Omar H. Bengali
Omar H. Bengali is a founding partner of Girard Bengali, APC. Mr. Bengali’s primary practice areas include labor and employment consultation and litigation, as well as securities arbitration.
Mr. Bengali began his career representing a wide array of companies in state and federal court. Having represented corporations of all sizes for many years, Mr. Bengali is well-acquainted with the corporate defense playbook, including the tricks and strategies utilized in employment litigation. Having founded Girard Bengali, APC, Mr. Bengali now focuses his practice on fighting for injured employees and executives and is recognized for his aggressive advocacy, pragmatic advice and real-world solutions. Mr. Bengali is well-known for his exceptional service to employees and executives with claims involving wrongful termination; wage and hour violations; whistleblowers; and discrimination based on race, sex, age and religion. Mr. Bengali places particular focus on claims brought by female employees and executives who have been discriminated and/or retaliated against on the basis of pregnancy, sexually harassed at work or denied equal pay.
In addition to litigation, Mr. Bengali counsels clients as to their rights and obligations under state and federal laws and advises clients with regard to employment agreements, severance agreements and other employment-related contracts or issues. Mr. Bengali also counsels select small- to mid- sized companies, including start-ups, regarding best practices under California employment law and related litigation.
Mr. Bengali’s employment practice extends into the securities arena, including the representation of financial professionals against broker-dealer firms in FINRA arbitrations, as well as successfully counseling clients through FINRA regulatory and enforcement inquiries.q
Mr. Bengali is also a member of the FINRA National Arbitration and Mediation Committee (NAMC).
From 2022 – 2024, Mr. Bengali was selected to Super Lawyers.
Areas of Practice
- Employment & Labor
- Securities
- Business
Bar Admissions
- California
- California State Courts and Courts of Appeal
- U.S. District Court Central District of California
- U.S. District Court Northern District of California
- U.S. District Court Southern District of California
- 9th Circuit Court of Appeals
Education
- Southwestern Law School, Los Angeles, California
- Juris Doctor
- Honors: SCALE Program
- Honors: Dean’s List
- The George Washington University, Washington, D.C.
- Bachelor of Arts
Languages
- Arabic
- Spanish
- Urdu
- Hindi
Honors and Awards
- Southern California Rising Stars list by Super Lawyers Magazine, 2016 – 2020
- Super Lawyers, 2022 – 2024
- Public Investors Advocate Bar Association Outstanding Service Award, 2022
Professional Associations and Memberships
- Consumer Attorneys Association of Los Angeles (CAALA)
- Los Angeles County Bar Association
- Beverly Hills Bar Association
- State Bar of California
- American Bar Association
- ProVisors
- PIABA – Legislative Co-Chair 2021-2023
- FINRA National Arbitration and Mediation Committee (NAMC)