Kate’s practice spans employment law, professional liability, and insurance coverage. As an advisor with a robust background in litigation, Kate adeptly represents employers in lawsuits involving discrimination, sexual harassment, and wage and hour claims. She also provides counsel on workplace issues, helping clients develop policies and strategies to minimize litigation risks. She collaborates with them to craft policies, draft contracts, and respond to employee relations issues, all with an eye to mitigate risk and keep their operations running smoothly. Kate also provides workplace trainings on a variety of topics.
Kate understands that businesses come in all shapes and sizes. Her dual experience in representing both employers and individual clients gives her a unique perspective that enhances her ability to negotiate and advise on employment, severance, and restrictive covenant agreements. This dual capability is both rare and beneficial, enabling her to understand and manage the complexities from both sides of the legal spectrum. Examples of her clients are a local family business with fewer than 20 employees, a retail chain with stores in multiple states, and a 24-hour manufacturing facility with dozens of on-site workers. She often steps in as a critical resource for companies that don’t have a dedicated HR department or person. Kate enjoys learning the operations behind-the-scenes of her clients’ businesses as she develops long-term and trusted relationships with them as an advisor. She knows that every business is different, and that having a legal resource who not only knows the law, but understands each client’s business, can be a tremendous asset. Ultimately, she recognizes that employers want to focus on running and growing their businesses, not their legal woes. Kate proactively helps clients so that they can do just that.
In addition to her management-side practice, Kate also regularly represents individuals in the negotiation of employment contracts and severance packages and advises individuals seeking guidance on their rights and obligations related to restrictive covenants (e.g., non-competition, non-solicitation, non-disclosure agreements). Early in her legal career, Kate primarily represented plaintiffs in motor vehicle, general liability, workers’ compensation, product liability, nursing home negligence, and medical malpractice claims. Her experience representing plaintiffs and defendants has given her a valuable perspective in her practice.
Recent trends in Kate’s practice involve advising and assisting clients with new immigration policies. These engagements include advising on the I-9 status of employees and defending subpoenas, audits and raids from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). As outside employment counsel for many clients, Kate prides herself on staying abreast with the latest developments in law and policy and helping her clients navigate these legal shifts.
Throughout her career, Kate has represented clients in various Massachusetts trial courts (including District, Superior, and Probate and Family) and the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts. She has also represented clients at various administrative agencies, including the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination (MCAD), the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the Department of Unemployment Assistance (DUA), the Department of Industrial Accidents (DIA), as well as multiple Massachusetts professional licensure boards.
Kate is a proud graduate of Wellesley College and the evening division of Suffolk University Law School. Outside of her legal practice, she keeps busy with her husband and two children, spends as much time as she can with her family and friends, and tries to squeeze in a game of pick-up softball every once in a while.
