NEW YORK, Aug. 11, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight, a nationally recognized employment, civil rights and social justice law firm, today announced that seven of its attorneys have been selected for inclusion in Benchmark Litigation’s 2026 40 & Under Guide, which recognizes leading litigators age 40 and younger throughout the United States.
The Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight attorneys recognized are:
- Carolin Guentert, Co-Managing Partner of the New York Office
- Andrew Macurdy, New York Partner
- Leigh Anne St. Charles, Nashville Managing Partner
- David H. Tracey, Firm Managing Partner
- Jonathan Tepe, Nashville Partner
- Nicole Wiitala, Managing Partner for Legal Personnel
- Qiaojing Ella Zheng, Managing Partner of the Palo Alto and San Francisco Offices
The seven honorees include firmwide and office managing partners, practice group leaders and experienced litigators whose work spans employment discrimination and harassment, public interest and civil rights litigation, whistleblower advocacy, sexual violence and Title IX matters, ERISA litigation, executive representation and complex class actions.
“When we recruit lawyers, we aren’t simply looking for exceptional litigators, we’re looking for people who share our belief that the law can improve people’s lives,” said David Sanford, Chairman and Co-Founder of Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight. “Whether they are protecting employees from discrimination and harassment, representing whistleblowers who expose corporate wrongdoing, safeguarding workers’ retirement savings or pursuing justice through civil rights and public interest litigation, these seven attorneys exemplify that mission every day. Their recognition by Benchmark Litigation reflects both their individual accomplishments and the collaborative culture that has defined our firm since its founding.”
Published annually, the Benchmark Litigation 40 & Under Guide recognizes accomplished litigators who have distinguished themselves through significant casework, strong advocacy and the respect of clients and peers.
Recognized Attorneys
Qiaojing Ella Zheng is Managing Partner of Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight’s Palo Alto and San Francisco offices and Chair of the firm’s Asian American Litigation and Finance Practice Group. Her practice encompasses employment and civil rights litigation, whistleblower and qui tam matters, executive representation, wage-and-hour disputes and financial services work. Zheng has led significant matters involving Silicon Valley companies, including filing a recent lawsuit against xAI and SpaceX on behalf of a former xAI engineer who alleges retaliation after raising concerns regarding artificial intelligence safety and compliance. She secured a landmark $8.3 million arbitration award on behalf of a co-founder of a semiconductor company in a breach of contract dispute. She also recently secured final approval of a $4.9 million settlement for approximately 1,400 Weee! delivery drivers who alleged wage theft and OSHA violations.
Andrew Macurdy is a New York Partner and Co-Chair of the firm’s Trial Practice Group. A former federal prosecutor and experienced trial lawyer, Macurdy has tried more than a dozen cases before federal and state court juries as both a prosecutor and defense attorney. His recent work has included serving as co-lead trial counsel on the team representing Robert De Niro’s longtime assistant in her gender discrimination and retaliation claims against the actor and his production company, winning a $1.3 million verdict in the Southern District of New York. At Sanford Heisler, his practice focuses on whistleblower claims involving corporate misconduct, employment discrimination and other public interest litigation on behalf of individuals and classes.
Carolin Guentert is Co-Managing Partner of the firm’s New York office and Co-Chair of the firm’s Sexual Violence, Title IX, and Victims’ Rights Practice Group. She represents individuals and classes in employment discrimination and harassment matters as well as cases involving sexual violence or Title IX violations. Her current work includes representing a former Division I student-athlete who alleges that her college failed to protect her from an abusive coach, former student pilots who allege they experienced race discrimination in their cadet program, and a survivor of sex trafficking who is suing her trafficker and the hotels in which she was trafficked. In the past, Guentert represented three former Harvard University graduate students who alleged the institution ignored years of sexual harassment and retaliation by a professor, a group of female lawyers who alleged that their law firm subjected them to pregnancy discrimination, and a prospective federal government employee who experienced retaliation in the job application process. She has represented employees across the legal, financial services, technology, and consumer products industries, and regularly represents students against their schools or universities.
