Legal advice and representation
Employment Law – Employees
Hiring; individual employment agreements, non-competition agreements; discipline and grievances, separation agreements, termination, including wrongful termination in violation of public policy; terms and conditions of work; wage and hour; equal pay; discrimination, sexual harassment, harassment, bullying, hostile work environment, retaliation, accommodation; income security, including unemployment benefits and social security; child labor. Employment matters involving international law, comparative law issues.
Labor Relations- Employees, individual union members, unions
Collective bargaining, grievances, arbitration, unfair labor practices, union organizing and representation; leadership training in conflict resolution skills and legal rights; inter- and intra- union conflict resolution.
Reported case, Forsman & Morris v. Employment Security Dep’t., 59 Wash. App. 76 (1990), review denied, 116 Wash. 2d 1005 (1991)
Consulting
International Law
Multilateral and bilateral treaties and executive agreements: applicability, interpretation; conflicts of law; comparative law issues. Human rights, environmental, and trade treaties. Workers’ rights and standards, including International Labor Organization treaties, bilateral social security treaties. Hague convention regime protecting children.
Other
Please inquire about practice in other areas of law, including estate planning for non-taxable estates.
Alternative dispute resolution approaches offered
Collaborative Law/Collaborative Practice- Employees
Representing employees in work-related disputes. Disputants and their attorneys agree in advance that no participant may threaten or resort to litigation. Participants are contractually bound to a set of principles requiring a cooperative approach. Negotiations are conducted face to face and confidential information is exchanged in a safe environment. Participants may jointly retain other professionals, e.g., vocational or communications experts, economists, mediators, as needed and agreed. Agreements reached are legally binding and tend to be more enduring.
Mediation- Work related conflicts
Facilitating communication as omni-partial neutral, taking into account culture, gender and other distinctions between disputants. Assist disputants in clarifying their interests and in generating options and solutions leading to agreement. Can help at any stage of a case where emotions or positions have restricted the ability to reach settlement. Recommend early mediation.
Conflict Coaching- Employees, organizations
Addressing difficult workplace behaviors through techniques involving empathetic, honest criticism and the communications reward structure of the organization, using conflicts as opportunities for relationship building.
Conflict Systems Design- Organizations
Conduct conflict audit: collect data, administer questionnaires, gather information to assess the full cost of miscommunication and unresolved conflict. Assist in developing responsive mechanisms for handling conflicts in the future through cross-functional team building.
ADR Training
Mediation Certificate, University of Washington; Collaborative Law Certificate; High Conflict Personalities (William A. Eddy); Culture and Gender in Mediation and Negotiation (Nina Meierding); Resolving Conflicts at Work (Kenneth Cloke)
