Tamara S. Freeze is a founding shareholder of Workplace Justice Advocates, Professional Law Corporation, where she exclusively represents employees in cases of whistleblower retaliation, discrimination, harassment, disability accommodation, unpaid wages, employment litigation and appeals.
After earning her undergraduate degree from UCLA, Ms. Freeze attended University of California Berkeley School of Law, where she focused mainly on employment law and litigation, and worked as a summer associate at Skadden Arps Slate Meager & Flom, LLP. After graduation, Ms. Freeze worked for a prominent employment defense law firms Littler Mendelson, P.C. and Bryan Cave, LLP. In 2009, Ms. Freeze opened her own practice, focusing exclusively on employee rights.
In 2017, 2020, 2023 and 2024, the Daily Journal named Ms. Freeze to its list of the top 75 Labor and Employment Attorneys, a rare honor reserved for only most exceptional employment lawyers in California. Ms. Freeze has also been recognized as the Rising Star by California Super Lawyers Magazine every year since 2012, an honor reserved for no more than 2.5 percent of the lawyers in the state. Ms. Freeze has been featured in the Los Angeles Daily Journal, on radio stations and various media. In addition Ms. Freeze was recently named as one of the Top 50 Up-and-Coming Women Lawyers in Southern California and Top 100 Up-and-Coming Southern California Lawyers by Super Lawyers Magazine.
In her very first jury trial, Tamara obtained a $1,377,000.00 discrimination verdict on behalf of her client, Huron Mayo, in a complex disability discrimination, retaliation and CFRA case – prevailing on all five (5) causes of action against defendant Community Development Commission of the County of Los Angeles.
In June 2015, Tamara tried another employment discrimination case on behalf of a disabled school custodian and was able to obtain a $550,000.00 jury verdict for her client. The award was one of the largest discrimination verdicts in San Bernardino County for 2015.
In April 2017, Tamara obtained a historic $25.1M Whistleblower Jury Verdict on behalf of her client, Steven Babyak, who was unlawfully terminated after he came forward to upper management with complaints of illegal kickbacks and FDA policy violations. The unanimous verdict is believed to be one of the largest single-plaintiff whistleblower awards in California legal history. She became a 2017 CAALA Trial Attorney of the Year Finalist for her trial work on this case.
In November 2023, Tamara and her co-counsel obtained a $112,000 Equal Pay Act verdict on behalf of a female database administrator who was paid less than her male colleagues. Tamara was able to prove that her female client did substantially similar work as compared to other computer engineers. Tamara spent five years fighting for justice, mastering highly complex computer science terms in the process. Tamara and her co-counsel were awarded more than $1 million in attorney’s fees and expenses for their work on the case.
In March 2024, Tamara obtained another whistleblower retaliation verdict in the amount of $800,000 on behalf of her client, a school safety officer, who was wrongfully fired by Redlands Unified School District. The jury was unanimous. The court awarded Workplace Justice Advocates almost $1 million In attorney’s fees and costs.
In November 2024, Tamara obtained another whistleblower retaliation verdict in the amount of $2,248,290 on behalf of her client, a Chief Financial Officer (CFO), who was wrongfully fired by a Chinese corporation. This case was hard fought and defendant was represented by a large well-known Los Angeles “Big Law” firm. The jury awarded the CFO his full damages for his breach of contract claim, as well as compensatory and punitive damages. The court awarded the plaintiff over $2.6 million in attorney’s fees and costs, resulting in the total judgment of $5.5 million (including interest). Defendant declined a 998 Offer of $500,000 during the litigation.
In May 2025, Tamara obtained a historic defamation verdict in the amount of $6,500,000 on behalf of her client, a former Acting President, who was fired by a cannabis company and its then-CEO (the “King of Instagram”) Dan Bilzerian after the client refused to sign off on Dan Bilzerian’s extravagant expenses, such as $50K bed frame, a rock climbing wall, a paintball field, opulent house decorations, a $70K vault which stored Dan Bilzerian’s $3 million gun collection, numerous exotic trips abroad, and renting Sir Richard Branson’s private island (to name a few). After the lawsuit was filed, Dan Bilzerian made a defamatory statement to TMZ that Tamara’s client was fired for incompetence and negligence. The jury unanimously found against Dan Bilzerian and 11-1 against his company Ignite on the defamation claim.
