Carol Gillam is founder and president of The Gillam Law Firm, a Los Angeles firm devoted principally to employee rights litigation.
Gillam is an acclaimed trial lawyer, having won many challenging and hard-fought cases in federal and state courts throughout California. She has litigated in states across the country, and before federal and state agencies including the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Merit Systems Protection Board. She has brought and successfully resolved numerous cases alleging gender, race and religious discrimination and failure to accommodate, in addition to handling age, disability, FMLA, sexual harassment, whistleblower and other challenging cases.
Gillam has represented C-suite executives, numerous physicians, attorneys, accountants, professors of law and medicine, and a wide variety of other clients over the years.
Lawdragon Honors
| Honor | Year | Practice |
|---|---|---|
| The 2025 Lawdragon 500 Leading Civil Rights & Plaintiff Employment Lawyers | 2025 | Employee & Civil Rights Litigation |
| The 2024 Lawdragon 500 Leading Civil Rights & Plaintiff Employment Lawyers | 2024 | Employee & Civil Rights Litigation |
| The 2023 Lawdragon 500 Leading Civil Rights & Plaintiff Employment Lawyers | 2023 | Employee & Civil Rights Litigation |
| The 2022 Lawdragon 500 Leading Plaintiff Employment & Civil Rights Lawyers | 2022 | Employee & Civil Rights Litigation |
| The 2021 Lawdragon 500 Leading Plaintiff Employment & Civil Rights Lawyers | 2021 | Employee & Civil Rights Litigation |
| The 2020 Lawdragon 500 Leading Plaintiff Employment Lawyers | 2020 | Employee & Civil Rights Litigation |
| Lawdragon 500 Leading Plaintiff Employment Lawyers For 2019 | 2019 | Employee & Civil Rights Litigation |
| Lawdragon 500 Leading Plaintiff Employment Lawyers | 2018 | Employee & Civil Rights Litigation |
Gillam argued before the 9th Circuit Court of Appeal in January 2025 to defend an important jury verdict she and colleague Sara Heum obtained in a federal whistleblower case involving Sarbanes-Oxley and a state whistleblower law. The judge in the Southern District of California entered judgment on the verdict of $1.5 million for emotional and reputational harm, as well as over $2.4 million in attorney fees, plus costs and prejudgment interest (2023). The case has received nationwide coverage of their work in expanding the rights of whistleblowers, including several published court opinions.
Gillam and Heum achieved a $2.3 million settlement in late 2024 for a UCLA whistleblower employee who was not fired.
Gillam and Heum have received nationwide publicity for recently filed lawsuits on behalf of three senior women physicians blowing the whistle on a wide range of unlawful conduct at a prestigious teaching hospital, Harbor UCLA Medical Center (2023).
Gillam and Heum won nearly $1 million from a Los Angeles jury for a female whistleblower claiming retaliation in the pharmaceutical industry (2022).
Gillam won a mid-6-figure verdict from a Los Angeles jury for a Latino whistleblower at a prominent promotional merchandise company (2023).
Gillam has obtained significant settlements on behalf of whistleblowers in a wide range of public and private workplaces, doing cutting edge work in many highly challenging cases.
Gillam has successfully litigated a number of class action cases, being appointed as class counsel and achieving millions of dollars and other relief for California workers. She won an important ruling from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in one such case.
Gillam has been a trailblazer – one of the extremely rare female BigLaw trial lawyers in the country when she began her career working on significant multidistrict litigation cases. She birthed and raised four wonderful children while juggling the demands of a challenging legal career -- and (mostly) managing to maintain a sense of humor throughout. She has five grandchildren who are just as terrific as their parents. She intends to continue practicing law at the highest levels of the profession for many years to come.