Overview
Heather focuses her practice on management-side employment law, concentrating her efforts on counseling and litigation prevention for transportation and manufacturing companies. She represents employers in all types of discrimination and harassment litigation in federal and state courts across Missouri, Kansas, and Texas, as well as in mediation and administrative investigations before the EEOC, OFCCP, OSHA, and state and local fair employment practices agencies. Heather has successfully defended more than 100 compliance audits before the OFCCP across five of their six regions, defended and received favorable findings for hundreds of charges of discrimination filed with the EEOC and FEPAs across nearly two-thirds of the US, and secured summary judgment findings and defense jury trial verdicts in federal and state court.
As a former Director Equal Employment Opportunity for a major US transportation company, her end goal is to provide real-world advice by translating an increasingly complex labor and employment landscape into realistic, effective, proactive, and compliant business practices.
Professional & Civic Associations
- American Bar Association, Labor & Employment Law Section
- American Bar Association, Infrastructure & Regulated Industries Section
- State Bar of Texas
- Missouri Bar
- Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association
- Society for Human Resources Management
- National Association of Railroad Trial Counsel, Member
- Women’s Foundation Inner Circle Member (2017-2018)
- The Arts Council of Fort Worth, Texas, Board of Directors (2016)
Press Room
About Me
Heather enjoys reading, cooking, and health and fitness. She and her husband enjoy watching and cheering on all TCU sports and running long miles with their two vizslas, Dutch and Sammy, who happened to be named after two TCU football legends.
Representative Matters
Representative Matters
- EEOC investigations in Washington, California, New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado, Minnesota, Illinois, Tennessee, Missouri, Kansas, South Carolina, and Texas.
- Investigations by state and local FEPAs in Washington, Oregon, California, Montana, North Dakota, Wyoming, Nebraska, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Ohio, Missouri, Kansas, and Texas.
- OFCCP compliance audits in the OFCCP’s Southeast, Mid-Atlantic, Midwest, Southwest and Rocky Mountain, and Pacific Regions.
News & Analysis
Client Presentations & Firm Publications
- 300 S. Wacker Dr., Chicago, Illinois 60606
Speaking Engagements & Industry Publications
- BNSF Railway Prevails in Kansas Age Bias Trial, Law 360, February 5, 2020
- “On Tap at OFCCP: Posting of CSALs and Focused Reviews,” The OFCCP Digest, Vol. 9, Issue 3, 2019
- BNSF Gets Quick Win In Ex-Worker’s Disability Bias Suit, Law 360, November 14, 2018
- “Responding to Allegations of Harassment in the Age of #MeToo and Time’s Up,” presented to the Northwest Missouri HRMA, October 2018
- “OFCCP to Recognize Innovation and Expand Enforcement,” The OFCCP Digest, Vol. 8, Issue 9, 2018
- “Mobile Devices at Work,” presented at the SHRM-KC Monthly Luncheon, May 2018
- “OFCCP’s Town Hall Action Plan: A Response to Contractors’ Concerns or the U.S. Chamber’s Hard-Hitting Report?,” The OFCCP Digest, Vol. 8, Issue 6, 2018
- "Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm."
- Ralph Waldo Emerson
Practices
Practice Emphasis
- Harassment and Discrimination Investigations
- Compliance Audits
- Defense of Employment Litigation
- Reasonable Accommodations
- Employment Policy Formulation, Analysis, and Advice
- Employment Law Training
- Defense of EEOC and FEPA Charges
Education
University of Denver, Sturm College of Law
- J.D., 2003
Texas Christian University
- B.S., 2000
Bar & Court Admissions
- Texas, 2008
- Missouri, 2017
- U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas
- U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri
- U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas