Joel Andersen

Joel Andersen is an attorney and Chair of Labor & Employment at Nilan Johnson Lewis PA. His practice focuses on restrictive covenant and trade secret disputes, class and collective action defense, California employment law, appellate advocacy, single-plaintiff litigation, and HR counseling. He represents employers in federal and state courts nationwide and handles disputes involving non-competes, non-solicitation agreements, misappropriation claims, antitrust issues, discipline, discharge, discrimination, retaliation, and wage-and-hour compliance for clients.

Joel earned his J.D., cum laude, from the University of Michigan Law School in 2003, an M.A. in Political Science from the University of Rochester in 2001, and a B.A. in Political Science, summa cum laude, from Creighton University in 1998. He also completed clerkships with the US Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, the Ninth Circuit, and the US District Court for the District of Nevada after graduation.

Joel defends companies in wage-and-hour class actions and other representative claims, including matters involving Minnesota tip-pooling law and California employment requirements. His business litigation work also covers business torts and shareholder and partnership disputes. He has handled trials, arbitrations, workplace investigations, executive agreements, severance matters, whistleblower claims, and preventive employment counseling. His industry experience includes manufacturing, startups and emerging businesses, retail, food and beverage, and health care clients nationwide.

Joel Andersen also brings substantial appellate experience to employment and business disputes, including matters before federal and state appellate courts. His representative work includes restrictive covenant, trade secret, discrimination, retaliation, FMLA, wage-and-hour, and arbitration matters. He is admitted in Minnesota, Oregon, and California, as well as several federal courts. His practice combines litigation, appellate advocacy, and day-to-day counseling for employers confronting complex workforce, competition, and commercial legal issues across multiple jurisdictions.

Law Office Affiliations

• Attorney, Nilan Johnson Lewis PA
• Member, Minnesota State Bar Association
• Member, Oregon State Bar
• The State Bar of California

Licensed State

• Minnesota
• Oregon
• California

Education

• University of Michigan Law School
  Juris Doctor (JD)
• University of Rochester
  Master of Arts (MA)
• Creighton University
  Bachelor of Arts (BA)

Awards & Badges