Rukin Hyland & Riggin LLP

What Rukin Hyland & Riggin LLP does

Rukin Hyland & Riggin LLP is a California employment law firm operating as a Limited Liability Partnership from offices in San Francisco (50 California St, Suite 1500) and Oakland (1939 Harrison Street, Ste. 925). Founded by Peter Rukin in March 2003 after his tenure as Of Counsel at Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker, the firm specializes in representing both employees and employers in workplace rights matters, including discrimination, sexual harassment, wage and hour violations, whistleblower retaliation, employee misclassification, equal pay claims, severance negotiations, and class/collective action litigation. The partnership currently comprises four equity partners (Rukin, John Hyland, Jessica Riggin, and Valerie Brender, promoted in 2020) plus at least one additional attorney (Rebecca Stephens), with the firmographic data indicating a total headcount of 1-10.

The firm's business model is professional services revenue generated through legal fees on a mix of hourly, contingency, and flat-fee arrangements depending on case type. The firm combines large-firm employment law expertise with small-firm personal attention, evidenced by an AV rating from Martindale Hubbell, a Tier 1 ranking by U.S. News and World Report's Best Law Firms, and Northern California Super Lawyers recognition for all four partners. The firm has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for clients in aggregate, including headline class action settlements of $27.5 million (Wells Fargo wage claims), $12 million (SuperShuttle independent contractor misclassification), and $4.9 million (Farmers Insurance unpaid wages).

The firm acquires clients through direct website inquiries and consultation requests, attorney referrals, educational content marketing via The Personnel Files blog, and attorney speaking engagements at industry conferences such as the ABA Labor and Employment Law Conference and NELA conventions. The firm co-counsels regularly with plaintiff-side firms like Rosen Bien Galvan & Grunfeld LLP on large class actions and has partnered with the ACLU Foundation on civil rights matters, building a referral-driven pipeline of individual employment and class action matters across California.

Name

Rukin Hyland & Riggin LLP

Legal name

Rukin Hyland & Riggin LLP

Website

https://rhdtlaw.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2003

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Rukin Hyland & Riggin LLP is a San Francisco and Oakland-based California employment law firm representing employees and employers in discrimination, wage, whistleblower, misclassification, and class action matters. The four-partner boutique has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for clients and holds an AV rating.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Employment Law Services

NAICS

Legal Services (5411)

SIC

Services-Legal Services (8111)

akta.pro primary industry

Employment & Labor Law (BPAHAAAD)

Keywords

• Employment law services
• Workplace discrimination litigation
• Wage and hour claims
• Class action representation
• Severance negotiation

Headquarters

HQ city

San Francisco

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Legal Representation Services: The firm generates revenue through legal fees for representing employees and employers in employment law matters including discrimination, harassment, wage claims, whistleblower protection, class actions, and severance negotiations. Fee structures may include hourly rates, contingency fees for certain cases, and flat fees for specific services like contract review.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Rukin Hyland & Riggin LLP is a California employment law firm that provides legal representation and advisory services to employees and employers. The firm handles individual and class action matters including workplace discrimination, sexual harassment, wage and hour violations, whistleblower retaliation, employee misclassification, equal pay, family/medical leave, severance negotiation, non-compete disputes, and employee privacy issues, serving clients primarily in the San Francisco Bay Area and statewide California.

