By Casey Sullivan

Dec 3 (Reuters) - A former Greenberg Traurig shareholder on Monday filed a proposed $200 million gender discrimination class action against the Florida firm, claiming it underpays female lawyers and is governed by an "old boys club."

Philadelphia lawyer Francine Friedman Griesing filed her complaint in New York federal court claiming the 1,700-lawyer firm violated the Equal Pay Act, a federal law aimed at abolishing wage disparity based on sex.

In the 52-page complaint, Griesing said she was seeking to represent 215 other current and former female Greenberg Traurig shareholders, to reform the firm's policies and to have a jury hear the case.

Greenberg Traurig disputed the allegations and filed a petition in Philadelphia federal court on Monday to block a jury trial and compel confidential arbitration.

Griesing's action is a "financially motivated public stunt," said Hillarie Bass, a Greenberg Traurig shareholder with whom Griesing said she had once discussed the alleged discrimination.

Greenberg Traurig has "an exemplary record of fairness and advancement irrespective of gender, race or creed," and its compensation system is based on merit, said Bass in a statement.

According to Griesing's complaint, Greenberg Traurig's all-male compensation committee, headed by CEO Richard Rosenbaum, makes "compensation decisions based on archaic assumptions that men were responsible for financially supporting a family."

Rosenbaum did not respond to a request for comment.

When Griesing received a bonus that she said she thought was too small in 2009, Philadelphia operating shareholder Michael Lehr, a member of the compensation committee, told her that the men had families to support and that she did not need the money, according to the complaint.

Griesing said in the lawsuit that Lehr admitted Greenberg Traurig underpaid her by more than $200,000 since joining in 2007.

Lehr did not respond to a request for comment.

Griesing also pointed to inappropriate comments made by Greenberg Traurig leaders and said in the complaint that "GT prioritizes, pays and promotes women who have intimate relationships with firm leaders or who acquiesce to sexualized stereotypes."

'FALSE PICTURE'

Griesing described in the lawsuit a firm social event where she was approached by an unnamed member of Greenberg Traurig's compensation committee who asked if she was "the fifty-year-old Philadelphia shareholder who looked like she was thirty." The shareholder then told Griesing he would take better care of her if she moved to California where he had more managerial responsibility, according to the lawsuit.

In 2009, Griesing filed a complaint with the Federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which enforces federal job discrimination laws. In June, the EEOC found that it had "reasonable cause to believe" that Greenberg Traurig discriminated against its female lawyers by underpaying and "treating them less favorably" than men, according to the lawsuit.

A spokeswoman for the EEOC said the commission does not make public any part of the administrative process, "including copies of the charge or any administrative determination."

Bass said that "Griesing's complaint paints a false picture of the work environment at Greenberg Traurig and the facts surrounding her initial claim to the EEOC."

Women have long struggled for a more equal role in law firms. According to a survey by the Minority Corporate Counsel Association released earlier this year, male partners earn $237,000 more per year than female partners. A 2012 study by the American Bar Association showed that just under half of law firm associates are women, while only 15 percent are equity partners.

"It's not only Greenberg Traurig, to be sure; it's a suspended problem in the legal industry," said David Sanford, a lawyer at Sanford Heisler who is representing the plaintiff.

Sanford said Greenberg Traurig stood out because it was rare for the EEOC to find reasonable cause for wrongdoing in its investigations into discrimination. In 2011, according to the lawsuit, the EEOC found reasonable cause of impropriety in only 3.8 percent of the investigations it undertook.

The case is: Francine Friedman Griesing, On Behalf of Herself and Others Similarly Situated v. Greenberg Traurig, U.S. Court for the Southern District of New York, No. 12-CV-8734

For the plaintiff: Jeremy Heisler, David Sanford, Janette Wipper, Jim Sullivan of Sanford Heisler.

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