By Sheila Pursglove
Legal News
Attorney Patricia Nemeth recalls a case involving a doctor accused of sexual harassment by his subordinate.
“Both had bipolar disorder – it was challenging because I never knew where each of them might be mentally on any given day as we were litigating and attempting to resolve the case. In the end, we were able to reach a settlement,” says Nemeth, a partner at Nemeth Law on Detroit’s riverfront and a specialist in the labor and employment arena as an arbitrator, mediator, investigator, litigator, consultant, and negotiator
In another case, 10 then-current employees, all Arab-Americans, accused their employer of discrimination.
“This was not too long after 9/11,” Nemeth notes. “It’s very difficult to litigate against employees when they are still employed. By treating each employee individually and strategically filing motions to dismiss each person’s claims in a staggered manner, we were able to have all claims by all ten employees dismissed.”
Nemeth also was involved in two high profile cases defending the City of Detroit. In one, the highest-ranking attorney for the city sued for reverse race discrimination after she was dis-appointed from her corporate counsel position for referring to the 36th District Court as a “ghetto court.” The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan dismissed her lawsuit; the Sixth Circuit upheld the dismissal; and the United States Supreme Court denied cert.
In the other case, the city – along with the Mayor and former Chief of Communications Officer for the city – were sued for retaliation after an employee was fired for raising an issue under the city’s workplace bullying policy.
“There were many moving parts but through mediation over a number of days, the matter was finally resolved, saving the city substantial litigation costs,” Nemeth says.
Nemeth set her heart on a legal career from the age of 7, entranced with Katherine Hepburn’s lawyer role in the movie “Adam’s Rib.”
“I hadn’t realize a woman could be an attorney,” Nemeth recalls. “There were also a lot of great feminist messages in the movie which, even at that age, resonated with me.
“After that time, when someone asked me what year I was going to graduate, I gave them the year I was going to graduate from law school – not high school!”
Nemeth lived up to that promise when – after earning her undergrad degree in psychology and sociology, with honors, from the University of Michigan – she went on to earn her J.D. from Wayne Law School, where she was later honored with the 2009 Distinguished Alumni Award.
“I enjoyed that the school was in the City of Detroit, which has such a rich labor history, and that the Walter Reuther Library was near the law school,” she says. “It was fun just to hang out there and have access to volumes of information on a topic I was passionate about.”
Not content with a B.A., and J.D., Nemeth then earned a Master of Labor Law (L.L.M.), with honors, also from Wayne Law.
“I wanted to distinguish my expertise from other attorneys in the labor and employment area and this was a way to accomplish that,” she says.
Named to Best Lawyers, Super Lawyers, Michigan Super Lawyers, Chambers USA, Michigan Leaders in the Law, and dBusiness Detroit’s Top Lawyers, Nemeth was drawn to labor and employment law by her own family history.
“My grandfather was in the first sit-down strike in Flint in 1937,” she explains. “Growing up, I heard a lot of discussion about labor issues and even though my grandfather supported the union, he could also see the company’s arguments. Though there was disagreement, there was still respect.”
Nemeth serves as a certified mediator for all types of civil litigation matters, including employment; and also serves as an employment arbitrator and commercial arbitrator.
“Mediation allows the individuals involved in a dispute to creatively craft a resolution – and I enjoy guiding people toward that resolution,” she says. “With litigation, the process more often than not pushes the parties farther apart as they become more ingrained in their positions. It’s rewarding to be involved in a process that brings them closer together, restores a sense of order and brings peace to both parties with respect to the disputed issue.”
A Flint native who grew up in that city and in neighboring Durand, Nemeth currently makes her home in St. Clair Shores.
In her leisure time, she enjoys rollerblading, Pilates, sailing, biking, and cheering for the Red Wings; and on a recent weekend, even went ghost hunting.
She gives back to the community by serving on the board of the Mosaic Youth Theatre of Detroit, where her daughter Sophina Saggau was a member for three years. Sophina is now majoring in theatre at the University of Minnesota, a program connected with the famous Guthrie Theatre in Minneapolis.
“It’s amazing what singing and acting can do for young artists – confidence, discipline, organization, thoughtfulness, gratitude, becoming the best they can be,” Nemeth says. “Mosaic started my daughter down that path. It’s the least I can do to give back to the organization that provided my daughter with so much and continues to provide young people with a world of opportunities that open doors beyond the theatre.”
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