Product overview

Rukin Hyland & Riggin LLP is a California employment law firm offering legal services through a unified practice focused on workplace rights. The firm provides representation across multiple related service areas including discrimination, sexual harassment, wage violations, whistleblower protection, equal pay, employee misclassification, family/medical leave, and retaliation claims. Services are delivered primarily through individual and class action litigation, severance negotiations, and employer counseling. The firm operates from San Francisco and Oakland offices serving clients throughout California.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Workplace Discrimination Legal Representation Legal representation for employees who have experienced workplace discrimination based on protected classes including age, disability, national origin, pregnancy, race, religion, sex/gender, and sexual orientation. Serves California employees facing unlawful employment practices.
• Sexual Harassment Legal Representation Legal representation for employees who have experienced sexual harassment at work, including quid pro quo harassment and hostile work environment claims. Serves California employees subjected to workplace sexual harassment.
• Wage and Hour Legal Representation Legal representation for wage and hour violations including unpaid wages, overtime violations, meal and rest break violations, minimum wage violations, and off-the-clock work claims. Serves California employees and worker classes subjected to wage theft.
• Whistleblower Protection Legal Representation Legal representation for employees who have suffered retaliation for reporting unlawful practices, including claims under California Labor Code Section 1102.5. Serves California employees who have faced adverse action for whistleblowing.
• Equal Pay Legal Representation Legal representation for employees who have experienced wage discrimination based on sex, race, or ethnicity under the federal Equal Pay Act and California Equal Pay Act. Serves California workers facing pay inequity.
• Class Action Employment Litigation Representation of employees in class action, representative, and collective action cases challenging systemic unlawful employment practices. Serves groups of California workers in class or collective actions against large employers.
• Employee Privacy Rights Legal Representation Legal representation for employees facing workplace privacy issues including employer drug testing, social media access requests, email monitoring, and tape recording concerns. Serves California employees facing workplace privacy intrusions.
• Severance Agreement and Employment Contract Negotiation Legal counsel for employees and executives negotiating severance packages, employment contracts, and separation agreements. Serves California executives, senior professionals, and departing employees.
• Employee Misclassification Legal Representation Legal representation for workers misclassified as independent contractors rather than employees, seeking recovery of overtime, minimum wages, meal/rest break premiums, and business expense reimbursements. Serves California workers misclassified as contractors, including drivers and gig-economy workers.
• Pregnancy, Family and Medical Leave Legal Representation Legal representation for employees denied leave under FMLA, CFRA, Pregnancy Disability Leave Act, and California Paid Family Leave programs. Serves California employees denied legally protected leave.
• Retaliation Legal Representation Legal representation for employees who have suffered adverse employment actions for engaging in protected activities such as filing complaints, reporting discrimination, or testifying in proceedings. Serves California employees subjected to workplace retaliation.
• Non-Compete and Trade Secret Litigation Legal representation regarding non-compete agreements, trade secret protection, and employee mobility rights under California Business and Professions Code Section 16600. Serves California employees and executives facing restrictive covenants or trade secret claims.

Quantifiable outcome

• $12 million settlement for SuperShuttle drivers in independent contractor misclassification case after 6 years of litigation
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered notable and core.

• ACLU Foundation of Northern CalifornianotableStrategic or Co-development PartnerRukin Hyland & Riggin LLP and ACLU Foundation of Northern California and ACLU Foundation of Southern California jointly filed a lawsuit against St. Joseph Health for discrimination against a transgender patient.
• Rosen Bien Galvan & Grunfeld LLPcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-counsel relationship in class action litigation including Salvation Army ARC unpaid wages cases (Alvear v. The Salvation Army, Clancy v. The Salvation Army) and other employment class actions.
• Fellow of the College of Labor and Employment LawyersnotableOthersPeter Rukin is a Fellow of the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers, a prestigious professional recognition.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Emerging players

• Brown, Goldstein & Levy: Mid-sized civil rights and employment firm with a growing California footprint via class action and impact litigation. Comparable in employment plaintiff work but broader civil rights scope.

Broad incumbents

• Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein LLP: Large national plaintiffs' firm with a substantial employment class action practice and California office. Comparable in employment class action work, but at significantly greater scale and broader scope.
• Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart, P.C. One of the largest U.S. employment law firms, primarily management-side. Competes with Rukin Hyland & Riggin's employer counseling practice and on the defense side of the same matters.

Direct peers

• Minami Tamaki LLP: Bay Area plaintiff-side employment and civil rights firm with a strong class action practice and Japanese-language capabilities. Directly competes with Rukin Hyland & Riggin for California employment plaintiffs and class action matters.
• Rudy, Exelrod, Zieff & Lowe, LLP: San Francisco-based plaintiff-side employment law firm representing employees in discrimination, harassment, wage and hour, and class action matters across California. Closely comparable to Rukin Hyland & Riggin in size, geographic focus, and practice mix.
• McGuinn, Hillsman & Palefsky: San Francisco plaintiffs' employment law firm with decades of experience in discrimination, harassment, and wage cases. Closely comparable boutique scale and California employment plaintiff focus.
• Siegel, Yee, Brunner & Mehta: Sacramento-based plaintiff employment firm serving Northern California, with active wage and hour, FEHA, and class action practices. Comparable in practice mix and California-only footprint.
• Altshuler Berzon LLP: San Francisco plaintiff-side firm with major employment and class action practices, including high-profile wage and hour cases. Comparable in mission, plaintiff orientation, and California class action focus.
• Levy Vinick Burrell Hyams LLP: Oakland-based employment law firm representing employees in discrimination, wage and hour, and class action matters. Direct competitor with overlapping East Bay client base.
• Wagner, Vaughan & McLaughlin: California plaintiff employment firm handling discrimination, wage and hour, and whistleblower matters. Comparable boutique scale and plaintiff-side employment focus.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/rhdtlaw
• Facebookfacebook.com/rukinhyland
• Xx.com/RukinHyland

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Rukin Hyland & Riggin LLP