Timothy Taylor
Partner
Overview
Timothy J. Taylor is an employment and litigation attorney in Holland & Knight's Tysons office. Mr. Taylor represents employers, companies and individuals in high-stakes litigation, investigations and compliance matters across a wide variety of areas and in particular vis-à-vis government regulators. He serves clients in highly regulated industries, especially healthcare and government contracts.
Before rejoining Holland & Knight, Mr. Taylor served as Deputy Solicitor of Labor, the second-in-command legal officer for the federal government's second-largest litigation department, housed in the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). In that position, he oversaw a wide portfolio of litigation, enforcement, rulemaking and legal counseling for the agency's more than 450 attorneys at 23 client agencies. Laws under his purview included the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), Davis-Bacon Act (DBA), Service Contract Act (SCA), Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSH Act), Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) and Executive Order 11246. He also previously served as senior counsel for employment and investigations at the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of the Special Inspector General for Pandemic Recovery (SIGPR).
Mr. Taylor uses that experience to defend and counsel clients facing difficult employment issues, including DOL and other investigations, discrimination claims, prevailing-wage matters, trade-secret and noncompete cases, executive employment agreements (and disagreements), and compliance with unclear and emerging areas of law.
In addition, Mr. Taylor represents clients in a broad array of other litigation and investigations. A gifted writer, Mr. Taylor is often called upon for dispositive motions, appeals, and written advocacy to regulators. His experience includes matters involving fraud, breach of contract, defamation, partnership disputes, First Amendment issues, U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) civil and criminal investigations, and a host of other matters. From his government experience, Mr. Taylor has in-depth knowledge of federal regulation and policymaking under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA). He has also represented many clients in False Claims Act (FCA) investigations and litigation.
Before his government service, Mr. Taylor was an associate with Holland & Knight. Among other civil and criminal representations, he was part of the U.S. Supreme Court team that secured a unanimous reversal of former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell's convictions on public corruption charges.
After law school, Mr. Taylor clerked for the Honorable Harris Hartz of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit and the Honorable Charles Lettow of the U.S. Court of Federal Claims. During law school, he was an editor of the Harvard Law Review.
Representative Experience
- Represented a National Football League (NFL) franchise in connection with high-profile government and third-party investigations into alleged employee misconduct
- Represented a government contractor in a sensitive replacement of its CEO, which occurred without litigation or a prelitigation settlement
- Represented a nonprofit foundation in providing comments and related policy work in response to the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) 2022 proposed rule on independent contractors
- Represented a tech startup in a DOL Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) investigation; after advocacy before the department, the matter was declined for further review
- Represented pro bono the surviving spouse of a federal employee whose benefits had been delayed; after engaging with the government, the spouse received a generous lifetime annuity
- Filed an Administrative Procedure Act (APA) challenge on behalf of a healthcare company questioning the legal authority of the federal government to impose certain sanctions; within days of filing the complaint the matter settled and the challenged sanction was withdrawn
- Filed a plea-in-bar and obtained dismissal with prejudice of a breach-of-contract case brought against a client nonprofit religious organization
- Defended the officers and minority partners of a construction supplier in a shareholder dispute alleging breach of fiduciary duty and other serious claims; prevented litigation and negotiated a memorandum of understanding to divide the company fairly
- Represented a government contractor alleging that its former employees had misappropriated trade secrets, proprietary data and their duty of loyalty; obtained an injunction requiring the return of all company property
- Represented a government contractor accused of receiving misappropriated proprietary data from employees who had violated their duty of loyalty; case voluntarily dismissed by the other side
- Represented on appeal a client sanctioned by a federal district court, authoring much of the appellate brief; the decision was reversed by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
- Represented an individual in a case alleging defamation and various tort claims; case was dismissed with prejudice
- Represented as first-chair trial counsel a pro bono client in a two-day trial regarding child support and visitation rights; succeeded on modifying child support rights on a statutory question of first impression
- Represented former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell during his public corruption investigation, trial and appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court; the Supreme Court issued a unanimous decision vacating the convictions, and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) subsequently dismissed all charges; see McDonnell v. United States, 136 S. Ct. 2355 (2016)
- Represented a medical device corporation in a False Claims Act (FCA) case brought in federal district court in California; authored brief for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit that affirmed dismissal of the qui tam relator's case
- Represented a healthcare company in an FCA case brought in federal district court in Florida; authored briefs resulting in repeated dismissal, the second with prejudice, of the qui tam relator's case
- Represented the head of tax of the U.S. subsidiary of a Fortune Global 10 company when the company was under investigation for violation of federal laws and regulations
- Represented a multibillion-dollar U.S. government contractor before the U.S. Department of State and U.S. Air Force involving allegations of violating International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR); no fines were imposed
- Represented a government contractor under investigation by the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR); authored a presentation to the DOJ, which resulted in the DOJ declining SIGAR's FCA referral
- Represented a multibillion-dollar U.S. government contractor in an internal investigation regarding potential violations of Truth in Negotiations Act (TINA) and accounting standards
- Represented a medical device manufacturer in an FCA investigation regarding its sales and marketing practices
- Represented a physician practice in a disclosure to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) and the DOJ regarding potential billing issues
- Represented a government contractor in a DOJ investigation regarding potential violations of the Price Reduction Clause (PRC) and Commercial Sales Practices (CSP) disclosures in its General Services Administration (GSA) Schedule contract
- Represented a government contractor in a DOJ FCA investigation regarding allegations of violating the federal small business regulations
- Represented a medical device manufacturer in qui tam litigation in federal district court and court of appeals
- Represented an individual in a habeas corpus proceeding in Maryland federal district court and before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
Credentials
- Harvard Law School, J.D., cum laude
- Brigham Young University, B.A., Political Science, summa cum laude
- District of Columbia
- Virginia
- U.S. Supreme Court
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
- U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia
- U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia
- U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia
- U.S. Court of Federal Claims
- Law360's Wage & Hour Editorial Advisory Board, 2022; EA Wage & Hour Editorial Advisory Board, 2023
- Labor & Employment Working Group, Regulatory Transparency Project, Federalist Society
- Holland & Knight Public and Charitable Service All-Star Award, 2017
- J. Reuben Clark Law Society International Religious Liberty Writing Competition, First Place, 2010
- Department Valedictorian, Brigham Young University, 2008
- Gordon B. Hinckley Presidential Scholar, Brigham Young University, 2002–2008
