Jean Elizabeth Faure is an AV-rated civil trial attorney with 25 years of experience in labor/employment law, education/school law, and civil litigation. At least 50% of Jean's practice involves the representation of both public and private employers in connection with all labor and employment-related issues. Jean litigates wrongful termination, discrimination, harassment, wage and hour, trade secret, non-compete, Family Medical Leave Act, and ERISA/fiduciary claims. Jean also handles union labor contract negotiations, labor grievance arbitrations, unfair labor practices and other issues under the NLRA. Jean's school law practice includes students with disabilities, special education/IDEA, student discipline, employment practices (teacher termination), and district operations (bidding, contracts and facilities).
In her civil litigation practice, Jean has litigated and tried cases in the area of premises and products liability, insurance coverage, trademark and patent infringement, construction, partnership and shareholder disputes, and estate/probate contests.
Jean has tried successfully numerous jury and bench trials in front of the Montana Federal and State district courts, administrative agencies, and arbitrators. Representative successes include Flexible Lifeline Systems v. Precision Lift, Inc., D. Mont. (preliminary injunction); Liberty Mutual v. Continental Resources, Inc., D. Mont. (defense of declaratory judgment); Farmers Union Insurance v. Brass Craft Mfg, D. Mont. (products liability defense verdict); Roe v. Kornder-Owen, Mont. Supreme Court (defense summary judgment); The Apartment Store v. Mount Vernon Fire Ins., 9th Cir. (defense summary judgment).
Jean is the second generation of French immigrants originally from Gap, France. Jean received her B.A. (magna cum laude) in English from Carroll College. Jean went on to earn a M.A. (summa cum laude) in English Literature from Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska. Jean returned to Montana to receive her J.D., with high honors, from the University of Montana School of Law in 1986. Jean served on the Editorial Board of the Montana Law Review and co-authored with the now Honorable U.S. Magistrate R. Keith Strong, "The Model Rules of Professional Conduct: No Standard for Malpractice", 47 Mont. L. Rev. 363 (1986). She currently is on the Advisory Board to the Montana Law Review.
Following law school, Jean clerked for the United States Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit in San Francisco, California and for the Honorable Judge David R. Thompson in San Diego. Jean also served as a Civil Motions Attorney for the Ninth Circuit before returning to Montana. With the firm's branch offices in Bozeman and Helena, Jean has practiced throughout the state of Montana since 1988.
Since 2009, Jean has been selected to the Mountain States Super Lawyers® in labor and employment law and employment defense litigation-an honor reserved for only 5% of Montana lawyers. She is top-ranked in The Best Lawyers In America® and is recognized in the 2011 Chambers USA Guide to Leading Lawyers in the field of employment litigation.
Jean is the President of the Montana Defense Trial Lawyers Association. Since 2005, Jean has served on the State Commission on Practice, by election of her peers and appointment by the Montana Supreme Court. Jean has been on the Program Faculty for the Montana Chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA).
She is the author of the Montana portion of the DRI Employment Law Compendium , contributions to the Libel Defense Research Center 50-State Survey on Employment Law and Fundamental Issues in Montana Human Resource Law. Jean has been a presenter at the State Bar Employment Law CLE, the Seminar Group, the State of Montana Innovation in Business Conference, Society for Human Resource Management, consistently presents employment-related seminars and is often featured in news publications on employment-related topics.
Professional Affiliations
Member, Commission on Practice, State of Montana 2005 - current
President, Montana Defense Trial Lawyers Association
Member, Council of School Attorneys ("COSA")
Member, Cascade County Bar Association
Member, State Bar of Montana
Member, Former Staff Attorneys for the United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit
Member, Defense Research Institute
Honors
2004 - current AV Rating from Martindale Hubbell
2009 - current Mountain States Super Lawyer in Employment Litigation Defense.
2009 - current Corporate Counsel Edition, Super Lawyers, Employment & Labor
2009 - current Best Lawyers in America in Employment & Labor, Litigation
2011 Chambers USA Guide to Leading Lawyers
2011 Chambers USA Guide to Leading Lawyers
"Jean Faure of Faure Holden PC enters the Chambers rankings due to positive feedback from clients and peers alike. Commentators describe her as "an excellent lawyer - very thorough and sensible, with a good understanding of the law."
- Chambersandpartners.com
2012 Chambers USA Guide to Leading Lawyers
Great Falls-based Jean Faure of Faure Holden PC "is an outstanding individual - she really knows employment law," sources enthuse. One peer added: "If I had to refer a case in the Great Falls area, I would refer it to Jean."
- Chambersandpartners.com
