Announcing Berger Montague’s New Trafficking and Forced Labor Practice

Berger Montague, a leading national plaintiffs’ law firm, has launched a new Trafficking and Forced Labor practice. For over 50 years Berger Montague has pursued justice on behalf of our clients and our classes. Our Trafficking and Forced Labor attorneys consistently take on powerful corporations.

“We’ve been doing this work for some time and are pleased to announce a dedicated practice group focused on fighting trafficking and forced labor,” said Executive Shareholder and General Counsel Michael Dell’Angelo. “Victims of trafficking are forced to work long hours, often for no or unlawfully low wages. Traffickers secure victims’ labor through threats of serious harm that can include financial penalties, immigration or other legal consequences like lawsuits, and physical or psychological abuse,” said Mr. Dell’Angelo.

We often file suit against companies under the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (TVPRA) and the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). We pursue claims against the immediate traffickers, as well as any other company that knowingly benefitted from a venture that engaged in trafficking.

Recent cases and investigations concern Healthcare companies and recruiters that force foreign healthcare workers to work through threat of supposed “liquidated damages” provisions in the workers’ contracts, which impose crushing financial penalties if workers leave their jobs. Most recently, we filed claims against Interstaff, a healthcare employee recruiter that has threatened workers with over $100,000 in penalties if they leave, and routinely sues workers to recover these funds.

Our attorneys also represent a proposed class of dancers and musicians who have asserted trafficking claims against the Shen Yun dance company, its directors, and affiliates. These performers were separated from their families as minors and forced to work long hours for little to no pay, all while generating enormous profits for the defendants.

We are pursing active investigations into, companies, including airlines, that threaten repayment of oppressive and inflated “training repayment” penalties for any workers who cease working with the companies, and companies that recruit foreign workers under H-1B and H-1A visas and unlawfully threaten that the workers will be required to repay immigration fees, training or wages if they leave.

Our team of compassionate and skilled attorneys includes Michael Dell’Angelo, Michaela L. Wallin, and Mariyam Hussain. They fiercely advocate for trafficking victims and those who have experienced all types of forced labor. Read more about our Trafficking and Forced Labor practice at www.bergermontague.com/trafficking.

Berger Montague is one of the nation’s preeminent law firms focusing on complex civil litigation, class actions, and mass torts in federal and state courts throughout the United States. With more than $2.4 billion in 2025 post-trial judgments alone, the Firm is a leader in the fields of complex litigation, antitrust, consumer protection, defective products, environmental law, employment law, securities, and whistleblower cases, among many other practice areas. For over 55 years, Berger Montague has played leading roles in precedent-setting cases and has recovered over $50 billion for its clients and the classes they have represented. Berger Montague is headquartered in Philadelphia and has offices in Chicago; Malvern, PA; Minneapolis; San Diego; San Francisco; Toronto, Canada; Washington, D.C., and Wilmington, DE.

Meet The Team

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Michael Dell’Angelo

Executive Shareholder

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• 215-875-3080

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Michaela Wallin

Shareholder

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• 215-875-5819

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Mariyam Hussain

Senior Counsel

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• 773-666-4316