Craig Schloss

Member

Craig focuses his practice on employment and trade secret litigation. He has extensive experience litigating wrongful termination cases, employee unfair competition/trade secrets disputes, wage and hour class actions, and discrimination and sexual harassment lawsuits. He also appears before the National Labor Relations Board regarding union representation matters on behalf of management.

Prior to joining the firm, Craig was a principal in a national firm, led the Employment and Labor Group for the San Diego office of a large, international general practice firm, and served as the managing partner of that office during its early stages of rapid growth.

Craig earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Arizona. Craig earned his law degree from the University of Illinois College of Law, where he participated in a joint degree program with the University of Illinois’s Institute of Labor and Industrial Relations.

Experience

News

Best Lawyers Honors More Than 200 Cozen O'Connor Attorneys in its Best Lawyers in America 2025 Edition

August 15, 2024

Best Lawyers selected 242 Cozen O’Connor lawyers from 24 of the firm’s U.S. offices for inclusion in the 2025 edition of The Best Lawyers in America and Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in America.

Best Lawyers Honors More Than 200 Cozen O'Connor Attorneys to its Best Lawyers in America 2024 Edition

August 17, 2023

Best Lawyers selected 232 Cozen O’Connor lawyers from 24 of the firm’s U.S. offices for inclusion in the 2024 edition of The Best Lawyers in America.

More Than 200 Cozen O’Connor Attorneys Named Best Lawyers and Ones to Watch

August 22, 2022

210 Cozen O’Connor lawyers from 24 of the firm’s nationwide offices for inclusion in the 2023 edition of The Best Lawyers in America.

More Than 205 Cozen O’Connor Attorneys Named Best Lawyers and Ones to Watch By The Best Lawyers In America

August 19, 2021

Best Lawyers selected 210 Cozen O’Connor lawyers from 23 of the firm’s nationwide offices for inclusion in the 2022 edition of The Best Lawyers in America.

200 Cozen O’Connor Attorneys Named Best Lawyers and Ones to Watch By The Best Lawyers In America

August 20, 2020

Best Lawyers selected 200 Cozen O’Connor lawyers from 23 of the firm’s nationwide offices for inclusion in the 2021 edition of The Best Lawyers in America© (Copyright 2020 by Woodward/White, Inc., of Aiken, SC).

Cozen O’Connor Attorneys Named to 2020 San Diego Super Lawyers List

March 30, 2020

Super Lawyers has named two attorneys at Cozen O’Connor to its 2020 list of top practitioners in San Diego.

Publications

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals Holds Franchisor Not Liable as a Joint Employer of its Franchisee's Employees [Alert]

October 22, 2019

The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals decided by majority opinion by Circuit Judge Susan Graber, with a partial dissent filed by Chief Circuit Judge Sidney Thomas, Salazar v. McDonald's Corp. No. 17- 15673 (9th Cir. 2019), holding franchisor McDonald’s was not a joint employer with its franchisee, because McDonald’s did not retain control of day-to-day aspects of work at the franchisee’s restaurants.

California Is Cleaning Up [Alert]

September 18, 2018

Craig Schloss, Jason Barsanti, Helen McFarland, and Aimee Axelrod Parker discuss California’s Property Service Workers Protection Act which applies to “any person or entity that employs at least one employee and one or more covered workers and that enters into contracts, subcontracts, or franchise arrangements to provide janitorial services.”

Education

  • University of Illinois College of Law, J.D., 1980
  • University of Arizona, B.A., 1977

Awards & Honors

Litigation Counsel of America – Trial Lawyer Honorary Society

San Diego Daily Transcript,  Top Labor and Employment Attorneys in San Diego

David K. Kroll Leadership Award, for his exemplary service, dedication, and commitment to the Lawrence Family Jewish Community Center, 2008

Super Lawyers, 2007 – Present

Best Lawyers in America 2012-2025

AV Preeminent, Martindale Hubbell, 2016 - Present

California Top Rated Lawyer, Martindale Hubbell, 2022

  • California
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
  • U.S. District Court -- Central District of California
  • U.S. District Court -- Northern District of California
  • U.S. District Court -- Southern District of California

Member of the Past Presidents Advisory Board, Member of the Board of Directors (1991-2019), Executive Committee, and Chair of the Personnel Committee (2016); Lawrence Family Jewish Community Center

Board of Directors (2000-2015), Former Chair of the Board (2015); San Diego Symphony