People: Karen L. Stephenson, Counsel

Karen L. Stephenson

Counsel

Chicago
Direct: (312) 460-5295
Fax: (312) 460-7295
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Biography

Ms. Stephenson is litigation counsel in the Labor & Employment Department of Seyfarth Shaw LLP. She has extensive experience in handling all types of discrimination matters in public accommodations and employment. She has defended public accommodations (e.g., shopping centers, grocery stores, retailers, and hotels) in a broad range of accessibility lawsuits under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and similar state laws. She also advises clients on the requirements of Title III of the ADA and other disability laws and has created compliance tools and training programs for them.

Ms. Stephenson also focuses her practice on defending and counseling employers in a wide range of industries on complex labor and employment matters, including wage and hour class actions; wrongful termination and sexual harassment actions; and prevailing wage disputes.

Ms. Stephenson is litigation counsel in the Labor & Employment Department of Seyfarth Shaw LLP. She has extensive experience in handling all types of discrimination matters in public accommodations and employment. She has defended public accommodations (e.g., shopping centers, grocery stores, retailers, and hotels) in a broad range of accessibility lawsuits under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and similar state laws. She also advises clients on the requirements of Title III of the ADA and other disability laws and has created compliance tools and training programs for them.

Ms. Stephenson also focuses her practice on defending and counseling employers in a wide range of industries on complex labor and employment matters, including wage and hour class actions; wrongful termination and sexual harassment actions; and prevailing wage disputes.

Education

  • J.D., University of California, Los Angeles, School of Law (1999)
  • B.S., University of California, Davis (1996)
    Dean’s List
    Department Citations for Outstanding Performance in Political Science and Spanish

Admissions

  • California
  • Illinois

Courts

  • U.S. District Court for the Central, Southern, Eastern and Northern Districts of California

Presentations

  • New ADA Regulations – What You Need to Know, ICSC Member Meeting, Walnut Creek, CA (2006)
  • Title III of the ADA – How You Can Comply and How to Defend Yourself if You Get Sued, Morro Bay Chamber of Commerce Member Meeting, Morro Bay, CA (2005)
  • The juxtaposition of private property rights and rights of employees and non-employees under state and federal labor laws, Client Quarterly Conference, Deer Valley, UT (2003)

Publications

  • Chapter Contributor, “Chapter 7 - Defending Opt-Out Class Actions Under State Wage and Hour Laws,” Wage & Hour Collective and Class Litigation, ALM Law Journal Press (2012). Definitive treatise on wage and hour litigation.
  • “Recovering of Attorney’s Fees Under the ADA and California’s Unruh Civil Rights Act,” International Counsel of Shopping Centers Shopping Center Legal Update (2002)
  • Service Animals and the ADA,” International Council of Shopping Centers Shopping Center Legal Update(2001)
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Practice Accolades

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Events