Kathryn Montgomery Moran

Biography

Kathryn Montgomery Moran is a principal and the office litigation manager of the Chicago, Illinois, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. She has extensive litigation experience in individual and class action cases in state and federal courts and administrative agencies.

When disputes cannot be resolved by agreement or dismissed on technical grounds, Kathryn tries cases before juries, judges, administrative law judges and arbitrators. She has successfully defended employers accused of the following: age, sex, race, disability and national origin discrimination, sexual harassment, retaliatory discharge, ERISA violations, Family and Medical Leave Act violations, defamation, fraud, tortious interference, infliction of emotional distress, breach of contract, and wage and hour violations.

Kathryn handles matters in state and federal courts around the country, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the Illinois Human Rights Commission, and other government agencies.

While Kathryn loves trials, she understands that not all of her clients share that passion. Her philosophy is to determine at the outset what her client’s goals are—be it early resolution, saving money, avoiding adverse publicity of defending a principle. She then takes whatever steps are necessary to achieve those goals. In some situations, the client’s interests are best served by mediating a case immediately and arriving at a settlement. In other cases, the client’s aims are best achieved by a jury trial.

Kathryn also counsels clients about a wide variety of matters with a view to avoiding costly litigation. This proactive approach helps clients avoid disputes and legal fees. Kathryn can provide strategies to:

• Reduce risk when terminating individual employees;
• Protect trade secrets and enforce restrictive covenants;
• Assist an employer in implementing a large-scale reduction in force;
• Resolve wage and hour issues, including tricky questions about which employees are “exempt” from overtime;
• Craft alternative dispute resolution programs which will withstand court scrutiny;
• Assist employers in investigating complaints of workplace harassment, violence and misconduct;
• Implement harassment prevention and other training programs;
• Revise employee handbooks and procedure manuals to reduce risk and prevent contractual liability; and
• Take whatever other steps may be needed to reduce or eliminate the risk of litigation.

A quick phone call to Kathryn can often help to avoid unpleasant conflicts with employees and expensive legal fees.

Kathryn is a frequent speaker and writer on employment law matters, including employment discrimination laws, the Family and Medical Leave Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Fair Labor Standards Act, sexual harassment, defamation, employment torts and other employment law topics.

Prior to joining Jackson Lewis, Kathryn was a partner at a large full service law firm. Prior to that, Kathryn served as clerk for Judges William R. Beasley and Roman S. Gribbs of the Michigan Court of Appeals.

Published Works

• “Recruiting Update: Make Sure Your Hiring Practices Comply With Current Law,” Illinois Banker (February 2016) [Co-Author]
• "Illinois Banned the Box as of Jan. 1, 2015; Is it Banned for Banks?" Illinois Banker (Nov/Dec. 2014 Edition) [Author]
• "Employment at Will," Illinois Institute of Continuing Legal Education’s Employment Termination Handbook (May 2010) [Chapter Author]
• "Recent Developments in Employment Law," American Bar Association Tort and Insurance Practice Section Journal (2003) [Author]