Scott M. Abbott
Scott Abbott, Kamer Zucker Abbott’s managing partner, has spent his legal career exclusively representing employers in all facets of labor and employment law. Scott’s current practice involves advising employers on a multitude of labor and employment issues, ranging from hiring to discipline and discharge decisions. Scott is an accomplished trial and appellate lawyer and has secured important victories for clients before the Eighth Judicial District Court, the U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada, and the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.
Scott has been listed in Best Lawyers® and has been recognized as a leading Nevada labor and employment lawyer by Chambers USA every year since 2005. Best Lawyers® named Scott as the Las Vegas 2021 Lawyer of the Year in Employment Law for management, the Las Vegas 2019 Lawyer of the Year in Labor Law for management, and the 2018 Lawyer of the Year for Litigation – Labor and Employment. In 2017, Chambers stated that clients praise Scott for being “extremely hands-on, extremely dedicated, detailed and meticulous in the pursuit of the issues.” Chambers has previously commented that Scott “is loved by clients for his ‘excellent communication skills and business savvy.’” Scott has received praise for his “ability to be ‘smart and aggressive, while remaining soft-spoken and level headed,’” his “thorough, practical knowledge and personable, thoughtful approach,” and for his “ability to debate without ever offending anybody.” Scott has also been named a Super Lawyer by the Mountain States Super Lawyers magazine each year since 2007.
Scott regularly works with employers on preventive strategies including employee and management training and the development of internal policies and procedures. Scott is a popular speaker and author on employment law topics, sharing his knowledge with others in a manner where complex issues can be more easily understood. Prior to becoming an attorney, Scott worked as a human resources professional which allowed him to learn the issues which confront employers on a daily basis. That experience has been instrumental in his practice assisting clients to achieve their human resources objectives in compliance with applicable laws.
Scott’s litigation practice has involved complex multiple-party cases involving discrimination and harassment and wage and hour claims, including cases brought directly by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. In addition to litigation defense, Scott also regularly appears before the Nevada Equal Rights Commission, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the Nevada Labor Commissioner, and the Nevada State Employee-Management Relations Board.
Having been raised and educated in the Boston area, Scott shook off the last snowflakes by moving to sunny Nevada in 1992, and has never looked back.
- Massachusetts, 1991
- Nevada, 1992
- U.S. District Court District of Nevada, 1993
- U.S. Court of Appeals 9th Circuit, 1995
- U.S. Supreme Court, 2008
- J.D., cum laude, Suffolk University Law School, Boston, Massachusetts
- B.A., cum laude, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts
- “Mental Health Support for Attorneys Through the ADA,” 32 Nevada Lawyer 23, May 2024
- “Civility: A Guide for Attorneys,” 31 Nevada Lawyer 8, May 2023
- “Committed to Diversity: Using Hiring Preferences Cautiously,” 30 Nevada Lawyer 21, July 2022
- “A Psycholegal Perspective: The Lack of Neuropsychological Examination Following Significant Brain Trauma Can Be Costly,” Advances in Medical Psychotherapy and Psychodiagnosis, Vol. 11, 2002-2003
- “Protecting Against Wrongful Termination,” National Business Institute’s Fundamental Issues in Nevada Human Resources Law, December 2000
- “The Benefits and Pitfalls of Employee Handbooks,” Communique, July 1999
- “Temps, Contractors and Telecommuters: It’s Time to Face Up to the Legal Risks,” Council on Education in Management Personnel Law Update, 1996
- “Happy Birthday, You’re Fired!” Council on Education in Management Personnel Law Update, 1995
- “How Much Can You Say at Work,” ABA Human Rights, Vol. 22, No. 2 Spring 1995
- “Safe Handling of the Volatile Employee,” Council on Education in Management Personnel Law Update, 1994
- “To Produce or Not to Produce: The Dilemma Presented by the Production of Employment Records,” Nevada Labor Letter, Vol. 11, No. 4, April 1994
- “The New Legal Challenge to Employee Participation,” 45 Labor Law Journal 41, 1994
- “Focus on Age Discrimination: Reducing the High-Risk Stakes,” 1 Nevada Lawyer 14, 1993
- AV® Preeminent Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Rating
- Best Lawyers®, 2005 – present
- Best Lawyers® 2018 Lawyer of the Year – Litigation – Labor & Employment (Las Vegas)
- Best Lawyers® 2019 Lawyer of the Year – Labor Law – Management (Las Vegas)
- Best Lawyers® 2021 Lawyer of the Year – Employment Law – Management (Las Vegas)
- Chambers USA, 2005 – present
- Super Lawyer, Mountain States Super Lawyers Magazine, 2007 – present
- Legal Elite 2020: The Silver State’s Top Attorneys, Nevada Business, Vol. 35 No. 6
- Top 500 Leading U.S. Corporate Employment Lawyers, Lawdragon 2020, 2022
- Top Rank Attorney, Southern Nevada, Nevada Business, 2022 – present
- Top 10 Labor and Employment Attorneys in Southern Nevada, Business Today, 2023
- State Bar of Nevada
- State Bar of Nevada, Labor and Employment Section, Member
- Defense Research Institute, Member