John-Paul S. Deol

John-Paul began his legal career at the Dhillon Law Group in 2012. After practicing for several years with the firm, he transitioned to an exclusively defense-oriented practice at the AmLaw 100 firms of Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP and Fenwick & West LLP. During his tenure at Sheppard Mullin and Fenwick, he represented employers of all sizes, from Fortune 100 companies to Silicon Valley startups, in all aspects of employment, traditional labor, trade secrets, and employee mobility litigation in state and federal courts, as well as in arbitration.

John-Paul has handled matters for clients across the country. He also maintained an active advice and counseling practice, advising clients in M&A transactions, drafting employment policies and agreements, helping employers navigate difficult HR situations, and providing advice as to how to comply with state, federal, and local employment laws.

John-Paul returned to the Dhillon Law Group in 2019. His current practice focuses on representing both employees and employers in all aspects of employment, trade secrets, and employee mobility litigation in state and federal courts and in arbitration. John-Paul’s experience representing prominent Silicon Valley startups and some of the world’s largest corporations uniquely positions him to be able to represent both employers and employees in all of their employment law and related needs. In the employment law space, John-Paul has particular expertise in litigating discrimination, sexual harassment, retaliation, whistleblower, and wage-and-hour cases, including in class actions and appeals.

Given that so many employment-related legal problems can be prevented with thoughtful, careful advice, John-Paul also maintains a robust practice advising and counseling both employers and employees as to their rights and duties in the employment sphere, particularly with regard to issues of employee discipline and termination, trade secrets, employee mobility (non-compete and non-solicit agreements), bonus and commission issues, meal and rest break and overtime issues, internal investigations, and requests for disability and other accommodations. John-Paul also has experience handling claims of workplace violence, both advising clients as to how to handle them and seeking emergency relief from the court.

John-Paul also frequently drafts a wide variety of documents and policies for his clients, from handbooks and offer letters, to electronic device and communications policies, to disciplinary notices and severance agreements and beyond. He also conducts trainings on a variety of state and federal employment law topics.

John-Paul obtained his J.D. from Santa Clara University School of Law in 2012, winning numerous awards for his academic excellence and graduating in the top 15% of his class. In addition, while practicing law full-time, he completed an eleven-month, accelerated Master of Public Health degree at Yale in 2022, where he served as Lead Editor on the Yale Journal of Health Policy, Law, and Ethics and undertook coursework at Yale Law School. John-Paul received his B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley in 2009, graduating with highest distinction (UC Berkeley’s equivalent of “summa cum laude”) and as a member of Phi Beta Kappa.

John-Paul is active in several local and national bar associations. He has been a board member of the South Asian Bar Association of Northern California and the Bar Association of San Francisco. He has also held several leadership positions in the American Bar Association. In 2018, John-Paul was honored with the “Rising Star Award” from the South Asian Bar Association of Northern California. He also maintains an active pro bono practice in federal trial and appellate courts. John-Paul has also served as a voting member of UCSF’s Institutional Review Board since 2017.

Outside of the office, John-Paul enjoys traveling, especially spending time in Spain and Italy. He is passionate about learning languages, having recently been certified by the Spanish Ministry of Education and the Instituto Cervantes as having attained the C1 level. Certification at the C1 level means that the examinee has demonstrated “more than an advanced level of Spanish.” The C1 exam is the second-highest level offered. John-Paul is also fluent in Italian and is proficient in French. He has also studied Punjabi, Hindi, Modern Greek, and Latin and is currently studying Portuguese.

• Associate Attorney
  • Fenwick & West
  • Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP
  • Dhillon Law Group Inc.
• Judicial Extern,
  United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit

• University of California Berkeley (B.A.)

• Santa Clara University School of Law (J.D.)

• Yale University (M.P.H.)

• Employment Discrimination, Harassment, and Retaliation
• Executive Compensation Negotiations and Disputes
• Founder Disputes
• Wage and Hour Law
• Trade Secrets
• Employee Mobility
• HR Advice and Counseling
• Independent Contractor Advice and Counseling
•  

• California, Washington, Texas, New York
• All Federal District Courts in California, Texas, New York, and Colorado
• U.S. Courts of Appeals for the Second, Fifth, Ninth, and Tenth Circuits
• Supreme Court of the United States

• Barristers Club of the Bar Association of San Francisco (Board Member and Secretary, 2016-2019)
• Chair of Bar Association of San Francisco Judges Reception Committee (2016)
• South Asian Bar Association of Northern California (Board Member and Secretary, 2015-2017)
• Edward J. McFetridge American Inn of Court (Associate, 2015-2016; Barrister, 2023-Present)
• South Asian Bar Association of Northern California Foundation (Non-Profit Board Member, 2014-2015)

• University of California, San Francisco Institutional Review Board (Voting Member, 2017 to Present)
• Sikh National Bar Association (Member, 2024 – Present)
• BRAVE Coalition Foundation (Non-Profit Board Member, General Counsel, and Secretary, February 2020 to February 2023)

• Routinely represent Sikh-American individuals suffering discrimination and violation of their religious and other civil rights.
• Court-Appointed Temporary Judge (Discovery Motions), San Francisco Superior (November 2022 to Present).
• Court-Appointed Special Master (Criminal Cases), California State Courts (January 2023 to Present).
• Volunteered with the Northern District of California Federal Pro Bono Project.
• Volunteered with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit Pro Bono Program.
• Represented tenants facing eviction in numerous settlement conferences in San Francisco Superior.

