Thompson Coburn LLP is pleased to announce that Matthew B. Banocy and Mark W. Guest have joined as partners in the firm’s Labor & Employment Practice in St. Louis and Chicago, respectively. Their additions build on a period of strategic growth for the firm’s national Labor & Employment team. Together, their practices strengthen the firm’s platform to advise and defend employers in complex workplace disputes, employment litigation, and emerging areas of risk, including biometric privacy.
Banocy is a seasoned trial attorney who represents corporate and individual clients in complex employment and business litigation matters. He serves as lead counsel for clients before federal and state courts, in arbitration, and before administrative agencies, defending employers against claims under Title VII, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Fair Labor Standards Act, and the Family and Medical Leave Act. He also prosecutes and defends business litigation claims involving restrictive covenants, trade secrets, and breaches of contract.
Guest is an experienced litigator who represents private and public entities in a wide range of labor and employment matters. He regularly advises clients on the laws and regulations that govern the employer-employee relationship, as well as the day-to-day management of complex organizations. His practice includes employment advice and counseling, wage and hour class actions, ADA compliance and defense, ERISA litigation, complex business and commercial litigation, and claims brought under the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act.
“Matt and Mark bring significant litigation experience and practical insight into the increasingly complex matrix of challenges employers face today,” said Laura Jordan, chair of Thompson Coburn’s litigation group. “Their complementary practices deepen our capabilities in Chicago and St. Louis while enhancing the counsel we provide to clients nationwide.”
Banocy and Guest join a deep and growing bench of labor and employment lawyers at Thompson Coburn. Grace H. Lee and Janice P. Gregerson recently joined the firm’s education practice, bringing deep experience in labor and employment issues facing K-12 independent schools. Additional recent hires include partner Matthew A. Brown in New York and counsel Elizabeth Lobaugh in Los Angeles, as well as associates in Los Angeles, New York, St. Louis, Chicago, and Birmingham. The team’s national platform has continued to expand significantly since the 2025 addition of a Los Angeles-based lateral partner team focused on wage and hour law.
Guest is the founder and chair of the Chicago Bar Association’s Biometric Information and Privacy Law Committee and previously served as chair of the association’s Tort Litigation Committee. He has also coached the Loyola University Chicago School of Law First Amendment Moot Court Team and previously served on the board of directors of the PADS Lake County Homeless Shelter.
“Employers are navigating increasingly complex questions around the workplace and technology, ,” said Guest. “Thompson Coburn has the national reach and multidisciplinary capabilities to help clients address those risks comprehensively, and I am excited to contribute my experience to that work.”
Banocy has been recognized by Missouri & Kansas Super Lawyers as a Rising Star and by The Best Lawyers in America in the areas of Labor and Employment Law – Management and Litigation – Labor and Employment.
“Thompson Coburn’s depth across employment counseling, business litigation, and traditional labor matters was a strong draw for me,” said Banocy. “I look forward to working with colleagues across the firm to provide employers with practical guidance and vigorous representation, from preventive counseling through every stage of a dispute.”
Banocy earned his J.D. degree from the University of Missouri and holds a Bachelor’s degree from Southeast Missouri State University. He joins from Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner. Guest earned his J.D. degree and a Master’s Degree in Public Health and Health Policy from Saint Louis University. He also holds a Bachelor’s Degree, cum laude, from the University of Notre Dame. He joins from Lewis Brisbois.
