Affiliations

• Georgia Association for Women Lawyers - recognized as Committee Star for 2007 and 2008

Representative Engagements

• Copp, et al. v. American Enterprise Services Co., et al., No. 4:11-CV-180 (S.D. Iowa Apr. 24, 2012) (obtained dismissal of Rule 23 class claims for potential class of more than 10,000 former insurance agents who alleged that Defendants had breached their agency agreements with putative class members and also violated the Fair Credit and Reporting Act)
• Avera v. United Air Lines, Inc., No. 11-11852, 2012 WL 794160 (11th Cir. Mar. 13, 2012) (affirming district court's order granting employer's motion for summary judgment in age discrimination and ERISA lawsuit).
• Scott, et al. v. Family Dollar Stores, Inc., No.: 3:08-cv-540-MOC-dsc, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 4669 (W.D.N.C. Jan. 13, 2012) (obtained dismissal of Rule 23 class claims for potential class of 18,000 employees with no leave to amend in lawsuit regarding gender discrimination in pay and promotions under Title VII and the Equal Pay Act).
• Lewis v. Wachovia Bank, No. 2:10-cv-01770-WMA (N.D. Ala. Nov. 22, 2011) (unpublished) (granting employer's motion for summary judgment in gender, race, and pregnancy discrimination lawsuit).
• Avera v. United Airlines, Inc.: No. 4:08-cv-00550, 2011 WL 1321748 (N.D. Fla. 2011) (summary judgment granted to employer on former employee's age discrimination and ERISA claims).
• Smiley v. Georgia-Pacific Wood Products, LLC, No. 3:09-cv-711, 2011 WL 2009466 (S.D. Miss. 2011) (summary judgment granted to employer on former employee's Title VII retaliation and wrongful termination claims).
• Robinson v. ITT Corp. Systems, 09-cv-1418C (Muscogee County Superior Court 2011) (granting summary judgment to defendants on plaintiff's defamation claim asserted under Georgia state law).
• Ruggles et al. v. WellPoint, Inc.: 2011 WL 709695 (N.D.N.Y. 2011) (district court granted employer's motions to deny Rule 23 class certification for potential class actions in New York, California, and Illinois).
• Johnson v. WellPoint, Inc.: No. 2010-SOX-00038 (ALJ Bergstrom 2011) (ALJ granted employer's motion to dismiss and motion for summary judgment involving SOX whistleblower retaliation claim).
• Ruggles et al. v. WellPoint, Inc.: No. 1:08-cv-201 (N.D.N.Y. 2010) (obtained significantly narrow order on scope of e-discovery in an action involving over 300 class members based on massive burdens and costs to employer associated with plaintiffs' requests).
• Crayton v. Valued Services of Alabama, LLC: 737 F. Supp. 2d 1320 (M.D. Ala. 2010) (district court granted employer's motion for summary judgment in its entirety, dismissing claims of pay discrimination, retaliatory discharge under Title VII, acts of retaliation unrelated to plaintiff's termination, misclassification under the FLSA, and retaliation in violation of the FLSA).
• Maddox v. Washington Mutual Bank, FA et al.: No. 1:09-cv-02943 (N.D. Ga. 2010) (obtained dismissal of race discrimination case based on plaintiff's failure to properly serve defendant).
• Brandt v. Crothall Services Group, Inc.: No. 4:09-cv-02249 (N.D. Ala. 2010) (obtained complete dismissal of pregnancy discrimination lawsuit with prejudice based on plaintiff's failure to prosecute her case).
• McCue v. Terminix International: No. 09-A-09336-6 (Superior Court of Gwinnett County, Ga. 2010) (successfully defended against an unemployment benefits appeal).
• Llano et al. v. H&R Block Eastern Enterprises: No. 1:09-cv-22531 (S.D. Fla. 2010) (successfully opposed motion for conditional class certification under the FLSA, avoiding potential national class of over 80,000 individuals).
• Miller v. Hoover Precision: No. 09-cv-2585 (Superior Court of Forsyth County, Ga. 2009) (successfully defended against an unemployment benefits appeal).
• Garcia v. DS Waters of America, Inc.: 372 F. App'x 925 (11th Cir. 2010) (affirming district court's order granting employer's motion for summary judgment in race and national origin discrimination and harassment lawsuit).
• Cartner et al. v. Hewitt Associates, LLC: 2009 WL 3245482 (M.D. Fla. 2009) (successfully opposed motion for conditional class certification under the FLSA).
• Marks v. The Westin Peachtree Plaza: No. 2008-cv-160820 (Superior Court of Fulton County, Ga. 2009) (successfully defended against an unemployment benefits appeal).
• Hummings v. Southern Foodservices: FMCS No. 08-57917 (Arb. 2008) (successfully defended employer in labor arbitration involving termination of employee pursuant to a collective bargaining agreement).
• Chemence, Inc. et al. v. Godfrey & Wing, Inc., No. 08-CV-147142 (Superior Court of Fulton County, Ga. 2008) (superior court dismissed complaint for declaratory judgment filed by former employee and his new employer, in which they sought to have restrictive covenants in employment agreement between the employee and his former employer declared void and unenforceable, for lack of personal jurisdiction). 

