Labor and Employment Law Update 2024-2025

Hank Gates, Partner, Morningstar Law Group.  Hank is an employment lawyer and business litigation attorney in Morningstar’s Durham, NC office. His experience covers a broad range of areas in employment law, including discrimination, harassment, and retaliation claims under Title VII, the Americans with Disabilities Act, and other state and federal anti-discrimination laws; religious and disability accommodation, and family and medical leave claims; wage and hour disputes; employee restrictive covenant disputes; misappropriation of confidential information and trade secrets claims; and workforce-related contract disputes. In addition to his broad experience in employment law, Hank has handled construction law, land use, complex contract, business tort, and insurance coverage disputes in state and federal court.  See Hank’s full bio here.

Britney Weaver, Associate, Morningstar Law Group.  Britney is a litigation attorney who uses every tool at her disposal — inside and outside the courtroom — to achieve favorable outcomes for her clients. She brings a meticulous approach to litigation that allows her to resolve matters efficiently, and a personal commitment to service that ensures every client receives the attention they deserve.  See Brittany’s full bio here.

Jenny Cotner, Senior Managing Counsel (Employment) at Oracle.  Jenny is an experienced in-house employment legal professional at Oracle. She takes a practical and collaborative approach to partner with relevant HR and business stakeholders, providing legal counseling on a variety of complex employment issues, including onboarding and hiring, performance management, terminations, reductions in force, investigations, pay equity, paid sick leave, leaves of absence, reasonable accommodations, recruiting, wage and hour compliance, background checks, and compensation.  Jenny also develops employment-related policies and training, reviews employment-related provisions in commercial contracts, handles EEOC and state agency charges, and supervises outside counsel in employment litigation matters. See Jenny’s full bio here.