Warren B. Lightfoot, Jr.

Warren is a Shareholder and Member of Maynard Nexsen’s Litigation Section, with a practice dedicated to the defense of employers in areas of Labor & Employment law. He has developed a niche practice focused on trade secrets and non-compete violations, and he serves as Lead of the Firm’s team of attorneys who also focus on this area of law. As a member of the Firm's Labor & Employment Practice, he has 34 years of experience representing and advising clients in all aspects of labor and employment matters, including significant wage and hour and federal discrimination litigation.

Warren's commercial litigation and business tort practices encompass non-compete enforcement, trade secret litigation, and competitive torts, as well as fraud, contract, and insurance disputes. He has successfully litigated dozens of such cases as lead counsel. In his business tort practice, has obtained or defended companies against injunctions across the country.

On the proactive front, Warren regularly counsels clients on the importance of protecting confidential information to minimize business disruption and help ensure their investment in talent, technology, and customer relations remain secure. He works with company leadership and HR to evaluate agreements and enforceability and to ensure onboarding and offboarding processes are in place and followed. In addition, he frequently conducts presentations to employers as an added client service value.

Highly respected by his peers, Warren is a Fellow of the College of Labor & Employment Lawyers and is recognized every year by Chambers USA as a leading Labor & Employment attorney. In 2025, Warren was named as one of the top 50 lawyers in the state of Alabama across all practices by Alabama Super Lawyers.  In addition, he also served as Chairman of the Alabama State Bar Labor & Employment Section. He is consistently included in The Best Lawyers in America© for his experience in the areas of Employment Management, Litigation: Labor and Employment, as well as in Mid-South Super Lawyers in the area of Employment and Labor Law.

Community & Professional

• American Bar Association, Labor & Employment Section
• Alabama Bar Association, Executive Committee, Labor & Employment Section
• Birmingham Bar Association
• Restoration Academy, Board Member
• Center for Executive Leadership, Board Member and President

• Obtained preliminary injunction based on non-compete agreement and trade secrets claims for aerospace defense contracting firm against engineering development and weapons development executives in the Circuit Court of Madison County, Alabama
• Obtained dismissal of a sexual harassment and retaliation suit for a home healthcare company in the Northern District of Georgia; judgment affirmed by the Eleventh Circuit
• Provided general counsel employment and management services for California based international cybersecurity company in transition after spin-off
• Won jury verdict in tortious interference suit in the Circuit Court of Madison County, Alabama
• Successfully enforced duty of loyalty and trade secrets misappropriation case and obtained significant monetary recovery for insurance brokerage agency in the Northern District of Florida
• Successfully defended marketing firm against multi-million dollar claims of fraud and shareholder oppression in the Circuit Court of Jefferson County, Alabama
• Obtained permanent injunction for health care information systems company against former salesman in the District Court of Tarrant County, Texas
• Obtained summary judgment for a financial services company in an age, race and sex discrimination termination suit brought by a long-time management employee claiming $800,000 in damages in the Northern District of Alabama; judgment affirmed by the Eleventh Circuit
• Successfully defeated non-compete enforcement claim in sensor technology industry in the Superior Court of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina
• Obtained summary judgment in a disability discrimination case brought against financial services company and three individual management defendants under the Missouri Human Rights Act in the Circuit Court of St. Louis County, Missouri
• Won arbitration in Florida defending hospital district against million dollar executive compensation/severance claim
• Successfully defended insurance company in banking industry against multi-million dollar fraud claims brought by trucking firm in the Circuit Court of Lamar County, Alabama
• Obtained temporary restraining order for healthcare laboratory in Southern District of Alabama
• Successfully enforced non-compete agreement against on-air personality in radio industry in the Northern District of Alabama
• Obtained dismissal of FLSA class action for national retailer in the Southern District of Alabama
• Defeated preliminary injunction based on non-compete claims in temporary staffing industry in the Middle District of Georgia
• Obtained temporary restraining order, injunction and favorable settlement for distributor of auto parts in theft of trade secrets matter against former employees and their employers in the Circuit Court of Montgomery County, Alabama
• Defeated enforcement of non-compete agreement by automobile publication company against salesperson in the Circuit Court of Jefferson County, Alabama

Recognition

• Recognized by Chambers USA, America’s Leading Lawyers for Business, Alabama, Labor and Employment (2016-Present)
• College of Labor and Employment Lawyers, Fellow
• The Best Lawyers in America© for Employment Law: Management (2011–Present), Litigation: Labor and Employment (2011-Present), Mining Law (2011–Present), Workers’ Compensation Law: Employers (2016–Present), and Labor Law: Management (2019-Present)
• Recognized as a “Labor & Employment Star” by Benchmark Litigation
• Mid-South Super Lawyers for Employment and Labor Law (2016-Present)
• Mid-South Super Lawyers "Top 50 Alabama Super Lawyers" and Top 50 Birmingham Super Lawyers" (2025)
• Alabama Super Lawyers for Employment & Labor (2008-2016)
• Martindale-Hubbell AV® Preeminent Rating

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