Elizabeth Hardy

Member

Named one of “Detroit’s Most Influential Women” and a “Power Lawyer” by Crain’s Detroit Business, Ms. Hardy specializes in employment litigation and preventive counseling.  She has become widely known as one of Michigan’s most skilled and respected litigators, having successfully defended many complex, high-profile jury trials to winning verdicts.  Through her work on behalf of various management clients, she has significantly influenced the substantive development of employment law in Michigan.

Ms. Hardy is a member of the American College of Trial Lawyers, the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers, the American Board of Trial Advocates, and is listed in Best Lawyers in America.  She has been appointed by the Michigan Supreme Court, the Governor of the State of Michigan, and the State Bar to professional and public boards and panels.  She was also elected twice on a state-wide ballot to the Wayne State University Board of Governors, where she served as Chair of the Board and Chair of the Presidential Search Committee.  She was appointed by U.S. Senators Stabenow and Peters to the committee that screens judicial applicants for appointments to the federal district bench in the Eastern District of Michigan and by the Chief Judge of the federal district court to screen Magistrate Judge applicants for the Eastern District.  Ms. Hardy is a current member of the Advisory Board for the Levin Center for Oversight and Democracy.

Ms. Hardy received her law degree from Wayne State University Law School in 1984, where she served as Editor-In-Chief of the Wayne Law Review. She earned her undergraduate degree from George Washington University in 1978.

Ms. Hardy has tried as lead counsel a number of lengthy and complex jury trials in state and federal courts. Among them:

  • Ten jury trials for Ford Motor Company dealing with breach of contract, race and gender discrimination (failure to promote), retaliation, sexual harassment (involving both hourly and management-level employees), national origin discrimination (termination) and various tort claims. Verdicts were rendered for Ford in each case.
  • One jury trial for Auto Club Insurance Association involving race discrimination and retaliation. The Court dismissed the retaliation claim on a directed verdict motion and the jury returned a verdict for the Auto Club on the race discrimination claim.
  • One jury trial for the College for Creative Studies involving breach of contract and defamation claims. The jury returned a verdict for the College.
  • Two jury trials for Club Corporation of America. One trial involved sexual harassment allegations and the other was a weight discrimination case. The jury returned a verdict for Club Corporation in the first trial. The second jury returned an adverse verdict which was reversed on appeal and judgment was entered in Club Corporation’s favor.
  • One jury trial for an Oakland County law firm involving breach of contract, promissory estoppel, quantum meruit, unjust enrichment, breach of fiduciary duty, gender discrimination and retaliation claims. The jury returned a nominal verdict for Plaintiff in an amount less than the low number in the parties’ high/low agreement.

Ms. Hardy’s state appellate practice has led to a number of significant Michigan Supreme Court opinions which helped re-shape key legal doctrines in a favorable way for employers. In the recent past, Ms. Hardy has successfully briefed and argued McConnell v. Rollins Burdick Hunter (age discrimination/termination case), Elezovic v. Ford Motor (sexually hostile work environment case), and Maldonado v. Ford Motor (case dismissed due to efforts of the plaintiff and her counsel to taint the jury pool), all in the Michigan Supreme Court. She also has handled numerous appeals on the federal level.

  • Michigan
  • Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals
  • Eastern District of Michigan, U.S. District Court
  • Western District of Michigan, U.S. District Court
  • Fellow, Member of the State Committee, American College of Trial Lawyers (2012-present)
  • Member, Judicial Qualifications Committee, State Bar of Michigan (1991-1994; 1996-2004; 2011-2017)
  • Fellow, College of Labor and Employment Lawyers (2005 – present)
  • American College of Trial Lawyers
  • Member, American Board of Trial Advocates (2011 – present)