Erik
Roper

As the middle child of Eastern European immigrants living in multicultural Southern California and an ardent Lakers fan (at the time), Erik grew up playing basketball surrounded by people from all walks of life. This early exposure to diversity taught him how to respectfully interact with people whose experiences, identities, and backgrounds differed from his own. His role as the middle child between two sisters led him to develop a keen sense of fairness and a knack for mediating disputes. These formative values now inform the ethos he brings to his work as a neutral investigator.

Erik’s interest in workplace investigations arises from his experience as a plaintiff’s employment attorney. He handled many cases where a lawsuit could have been avoided if the employer had conducted a fair, thorough, and impartial investigation. Erik wants to help people avoid lawsuits and get back to work by doing such investigations.

Experience

Erik has led or assisted in more than 30 workplace investigations since joining the firm in February 2023. These have included allegations of sexual harassment, discrimination, ethical violations, workplace bullying, retaliation, and misconduct by teachers and administrators toward minor students in public schools.

Erik has worked with public entities, private entities, and nonprofits. His investigations have involved employees, management, and employee organizations. He has investigated allegations against high-level executives.

Erik also conducts Title IX investigations for educational institutions. These have included investigations at all levels of education, from preschools to universities, at both public and private institutions. He has investigated complaints where the claims arose in athletic departments, academic departments, between faculty members, between students and faculty, between students and administrators, and involved members of publicly elected Boards of Education.

Erik graduated from the Association of Workplace Investigators (AWI) Training Institute for Workplace Investigators in May 2023. He is an AWI Certificate Holder (AWI-CH).

Before joining OIG, Erik was Of Counsel with the Bohm Law Group, where he counseled and represented plaintiffs in employment lawsuits including claims primarily alleging discrimination against various protected classes, whistleblower retaliation, wrongful termination, and/or defamation. He started his career as an environmental attorney, enforcing the federal Clean Water Act with a boutique Bay Area environmental law firm.

In law school, Erik worked with two student-led environmental organizations. He organized the Ecology Law Quarterly’s annual fundraising 5k run/walk event: Race Judicata, as well as the Environmental Law Society’s annual environmental law symposium.

Erik also served in the U.S. Army as a finance specialist from 1996-2000. He deployed to Bosnia in 1997-1998, and to Kosovo in 1999-2000.

Outside the Office

In his free time, Erik enjoys playing strategy board games, going backpacking, and spending time with family and friends.

“Raise your words, not your voice. It is the rain that grows flowers, not thunder.” – Rumi