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Ryan A. Hancock

Of Counsel

215.656.3679

Philadelphia

1845 Walnut Street, 24th Floor Philadelphia, PA 19103

Ryan Allen Hancock is a fierce advocate for the rights of individuals in employment law matters. He has successfully litigated a broad range of discrimination matters including claims involving sexual orientation, religious accommodation, disability, race, sex and denial of employment based on a criminal record.

He also represents clients in wage and hour and whistleblower matters and in contract disputes and formation and internal investigations. Ryan has served as co-lead counsel in several class action lawsuits and has appeared before a variety of federal district and appellate courts on behalf of plaintiffs.

Ryan chairs the firm’s Employment Law Group. Before joining Willig, Williams & Davidson, he was Assistant Chief Counsel with the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission, the Commonwealth's civil rights enforcement agency. He is the principal author of the Commission's proposed policy entitled Disparate Impact Discrimination Implications Related to a Denial of Employment Based on a Criminal Record.

After law school, Ryan clerked in Camden County Superior Court, Criminal Division for the Honorable David G. Eynon. He co-founded and is currently Board Chair for the Philadelphia Lawyers for Social Equity (PLSE) and its Criminal Record Expungement Project (C-REP).

WHAT INSPIRES ME ABOUT MY WORK

“I am inspired every day by my clients’ tenacity despite coming to me in times of crisis. It’s a privilege and honor to gain their trust and fight alongside them to rebuild their lives.”

AWAY FROM WORK

“I don’t have any down time! As a co-founder and chair of Philadelphia Lawyers for Social Equity, I stand with others to work toward just outcomes for low-income individuals who have had contact with the Pennsylvania criminal justice system. When I was at the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission, I saw how many people were being denied access because of their record. Everything we do is on behalf of someone who’s been harmed. We are the voice of the voiceless and the powerless.”

  • Devlin v. Ferrandino & Son, Inc., 2:15-cv-04976-NIQA (ED of PA). Served as co-lead counsel and obtained a settlement of $1.55 million on behalf of a class of Account Managers alleging that they were misclassified unlawfully as exempt from the Fair Labor Standards Act, 29 U.S.C. § 201, et seq. (“FLSA”) and Pennsylvania Minimum Wage Act, 43 P.S. § 333.101, et seq. (‘PMWA”) and were not paid for all hours worked or overtime.
  • Long v. SEPTA, No. 17-1889 (3rd Cir. 2018 – Precedential). Served as co-lead counsel in an appeal to the 3rd Circuit which held in a precedential decision that a group of job applicants, who were denied jobs based upon their outdated criminal records, has Article III standing to bring claims under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”).
  • Hickman v. TL Transportation, LLC, Amazon Logistics, LLC, and Amazon.com, LLC, 17-cv-1038 (Ed of PA). Served as co-lead counsel in a class action lawsuit where a Judge McHugh ruled that defendant, TL Transportation LLC, a company that delivers products for Amazon, broke federal and state law when paying drivers a $160 flat daily rate no matter how many hours they worked in violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act, 29 U.S.C. § 201, et seq. (“FLSA”).

SEPTA Background Check Discrimination

Willig, Williams & Davidson and co-counsel Outten & Gold, Public Interest Law Center, Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law represent job applicants alleging that they were denied job opportunities in violation of the Fair Credit Reporting Act and the Pennsylvania Criminal History Record Information Act.

Long v. Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, No. 16 Civ. 1991 (PBT) (E.D. Pa.) – Pending

On September 10, 2018, the Third Circuit reversed the district court’s ruling that SEPTA’s alleged failure to provide Plaintiffs with copies of their background check reports did not cause them concrete harm—allowing the case to go forward in federal court. The Third Circuit explained that this requirement in the FCRA allows an applicant “to ensure that the report is true, and may also enable [the applicant] to advocate for it to be used fairly—such as by explaining why true but negative information is irrelevant to his fitness for the job.” This was “‘the very harm that Congress sought to prevent, arising from prototypical conduct’ proscribed by the FCRA.”

Long v. Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, No. 17-1889 (3d Cir. Sept. 10, 2018) – Decided

Amazon Delivery Driver/Delivery Associate Unpaid Wages Lawsuit

What are the allegations?

