John C. Burgin, Jr.

Jack Burgin has a diverse legal practice, primarily advising and defending employers on a variety of labor and employee benefit related topics and on representing and advising government contractors about costs and labor issues. Jack's advice and litigation practice focuses on

• Representing and advising employers on all types of employment discrimination issues, including questions relating to the Americans with Disabilities Act.
• Representing and advising plan administrators and plan sponsors on creating and complying with welfare benefit plans governed by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 ("ERISA").
• Representing and advising employers on a variety of retaliation claims, including claims filed with the United States Department of Labor pursuant to 29 C.F.R. Part 24, and under the False Claims Act.
• Representing and advising a variety of employers on workforce restructuring issues, including voluntary and involuntary reductions in force, defending litigation arising from reduction in force decisions, and on compliance with Office of Federal Contract Compliance Program requirements.
• Representing and advising government contractors on Davis Bacon Act and Service Contract Act compliance.

Before joining Kramer Rayson, Jack graduated with honors from The University of Tennessee College of Law (1989), and then clerked for the Honorable Gary R. Wade, then Judge of the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals.

From 2001 to 2011 and 2017 to the present, Jack served as the president and then chair of the Board of Directors for Appalachian Bear Rescue, an organization devoted to helping injured and orphaned black bear cubs return to the wild.  He also served two terms on the Tennessee Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization, serving as Chair of the Commission in 2011. He is an avid amateur photographer and enjoys traveling and hiking with his wife, Catherine.  Jack currently serves on the Board of Directors for Federal Defender Services of East Tennessee and previously served on the board of directors for the Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont.

• Governmental Contracts
• Labor & Employment Law
• ERISA Litigation

• Tennessee, 1989
• U.S. Supreme Court
• U.S. Court of Appeals 6th Circuit, 1991
• U.S. Court of Appeals 9th Circuit, 1995
• U.S. Court of Appeals District of Columbia Circuit
• U.S. District Court Eastern District of Tennessee, 1991
• U.S. District Court Middle District of Tennessee

• University of Tennessee College of Law, Knoxville, Tennessee
  • J.D. - 1989
• Northeast Louisiana University, Monroe, LA
  • M.M.
• Northeast Louisiana University, Monroe, LA
  • B.M.

• Miller v. Retirement Program Plan for Employees of Consolidated Nuclear Security, LLC, 775 Fed. Appx. 236, 237 (6th Cir. 2019), employee brought ERISA claim against client’s defined benefit pension plan seeking a declaration that employee was entitled to have the amount of his accrued (future retirement) benefit calculated to include the time employee worked as leased employee for subcontractor.  Court of Appeals held the “relevant plan terms are clear” in saying time as leased employee counted toward vesting but not toward the amount of an employee’s accrued benefit.
• Plumbers & Pipefitters Local 102 v. Consolidated Nuclear Security LLC., No. 3:24-cv-00121-DCLC-JEM, 2024 WL 1261773 (E.D. Tenn. Mar. 25, 2024).  Local union sought reverse Boys Markets injunction against client alleging client sought to terminate other employees when it reinstated grievant pursuant to arbitration award.  District Court refused to issue injunction, finding the local union failed to prove client had discharged any employees or planned to discharge any employees in retaliation for having to reinstate the three employees because of the arbitrator's award and because the local union’s alleged harm was not irreparable.
• Epperson v. Consolidated Nuclear Security, LLC, No. 3:19-cv-307-TRM-DCP, 2020 WL 3442317 (E.D. Tenn. Jun. 2020). Magistrate Judge quashed subpoena seeking testimony from client’s CEO and seeking 15 years worth of employment records for another employee.
• Epperson v. Consolidated Nuclear Security, LLC, No. 3:19-cv-307-TRM-DCP (E.D. Tenn. Oct. 21, 2020).  After client terminated employee for violating safety requirements, District Court granted client’s motion for summary judgment on whistleblower claim brought under Tenn. Code Ann. § 50-1-304(b)  finding that employee failed to show safety reason for employee’s termination was pretextual.
• Hatmaker v. Consolidated Nuclear Security LLC, No. 3:15-cv-351-TAV-HBG, 2018 WL 2436808 (E.D. Tenn. May 30, 2018), when client changed retiree medical benefits, employees who had retired after working for previous contractors at Y-12 National Security Complex, brought ERISA misrepresentation claim against client, current Y-12 contractor, alleging previous contractors had stated retiree medical benefits would not be changed after employees retired.  Court granted summary judgment for client citing 29 U.S.C. 1109(b) and holding alleged breaches of fiduciary duty were at most committed by past fiduciaries, not by current contractor.
• Hatmaker v. Consolidated Nuclear Security LLC, No. 3:15-cv-351-TAV-HBG, 2018 WL 2436808 (E.D. Tenn. May 22, 2018), when client changed retiree medical benefits, employees who had retired after working for previous contractors at Y-12 National Security Complex, brought ERISA misrepresentation claim against client, seeking to represent class of retirees.  Magistrate Judge recommended against class certification because retirees failed to show questions of fact or law in common and their claims were not typical of the class.
• McCarter v. UT-Battelle, LLC, No 3:20-cv-483, 2022 WL 3654940 (E.D. Tenn. Aug. 24, 2022).  Security Police Officer brought religious discrimination claim after client issued written warning because he refused three orders to remove religious patch from tactical vest.  Court granted summary judgment for client, holding written warning was not discharge or discipline as required by CA6 precedent and client’s reasons for issuing warning was not pretext for retaliation.
• Michelhaugh v. Consolidated Nuclear Security, LLC, No. E2019-00361-COA-R3-CV, 2020 WL 4668095 (Tenn. Ct. App. Aug. 11, 2020), court of appeals affirmed dismissal of second lawsuit by employees who had brought putative class action challenging client's decision to change how vacation accrued from being vested in a lump sum on January 1 for the remainder of the year to being accrued throughout the year.  Employees asserted they had a vested right to the lump sum but court held their argument contracted the plain language of the vacation policy and client never deprived any employee of any earned vacation compensation.  Court also held claims of some plaintiffs were untimely under the statute of limitations because Tennessee savings statute only applied to plaintiffs who were parties in the original lawsuit and Tennessee has not adopted class action tolling doctrine.

• Dummies for Ethics 4.0, Kramer Rayson LLP Labor and Employment Law Seminar (2015)
• Helping Clients to Avoid Simple But Expensive ERISA Mistakes (2015), Knoxville Chapter of the Tennessee Society of Certified Public Accountants

• Chair, Tennessee Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization, 2011
• Tennessee Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization, 2006-2012
• Listed in Best Lawyers in America, 2024
• Named 2024 Top Attorney by CityView Magazine for Employee Benefits/ERISA—Defense and Labor & Employment Law—Employer

• Knoxville Bar Foundation

• Chair, Board of Directors for Appalachian Bear Rescue
• Board of Directors for Federal Defender Services of East Tennessee
• Formerly on Board of Directors for the Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont

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• Honorable Gary R. Wade, Judge of the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals, Clerk, 1989 to 1990