Ms. Freeze has a purple belt in Brazilian jiu jitsu and enjoys a good chess game.
Education
- University of California Berkeley School of Law - J.D. - 2005
- University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) - B.A. - 2000
Professional & Bar Association Memberships
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California Employment Lawyers Association (CELA)
Member Since: 2008
CELA Trial College Presenter and Trainer (2017-2019)
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Consumer Attorneys Association of Los Angeles (CAALA)
2017 Trial Lawyer of the Year Finalist
2018 Annual Convention Presenter
2019 Plaintiff Trial Academy Graduate -
The American Association of Justice (AAJ)
2018 Harvard Law School Trial College Graduate
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Orange County Bar Association (OCBA)
Member Since: 2008
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Orange County Korean Bar Association (OCKABA)
Past Board Member
Legal Honors / Awards
Top 50 Up-and-Coming Women Southern California Lawyers, 2016-2019
The Rising Star, California Super Lawyers Magazine, 2012-2019
The Daily Journal, Top 75 California Labor and Employment Attorneys, 2017, 2020
Top 100 Up-and-Coming Southern California Lawyers, 2019
Notable Cases
- Babyak v. Cardiovascular Systems Inc.: $25,142,000.00 Whistleblower Retaliation Verdict
- Mayo v. Community Development Commission of the County of Los Angeles : $1,377,000.00 Disability Discrimination and CFRA Retaliation Verdict
- Snead v. Chino Valley Unified School District: $550,000.00 Disability Discrimination & Failure to Engage Verdict
- Wergechik v. Anaheim Arena Management, LLC: $32,720.00 Anti-SLAPP Judgment against employer
- Davis v. Redlands Unified School District: $800,000 Whistleblower Retaliation Verdict
- Hua v. Western Asset Management: $112,000 Equal Pay Act Verdict (plus over $1 million in attorney's fees and costs)
Notable Appellate Decisions
- Heffernan v. Dan Bilzerian: Affirmed trial court's ruling denying anti-SLAPP motion
- Wile v. Johnson Window Films: Reversed grant of summary judgment on appeal
- Harris v. Bingham McCutchen LLP: Affirmed denial of Motion to Compel Arbitration on appeal
- Clark v. Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian: Reversed grant of summary judgment on appeal
Notable Settlements
- Confidential: $5,000,000 Settlement
- Confidential: $1,500,000 Settlement
- Confidential: $800,000.00 Settlement
- Confidential: $350,000.00 Settlement
- Confidential: $250,000.00 Settlement
Speaking Engagements
Trying Whistleblower Retaliation Cases, American Bar Association Labor & Employment Annual Conference, Washington, D.C.
November 11, 2022
The Ethical Consequences of Lawyers Engaging in Prohibited Harassment, Discrimination or Retaliation, Women in Trial Travel Summit, Tuscany, Italy
October 2022
Opening Statements, Women in Trial Travel Summit, Punta Mita, Mexico
April 2022
The Game Of Drones: Winning Your Case In Discovery, Consumer Attorneys of California, Maui, HI
December 1, 2021
Opening Statements, CAALA, Las Vegas
September 2021
Dopamine Clicks: Lawyers' Addiction to Social Media, CAALA
May 7, 2021
Using Video Depositions at Trial, CAALA, Virtual Presentation
October 2020
Articles & Publications
Ugly fights: Forcing Your Narcissistic Opposing Counsel to "Surrender"
Advocate Magazine
February 1, 2022
Know your opponent: Eight Defense Tricks in Employment Litigation
Advocate Magazine
August 20, 2021
Opening Statements: What Works and What Doesn't
Advocate Magazine
January 1, 2021
The Phone, the fridge and the Liquor Cabinet: The Dark Side of Working From Home
Advocate Magazine
March, 2021
Being Famous is Not Enough (anti-SLAPP Litigation)
Advocate Magazine
December 2022
Client Reviews
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