PHOTO COURTESY OF KEITH BRODIE
by Cynthia Price
Legal News
Induction into the prestigious College of Labor and Employment Lawyers, an association honoring leading lawyers nationally for their achievement, advancement and excellence, has come at a time when Keith Brodie’s practice is booming.
And for that matter, Brodie’s colleagues at the Grand Rapids office who are in Barnes and Thornburg’s Labor and Employment Law Department are experiencing the same steady growth.
Of course, Barnes and Thornburg, is a large national law firm; in 2017, it ranked 90th on The American Lawyer’s Am Law 200. Its strong Michigan presence is centered in Grand Rapids, its sole location in the state, operating under Managing Partner Robert Stead. There and in its other 13 offices, including those in Washington DC, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, and several in Indiana, B & T employs more than 600 attorneys.
“Firmwide we have a strong traditional labor practice which spans a number of states and all across the country,” Brodie says. “This has been particularly true in our Michigan office.”
Indeed, Barnes and Thornburg’s labor and employment group has been ranked among the nation’s top 18 labor and employment practices, and has frequently been on the “Hot List” of employment firms nationwide.
But along with Brodie, his colleagues Amy Zdravecky and Robert Sikkel, among others, are continuing to strengthen the Grand Rapids office’s reputation, resulting in a thriving practice. Both Zdravecky and Sikkel are also fellows of the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers.
Zdravecky, who also works out of the Chicago office, is an experienced attorney who joined B & T earlier in 2018. “She currently is the chair of the ABA [American Bar Association] committee on the development of law. She’s actually the co-editor of a treatise on that topic,” says Brodie. “It’s been great to have someone like Amy on our team.”
The well-respected Bob Sikkel, who was listed as “Lawyer of the Year” in 2015 and has been on the Best Lawyers list for over 15 years, served as Brodie’s mentor. He served in that role along with Michael Snapper, another B&T labor and employment lawyer who has recently retired.
“I consider myself very fortunate that I got to learn my practice under people like Bob Sikkel and Mike Snapper. They’ve both been doing this for 35 plus years, and I could say that most of my success has come because of those two gentlemen,” Brodie comments.
“I just think it’s we live in a different culture, and time spent mentoring people is not as valued as it was. So I’m super fortunate to have had people who were willing to help me make my way. I couldn’t get to the point of being a fellow in an organization like the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers without a lot of people pouring into me.”
Brodie also counts among his many career benefactors attorney Dennis DeVaney (now Of Counsel at Varnum), a former National Labor Relations Board member.
“I litigated a case up to the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals, and Dennis took an interest in that case. He and I presented on NLRB issues a couple of times, and he was kind enough to say that he wanted to nominate me for the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers,” Brodie explains.
It was important to his nomination that Brodie, who works on the management side on such matters as collective bargaining negotiations, administration of existing collective bargaining agreements, responding to union organizing, and defending against unfair labor practice charges, have references among adversaries and neutrals. Included in Brodie’s references were adversaries in both NLRB proceedings and the union, and a neutral commissioner in the government’s Federal Conciliation and Management Services.
Brodie, who has also been recognized by Chambers USA and named a Best Lawyer in America in Labor Law – Management, was inspired to pursue his career path after a clerkship with Judge Leopold Borrello of the 10th Judicial Circuit in Saginaw County, who was formerly in labor and employment law.
A self-described “Army brat,” Brodie lived all over in his youth, including in Hawaii and Korea, finally settling down to high school at Lutheran North in Macomb. From there he attended Alma College, graduating summa cum laude, and University of Detroit Mercy Law, magna cum laude.
After his clerkship with Judge Borrello and before joining Barnes and Thornburg, Brodie was with Dickinson and Wright’s Grand Rapids office.
“I guess I consider myself a Michigander now. I’ve been in West Michigan since 1996,” he says.
Brodie and wife Robyn have two daughters, aged 13 and 15. “My family is really important to me,” he says. “Both my daughters definitely got a musical bent. I did not, but my wife was actually a professional musician. I think it’s important to be very involved in my daughters’ lives, especially at the ages they are.”
That still leaves Brodie with time to work hard at his profession. He conducts employer trainings and speaks and writes widely on many aspects of the labor and employment field, including writing the blog at www.btlaborrelations.com and serving as a contributing editor for a variety of American Bar Association guidebooks and yearly supplements. But he also gives a lot of thought to his role as an attorney.
“The College of Labor and Employment Lawyers is dedicated to promoting being a vigorous advocate for your clients, but also respecting and gaining the respect of your opposition and how you deal with your opposition. Honestly, I often hang out with union reps, and I actually like that side of my practice a lot.
“It’s one of the things that I find really rewarding, having respect for everybody that you deal with, and having the respect of those you litigate against.”
That is just one of the many ways that Brodie is happy with his career.
“I am so lucky to work with Amy, Bob, so many others here. We have a very collaborative relationship and I think that makes for better lawyers, and better representation for our clients. I?count myself very fortunate to work with a team of lawyers who are also good teammates,” he says.
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