Amazon Delivery Service Providers (“DSPs”) or logistics companies may have violated the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) and state wage and hour law, by:

Failing to pay overtime to their employees for all hours worked

  • Paying workers a flat day rate with no overtime
  • Misclassifying employees as independent contractors
  • Failing to pay employees time-and-a-half for any hours worked in excess of 40 hours/week

If you are a delivery driver or delivery associate for an Amazon DSP or logistics business, have put in more than 40 hours/week with no overtime pay, and are interested in discussing a possible case, please contact Donna Wozniak at dwozniak@wwdlaw.com or 215-656-3628 or Ryan Allen Hancock at rhancock@wwdlaw.com or 215-656-3679. Former delivery drivers and associates employed by an Amazon DSP or logistics company may also qualify for the class action.

Willig, Williams, & Davidson and Berger & Montague have filed the below class and collective actions against DSPs and/or Amazon alleging nonpayment of wages in violation of federal and state law across the country on behalf of delivery drivers and associates.

Willig, William & Davidson counsel: Ryan Allen Hancock

  • Hickman, et al. v. Amazon.com, LLC, No. 2:16-cv-07840 (E.D. Pa.) – Settled.
    We have reached a $1,800,000.00 settlement in this matter on behalf of Delivery Associates who were employed by Defendant TL Transportation LLC to deliver packages to Amazon customers in the United States at any time between March 8, 2014, and April 15, 2017.
    • Co-Defendants: Amazon Logistics, Inc., TL Transportation, LLC, Herschel Lowe, Scott Foreman
  • Johnson, et al. v. Trinity Couriers, Inc. et al., No. 1:19-cv-00686 (S.D. Ohio) – Pending
    • Co-Defendants: Rush of Ohio, Inc., Trinity Couriers of Austin, Inc., Trinity Couriers of DFW, Inc., Trinity Couriers of Denver, Inc., Trinity Couriers of Houston, Inc., Trinity Couriers of Kansas, Inc., Trinity Couriers of Minnesota, Inc., Trinity Couriers of Ohio, Inc., Trinity Couriers of San Antonio, Inc., Trinity Couriers of St. Louis, Inc.

No Fees Without Recovery:

Willig, Williams & Davidson employment cases are often litigated on a contingent fee basis, so plaintiffs and the class do not pay attorneys’ fees or court costs unless there is a recovery.

Related Links:

More than 200 delivery drivers are suing Amazon over claims of missing wages

Amazon Courier’s Daily Pay Violates Federal Wage Law: Judge

Former Amazon delivery drivers file lawsuit for unpaid overtime – WAFB 9

Are Amazon’s Speedy Deliveries a Threat to Public Safety? – Today Show

Education

  • Rutgers School of Law – Camden (J.D., 2003)
  • University of the Arts, Philadelphia (B.F.A., 1999)

Honors and Awards

  • Recognized by The Best Lawyers in America©, 2018 - present
  • Pennsylvania Super Lawyers (Thomson Reuters), 2017 - present
  • Philadelphia Bar Association's PNC Achievement Award, 2018
  • Philadelphia's 3rd Senatorial District Community Service Award, 2017
  • Public Interest Law Center, Pro-Bono Partner of the Month, August 2015
  • Author of The Double Bind: Obstacles to Employment and Resources for Survivors of the Criminal Justice System, 15 U. Pa. J.L. & Soc. Change 515 2011-2012

Associations

  • Philadelphia Lawyers for Social Equity, Co-Founder and Board Chair, 2010-Present
  • Part-Time Lecturer, Rutgers School of Law, Camden, NJ - Instructed Students on Trial Advocacy Techniques, 2016 - present
  • National Employment Lawyers Association
  • Philadelphia Bar Association
  • Bethesda Project’s Young Professional Advisory Board, Member, 2013-2015
  • MENTOR, First Judicial District of PA, Steering Committee, 2013-2015
  • Previous Member of the Board, Penn Law’s Journal of Law & Social Change
  • Supervising Attorney, Penn Law’s International Human Rights Advocates (IHRA)
  • Member of the Bethesda Project’s Young Professional Advisory Board, 2011 to 2013
  • Part-time Lecturer on Trial Advocacy at Rutgers School of Law, 2016 to present

Admissions

Bar Admissions

  • Pennsylvania, 2004
  • New York, 2015

Court Admissions

  • U.S. District Court for the, Eastern District of, Pennsylvania, 2008
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the, Third, Circuit, 2017
  • U.S. District Court for the, Northern District of, Illinois, 2018
  • U.S. District Court for the, Southern District of, New York, 2020
  • U.S. District Court for the, Eastern District of, New York, 2020
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the, Second Circuit, 2020

Employment

  • Willig, Williams & Davidson, Of Counsel, 2014-Present
  • Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission, Assistant Chief Counsel, 2005-2014
  • Camden County Superior Court, Criminal Division, Law Clerk for David G. Eynon, 2003-2004