About Eastern Maine Law & John Gause

John Gause formed Eastern Maine Law to handle discrimination, civil rights, and personal injury cases on behalf of individuals. John has been a trial lawyer for nearly 30 years. He was the Commission Counsel at the Maine Human Rights Commission for eight years. During that time, he represented the Commission in court in discrimination cases, drafted laws and regulations, and wrote guidance interpreting the Maine Human Rights Act. Previously, he was a partner at a leading statewide trial law firm where he tried many employment discrimination, personal injury, and civil rights cases to juries. He has also worked as a staff attorney and team leader for Disability Rights Maine, a protection and advocacy non-profit organization for people with disabilities.

Bar Admissions

• Maine State Courts, 1995
• United States District Court for the District of Maine, 1995
• United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, 1999
• United States Supreme Court, 2002

Degrees

• University of Maine School of Law, J.D., cum laude, 1995,
  Maine Law Review Research Editor,
  Legal Writing Instructor
• Colby College, Waterville, Maine, B.A., cum laude, 1991,
  English Literature, with honors (also attended University of Maine and Hamilton College)

Active Professional Memberships

• Maine Board of Bar Examiners, October 2019 to present
• Grievance Commission, Maine Board of Overseers of the Bar, 2012 to present
• Maine State Bar Association (Co-chair Labor & Employment Law Section 2018-2020)
• John Waldo Ballou Inn of Court (President 2017-2019)
• Penobscot County Bar Association (former Board of Directors member)
• Maine Trial Lawyers Association (former Board of Governors member)

Recognition

• The Best Lawyers in America, since 2020
• New England Super Lawyers, since 2019

Selected Seminar Presentations

• “Employment Law Developments,” Maine State Bar Association 2024 Legal Year In Review, Augusta, ME, November 21, 2024
• “Legal Year in Review,” Maine State Bar Association 24th Annual Employment Law Update, Freeport, ME, May 2, 2024
• “Employment Law Developments,” Maine State Bar Association 2023 Legal Year In Review, Augusta, ME, November 16, 2023
• “Employment Law Developments,” Maine State Bar Association 23rd Annual Employment Law Update, Freeport, ME, April 6, 2023
• “Civil Practice and Procedure Covid-19 Update,” Maine State Bar Association 22nd Annual Employment Law Update, Freeport, ME, April 7, 2022
• “Employment Law Developments,” Maine State Bar Association 2020 Legal Year In Review, online seminar, November 19, 2020
• “Best Practices For Lawyers Regarding Harassment And Discrimination,” Maine Human Rights Commission CLE Seminar – Human Rights are Civil Rights, and Civil Rights are Human Rights, Augusta, ME, December 10, 2019
• “Employment Law Developments,” Maine State Bar Association 2019 Legal Year In Review, Augusta, ME, November 21, 2019
• “Acting Professionally at the Maine Human Rights Commission,” Maine State Bar Association 18th Annual Employment Law Update, Freeport, ME, April 4, 2019
• “Employment Law Developments,” Maine State Bar Association 2018 Legal Year In Review, Augusta, ME, November 15, 2018
• “Another Year, Another Landscape,” Maine State Bar Association 17th Annual Employment Update, Freeport, ME, April 5, 2018
• “A Lot to Keep Track Of,” Maine State Bar Association 16th Annual Employment Law Update, Freeport, ME, April 3, 2017
• “Fair Housing Questions and Answers,” Maine State Bar Association Landlord/Tenant Law, Augusta, ME, September 23, 2016
• “Keeping Up,” Maine State Bar Association 15th Annual Employment Law Update, Freeport, ME, April 14, 2016
• “Handling Medical and Leave Issues,” Essentials of Employment Law, Hilton Garden Inn, Bangor, ME, January 16, 2016
• “Practicing Before the Maine Human Rights Commission: How to Handle a Case Effectively From Start to Finish,” John Waldo Ballou Inn of Court, December 1, 2015
• “Attorney Conduct at Depositions: The ‘Rules’ and How to Deal with Attorneys Who Break Them,” Maine Trial Lawyers Association Sugarloaf CLE, February 27, 2015
• “What Comp Professionals Need to Know about Medical Leaves,” 2014 Maine Comp Summit, Rockport, ME, August 24, 2014
• “100 Ways to Personally Injure Your Employment Cases,” Maine Trial Lawyers Association 2014 Annual Meeting and Spring Seminar, Freeport, ME, March 21, 2014
• “Retaliation,” Maine State Bar Association 13th Annual Employment Law Update, Freeport, ME, March 6, 2014
• “TMI: What candidates tell you can hurt you!” Maine HR Convention, May 10, 2013
• “What’s New at the Maine Human Rights Commission: Top Ten Practice Pointers,” Maine State Bar Association 11th Annual Employment Law Update, Freeport, ME, December 1, 2011
• “Fair Housing Enforcement – VT, NH & ME,” Tri-State Housing Manager Associations Conference, Bretton Woods, NH, October 18, 2011
• “Disability and Reasonable Accommodation Issues,” “Sexual Orientation Issues,” Maine Human Rights Commission & Equal Employment Opportunity Commission Compliance Seminar, Portland, ME, April 16, 2008
• “The New Definition of Disability – It’s Meaning and Implications,” Labor Employment Relation Association, Portland, ME, January 28, 2008
• “Proving Discrimination ‘Because of Disability,’” National Association of Protection and Advocacy Systems Annual Conference, Washington, D.C., June 10, 2004
• “Trial Motions,” National Employment Lawyers Association New England Regional Conference, Boston, MA, April 4-5, 2003
• “2003 Employment Discrimination Cases,” Maine State Bar Association Legal Year in Review Seminar, Augusta, ME November 20, 2003
• “Employment Law Cases,” Maine State Bar Association Legal Year in Review Seminar, Augusta, ME, November 21, 2002
• “Practice Tips Before the Maine Human Rights Commission,” Maine Human Rights Commission Employment Practices and Issues Seminar, May 15, 2002
• “Medical Leaves of Absence,” Maine State Bar Association Employment Law Update Seminar, Portland, ME, March 27, 2002
• “General Theories of Recovery in Employment Discrimination Cases,” Maine Trial Lawyers Association Employment Law and Litigation Seminar, Portland, ME, April 7, 2000
• “Disability Insurance and the ADA,” Maine Civil Liberties Union & Disability Rights Center Seminar on the Legal Rights of Persons with Disabilities, Portland, ME, March 26, 1999

Publications

• Maine LAWYERS REVIEW, various articles, “Employment Law.”
• “The ADA in Practice: Navigating the Minefield,” 13 Maine Bar Journal 30, 1998

Public Service

• Eastern Maine Medical Center Ethics Advisory Committee (former member)
• United Way of Eastern Maine Basic Needs and Self Sufficiency Council (former member)