Practice Expertise

  • Labor & Employment
  • Litigation
  • White Collar & Investigations
  • Government, Regulatory & Administrative Law

Areas of Practice

  • Government, Regulatory & Administrative Law
  • Labor & Employment
  • Litigation
  • White Collar & Investigations

Profile

Charles Whitman is a member of the Litigation, Labor & Employment, and White Collar & Investigations practice groups in Buchalter’s San Diego office. He focuses his practice on representing employers and business in workplace law matters, business disputes, and government investigations.

Mr. Whitman represents employers in all aspects of state and federal employment litigation, including wage and hour class and representative actions, Private Attorneys General Act (“PAGA”) litigation, single plaintiff wage and hour disputes, as well as federal and state discrimination, hostile work environment, bullying, sexual harassment wrongful termination, and retaliation cases. Mr. Whitman also advises employers on protecting proprietary trade secrets, drafting comprehensive employee handbooks, personnel policies, navigating the complicated array of state and federal leave laws, and employment-related agreements to ensure compliance with California and federal law.

Additionally, he conducts workplace investigations and management training on a wide array of employment law matters. Further, Mr. Whitman defends companies facing government enforcement actions, administrative inquiries from state and federal agencies, and white-collar criminal proceedings. He also has previous experience litigating securities fraud class actions and other complex business litigation.

Prior to joining Buchalter, Mr. Whitman worked for a national employment law firm and was a highly decorated judge advocate in the U.S. Marine Corps. In 2018, Mr. Whitman was awarded The Commandant’s Award for Excellence in Legal Assistance, as the top legal assistance attorney in the U.S. Marine Corps. He was appointed as a Special Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Arizona and the Southern District of California, during which time he assisted federal law enforcement agencies during investigations, prosecuted cases occurring on Marine Corps property, prosecuted border crime cases, and tried cases in federal district court.

As a trial defense counsel in the U.S. Marine Corps, Mr. Whitman, represented numerous Marines at courts-martial and administrative discharge trials. Between his time as a Special Assistant U.S. Attorney and defense counsel, Mr. Whitman tried dozens administrative, bench, and jury trials to verdict—the vast majority of which he was the lead trial defense counsel. Most of Mr. Whitman’s cases involved serious felony level offenses. Mr. Whitman received the Navy Commendation Medal while serving in the U.S. Marine Corps.

In 2023, Mr. Whitman was recognized as a “Rising Star” in San Diego by Super Lawyers Magazine.

Bar Admissions

  • California
  • District of Columbia

Education

  • California Western School of Law
  • Westmont College

Areas of Practice

  • Government, Regulatory & Administrative Law
  • Labor & Employment
  • Litigation
  • White Collar & Investigations

Professional Career



Articles

  • California’s AB 51, Which Sought to Ban Mandatory Arbitration Agreements, Is Preempted by the Federal Arbitration Act
  • Naranjo v. Spectrum Security Services, Inc.: The California Supreme Court Determines that Meal and Rest Premiums are Wages and Employers Must Make Sure Wage Statements and Final Pay Accurately Reflect all Due and Owing Meal and Rest Period Premiums
  • Letter to General Counsel for Excelsior Mare, Inc.
  • Palestine’s Statehood and Ability to Litigate in the International Court of Justice

Meet our Firms and Professionals

WSG’s member firms include legal, investment banking and accounting experts across industries and on a global scale. We invite you to meet our member firms and professionals.