Azeez Hayne is a partner in Morgan Lewis's Labor and Employment Practice. Mr. Hayne's practice focuses primarily on defending ERISA and systemic discrimination class actions. This practice includes representing ERISA plan sponsors and fiduciaries in litigating class and single plaintiff cases. He has litigated, including through trial, ERISA class action breach of fiduciary duty, benefits, and other statutory claims such as 401(k) fee and investment prudence claims, defined benefit anti-cutback claims, retiree medical claims, and retirement, disability, health, and life insurance benefit claims. In addition, Mr. Hayne represents employers in litigating class and single plaintiff discrimination claims, including race and gender discrimination class actions, age and disability discrimination claims, and FMLA suits.
Mr. Hayne is the chair of the Defined Contribution Institutional Investor Association Courts & Litigation Subcommittee. He is also the former chair of the Hot Topics Subcommittee of the Employment and Labor Relations Committee of the American Bar Association’s Section of Litigation. Mr. Hayne is a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation, and has been listed as a Super Lawyers “Rising Star” since 2006.
Mr. Hayne earned his J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law in 2001 and his B.A. in biology from Swarthmore College in 1998.
Mr. Hayne is admitted to practice in Pennsylvania, and before the U.S. Supreme Court; the U.S. Courts of Appeal for the Third, Fourth, Sixth, Seventh, and Eighth Circuits; and the U.S. District Courts for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, the Central District of Illinois, and the Northern District of Ohio.