David H. Tracey is the Firm Managing Partner and Co-Chair of Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight’s Public Interest Litigation Practice Group. His practice focuses on discrimination and retaliation, wage-and-hour claims, civil rights and employee benefits litigation. Tracey represents individuals and classes in complex matters seeking both meaningful relief for clients and broader institutional change. He has helped recover over $100 million in litigation and negotiations. His class cases include a $61 million settlement in In Re GE ERISA Litigation; a $13.75 million ERISA settlement in Brown-Davis v. Walgreens; a $6.2 million discrimination settlement against Merck & Co.; a $4 million discrimination settlement against Forest Labs; and a $2.5+ million consumer protection settlement against Starion Energy. In individual cases, David has represented numerous executives and professionals in high-stakes litigation and negotiations. He has achieved multiple seven figure outcomes in these matters.
Jonathan Tepe is a Nashville Partner, Co-Chair of the firm’s Public Interest Litigation Practice Group and Chair of its Fellows and Junior Associates Program. His practice focuses on public interest, civil rights and employment litigation, as well as complex civil disputes. Tepe represents a disability rights organization and young people in proposed class litigation challenging the treatment of disabled youth in Tennessee’s juvenile justice system. He has also represents cities and counties in litigation against opioid manufacturers, distributors, pharmacies, and pharmacy benefit managers and helped obtain a settlement for more than 700 autoworkers in an age discrimination action against Volkswagen.
Leigh Anne St. Charles is Managing Partner of Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight’s Nashville office, Firmwide Co-Head of Litigation and Co-Chair of both the Discrimination and Harassment Practice Group and the Financial Mismanagement and ERISA Litigation Practice Group. She represents individuals and classes in discrimination and retaliation cases and workers alleging breaches of fiduciary duty and mismanagement of their employer-sponsored retirement plans. St. Charles helped secure a $69 million settlement on behalf of participants in UnitedHealth Group’s 401(k) plan, one of the largest ERISA settlements involving fiduciary-breach claims against a single plan.
Nicole Wiitala is Managing Partner for Legal Personnel at Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight. Her practice focuses on discrimination, harassment, and sexual violence matters on behalf of individuals and classes. Nicole litigated a landmark Title IX class action against Dartmouth College that culminated in a $14 million Court-approved settlement (in addition to programmatic relief) for all female students in the class. She also litigated nationwide gender discrimination class actions against Merck and Co., Inc. and Forest Pharmaceuticals, Inc., as well as a wage and hour class action against Alaska Communications Systems and in which she obtained class certification for misclassified employees. Nicole has also represented attorneys, executives and other professionals in individual discrimination, retaliation and whistleblower retaliation matters.
The recognition of seven Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight attorneys reflects the depth of the firm’s next generation of leadership. Several of the honorees hold significant firm management and practice leadership positions in addition to maintaining active litigation practices, underscoring their roles in shaping both the firm’s current work and its future.
The 2026 selections continue Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight’s strong history of recognition by Benchmark Litigation. In March 2026, the firm was named Labor & Employment Firm of the Year for the second consecutive year, after receiving the same honor in 2025. The firm has now received Benchmark Litigation’s Labor & Employment Firm of the Year recognition three times in six years. Benchmark Litigation has also repeatedly recognized Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight attorneys through its Litigation Star, Future Star, and 40 & Under rankings, reflecting the firm’s sustained leadership in plaintiff-side employment, civil rights and public interest litigation.
About Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight
Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight is a public interest and civil rights law firm with offices in New York, Washington, DC, San Francisco, Palo Alto, Nashville, and San Diego. The firm focuses on executive representation, wrongful termination, employment discrimination, sexual harassment, retaliation, wage theft and overtime violations, whistleblower and qui tam, sexual violence, Title IX violations and victims’ rights, financial mismanagement and ERISA litigation, and Asian American litigation and finance matters. Our lawyers have recovered over $5 billion for our clients through many verdicts and settlements.
In 2024, Forbes named Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight Chairman and Co-Founder David Sanford to its inaugural list of America’s Top 200 Lawyers. The National Law Journal has selected Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight as Civil Rights Firm of the Year, and it has recognized the firm as both Employment Rights Firm of the Year and Human Rights Firm of the Year. Benchmark Litigation has named the firm Labor & Employment Firm of the Year, and Law360 has recognized the firm as Employment Practice Group of the Year.
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If you have potential legal claims and are seeking counsel, please call 646-768-7070 or email david.sanford@sanfordheisler.com. Attorneys at Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight would like to have the opportunity to help you.
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