charges of discrimination through no cause determinations.

Brett also assists clients with navigating the myriad of federal and state laws governing the employer-employee relationship to ensure compliance and reduce the risk of litigation. Brett has experience assisting employers with due diligence during mergers and acquisitions and also provides advice to employers during post-acquisition integration. Brett also works with gig economy companies to prepare independent contractor agreements and prepares nondisclosure, arbitration, noncompetition, and severance agreements for employers.

Brett was included in the Florida Super Lawyers – Rising Stars list in 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021. Brett is a member of the Mentor Network at the Tampa Bay Wave, a community-driven nonprofit organization that supports the success of Tampa Bay’s tech entrepreneurs and the innovative businesses they are building.

Brett earned his JD, cum laude, from the University of Florida Frederic G. Levin College of Law in 2014. Brett also completed his MS in Management in 2011 and his MBA in 2014 from the University of Florida, Hough Graduate School of Business and graduated summa cum laude, with a B.S. in Advertising from the University of Florida in 2010.

While in law school, Brett was a Judicial Intern for the Honorable James S. Moody in the United States District Court, Middle District of Florida. Additionally, Brett served as President of the Association of Law and Business, Vice President of the Levin College of Law Honor Committee, and Secretary of Florida Blue Key.