• Presented with the “Rising Star Award” by the South Asian Bar Association of Northern California in 2018.
• Presented with an Assembly Certificate of Recognition by the California Legislature and Assemblymember David Chiu in 2015.
• Presented with the “Outstanding Volunteer Award” by the Bar Association of San Francisco in 2013.
• Chosen to Super Lawyers “Rising Stars” List from 2022 through 2024.
• Presented with Avvo Clients’ Choice Award in 2022.
• Named to 2025 Lawdragon 500 Leading Litigators in America.
• Named to 2025 Lawdragon 500 Leading Corporate Employment Lawyers

1. John-Paul S. Deol, Make America get dressed again: Federal workers should come back to the office, The Hill (Dec. 20, 2024), https://thehill.com/opinion/white-house/5048384-federal-employees-back-to-office/
2. John-Paul S. Deol, DEI Is DOA: Redefining Diversity in Trump’s Second Administration, RealClearPolitics (Dec. 1, 2024), https://www.realclearpolitics.com/2024/12/01/dei_is_doa_redefining_diversity_in_trumprsquos_second_admin_636619.html.
3. Listed in the credits for the docuseries, “The Art of the Surge, The Donald Trump Comeback” by Ashokan Studios/TCN.
4. LA Prosecutor Sues DA Over Handling of Sex Assault Case, Law360 (Oct. 25, 2024), https://www.law360.com/articles/1869576/la-prosecutor-sues-da-over-handling-of-sex-assault-case
5. How Stockton’s Mayor Is Positioning Himself for Congress, Politico (July 30, 2024), https://www.politico.com/newsletters/california-playbook-pm/2024/07/30/how-stocktons-mayor-is-positioning-himself-for-congress-00171976
6. John-Paul S. Deol, Biden’s Veto Bodes Ill for the US Economy and Job Market, The Hill (May 2024), https://thehill.com/opinion/congress-blog/4653574-bidens-veto-bodes-ill-for-the-us-economy-and-job-market/
7. John-Paul S. Deol, Work Less, Lose More: Bernie Sanders’s 32-Hour Workweek Fallacy, The Hill (Apr. 2024), https://thehill.com/opinion/congress-blog/4577268-work-less-lose-more-bernie-sanderss-32-hour-workweek-fallacy/
8. Lori Burquez, John-Paul S. Deol, and Brian Hegarty Share Insights on Employee Benefits & Effective HR Practices, L.A. Times (Apr. 22, 2024), https://www.latimes.com/business-insights/story/2024-04-22/lori-burquez-john-paul-s-deol-and-brian-hegarty-share-insights-on-employee-benefits-effective-hr-practices
9. John-Paul S. Deol, New Labor Rule Will Harm Freelance Work Under the Guise of Helping Workers, The Hill (Mar. 2024), https://thehill.com/opinion/white-house/4528756-new-dol-will-make-freelance-work-much-harder-under-the-guise-of-protecting-workers/
10. Secretly Working Two Jobs? ‘Overemployment’ Grows as Remote Work Trend, But Risks Are Involved, Fox Bus. (Sept. 29, 2022), https://www.foxbusiness.com/lifestyle/secretly-overemployment-grows-remote-work-trend-risks-involved\
11. Connecticut Assistant Principal Placed on Leave After Admitting to Anti-Catholic Discrimination, Nat’l Rev. (Sept. 1, 2022), https://www.nationalreview.com/news/connecticut-assistant-principal-placed-on-leave-after-admitting-to-anti-catholic-discrimination/
12. Lawyers React to ‘Illegal’ Agreement for Minneapolis to Lay Off White Teachers First, Fox News (Aug. 16, 2022), https://www.foxnews.com/media/lawyers-react-illegal-agreement-minneapolis-lay-off-white-teachers-first
13. John-Paul S. Deol, Here’s Why the COVID Vaccine Mandates for Employees Need to End, Daily Wire (Sept. 29, 2021), https://www.dailywire.com/news/heres-why-the-covid-vaccine-mandates-for-employees-need-to-end.

• Italian
• Spanish
• French

Speaks some

• Punjabi
• Hindi
• Urdu
• Modern Greek
• Portuguese

★★★★★
Excellent Attorney, Always There for You, Patient, and Thorough

I had an excellent experience with JP Deol as my attorney, representing me on a matter for well over a year. There wasn’t a day that went by that I couldn’t reach him if I needed to and get a timely response. The man literally works 24/7; in the rare case I didn’t hear back from him that day because he was in depositions or what-have-you, I would almost always wake up to an e-mail response written at 3am. I found JP to be extremely knowledgable in employment and labor law, effective, and a great listener too. I highly recommend him, as well as Harmeet Dhillon, who was excellent too and provided great advice and recommendations when needed.

– Gam

★★★★★
Excellent professional, highly strategic, emphatic, experienced who will be your best ally defending your cause.

I can only recommend JP who helped me so much with my employment case. He took my case as if it were his case. JP is very knowledgeable and highly strategic in his approach. He was available even during the weekends to discuss the case. He was able to understand perfectly every single issue and unfair situation. He gave me from the beginning a very accurate view of the situation and potential outcome that ended up being pretty accurate. I could not have chosen better! I would highly recommend JP to anyone who needs the best lawyer for challenging employment issues/cases.

– Anonymous

★★★★★
Above and beyond support

This is the first time I have dealt with an Attorney and it was a remarkable experience. JP is highly knowledgeable, ethical and empathetic. I dealt with discrimination, harassment and retaliation from various individuals at a large tech company. JP supported me throughout this process and was highly empathetic. We ended up with a very positive outcome that I am happy with. I am now able to finally move on and put this chapter in my life behind me. The best part was that I was able to hold the individuals that did this harm to me accountable. That alone is a great win! Thank you JP and team!!!!

– Anonymous