Presentations

• Panelist, "Georgia Gets Competitive: A Panel Discussion of the Proposed Changes to Non-Competition, Non-Solicitation and Non-Disclosure Agreements," University of Georgia School of Law (October 2010)
• Guest Speaker, "Wildly Successful Women," University of Georgia School of Law (October 2010)
• “Employment Law Update: Wage and Hour Trends and Restrictive Covenant Legislation," University of Georgia School of Law (April 12, 2010)
• "Employment Law 2010: A Year of Challenge and Opportunity - Update on Georgia Restrictive Covenant Law," CLE event (March 31, 2010)
• "Navigating Non-Competition and Non-Solicitation Agreements: Where We Are and Where We Are Going," Association of Corporate Counsel - Georgia Chapter (April 14, 2009)"
• "Navigating Non-Competition and Non-Solicitation Agreements: Where We Are and Where We Are Going," Habif Arogeti & Wynne (May 20, 2009)"

Publications

• Contributing Author, "Chapter 26," Wage & Hour Collective and Class Litigation, ALM Law Journal Press (2012).  Definitive treatise on wage and hour litigation.
• Co-Author, The Workplace Class Action Blog, available at: http://www.workplaceclassaction.com/
• Co-Author, “Federal District Courts Issue Two SOX Whistleblower Decisions That Favor Employers,” Seyfarth Shaw One Minute Memo (September 2, 2011)
• Co-Author, “Fifth Circuit Strengthens Defenses to SOX Whistleblower Claims,” Seyfarth Shaw One Minute Memo (July 1, 2011)
• Co-Author, ”SEC Issues Final Rules Implementing the Bounty Provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act,” Seyfarth Shaw Management Alert (May 26, 2011)
• Research assistant, "New Whistleblower Policies & Incentives: A Paradigm Shift From 'Oversight' To 'Insight,'” RAND, Center For Corporate Ethics & Governance(May 2011)
• Co-Author, “ARB Strictly Enforces SOX’s Whistleblower Provisions In A Pair Of Recent Cases,” Seyfarth Shaw One Minute Memo (March 23, 2011)
• Co-Author, ”District Court Takes Liberal Approach to SOX Whistleblower Pleading Requirements,” Seyfarth Shaw One Minute Memo (Feb. 8, 2011)
• "Georgia Gets Competitive", Georgia Bar Journal (December 2009)
• Featured in the Daily Report regarding Presentation to the Association of Corporate Counsel on Non-Competition and Non-Solicitation Agreements (May 5, 2009)
• Co-Author, “Trading Secrets Law Blog,” available at: http://www.tradesecretslaw.com

Accolades

• Georgia Association for Women Lawyers - recognized as Committee Star for 2007 and 2008
• Recipient of Outstanding Public Service Award from the Pro Bono Project of the State Bar of Georgia (December 2008)
• Featured in Atlanta Volunteer Lawyers Foundation Newsletter for obtaining favorable result for pro bono client (April 14, 2009)

Community Involvement

• Hirsch Academy (Board of Directors)
• Sierra Club - Georgia Chapter (Fundraising Chair, 2009 - Present)