Introduction

Karen is a shareholder in Fredrikson & Byron’s Employment & Labor Group. She is the co-author of Minnesota Practice: Employment Law and Practice and editor of Minnesota Employment Laws, both published by Thomson West Publishing, and was a creator of the online training program “Prevent Harassment: Promote Respect” for Employer Training, LLC. Karen has significant experience representing and advising employers in all aspects of labor and employment law in both the public and private sectors. She has written multiple articles on legal issues in the workplace and lectures locally and nationally on topics such as disabled employees in the workplace, family and medical leaves, accommodating religious practices, wage and hour concerns, and workplace harassment. In addition to representing employers before various tribunals, she is certified as an arbitrator and mediator by the American Arbitration Association and Rule 114 of the Minnesota Rules of Practice.

Karen has advised a broad range of employers, from small non-profits to publicly traded companies and government entities, on compliance with state and federal employment laws, including leaves of absence, wage and hour issues, disability and religious accommodation, union organizing campaigns, and union elections.

Karen has represented and counseled numerous health care organizations and educational institutions on labor and employment matters. She has represented health care providers, clinics, and large, multi-faceted health care organizations for over twenty years. She has drafted physician employment and separation agreements for her clients, counseled them on terminations, reductions in force, leaves of absence, and wage and hour issues, as well as representing them in collective bargaining, grievances, and organizing campaigns.

As an attorney in the University of Minnesota Office of the General Counsel, she advised and represented the University in matters related to collective bargaining and employment of its faculty and staff. She currently advises faculty hearing panels considering claims related to the denial of tenure and promotion, termination of faculty appointments, and claims related to academic freedom. Karen is a member of the National Association of College and University Attorneys and has spoken at its national meetings on employment law topics.

Karen has been named by her peers as one of the Top 40 Labor and Employment Law Attorneys and one of the Top 100 Women Attorneys in Minnesota. She has been named a “Super Lawyer” and a “Leading Minnesota Attorney” on multiple occasions, is listed in Chambers USA, and rated “AV” (highest rating) by Martindale-Hubbell Legal Directory. She is also listed in Best Lawyers in America, 2008 and 2011 Editions, Labor & Employment Law, and in the 2008-2010 editions of Chambers & Partners USA.

Education

• University of Minnesota, J.D., cum laude, 1978
• University of St. Thomas, M.A., with honors, 1972
• University of Minnesota, B.A., magna cum laude, 1971

Bar Admissions

• Minnesota, 1978
• U.S. District Court, District of Minnesota, 1978
• U.S. Court of Appeals, Eighth Circuit, 1979

Practice Areas

• Employment & Labor
• Alternative Dispute Resolution
• Nonprofit
• Aging & Disability Providers
• Non-Competes & Trade Secrets
• Internal Investigations

Representative Experience

• Has negotiated and drafted executive employment contracts, non-compete, non-solicitation, and separation agreements for individual and group terminations 
• Has conducted due diligence reviews on labor and employment matters in connection with mergers and acquisitions
• Has served as an arbitrator and mediator in cases involving claims related to executive pay disputes, discrimination, leaves of absence, retaliation, defamation, and unjust termination
• Has represented employers in various union related matters, and recently represented a health care facility in disputed de-certification proceedings that resulted in a victory for the employer
• Has represented educational institutions on matters related to faculty tenure, union organizing, collective bargaining, and unfair labor practice charges
• Has investigated numerous claims of harassment and misconduct in public and private sector workplaces
• Has represented private and public employers in union arbitrations, mediation of employment disputes, and court proceedings

Selected Publications & Presentations

• “Health Care Reform Act Requires Time Off for Employees to Express Breast Milk,” FredNEWS: Employment & Labor, July 2010
• “Ripple Effect of Nursing Strike Will Be Felt by Many,” co-authored with Rick Ross, FredALERT: Labor Law, June 7, 2010
• Speaker, Unions and the Obama Administration, May 11, 2010
• “Reminder: GINA Effective November 21, 2009,” FredNEWS: Employment & Labor, January 2010
• Presenter, Fredrikson & Byron’s Aging & Disability Providers Webinar, October 28, 2009
• “Workplace Investigations: How to Conduct Them and Why They Matter” and “Alternatives to RIFs,” Fredrikson & Byron’s 25th Annual Employment & Labor Law Seminar, October 8, 2009
• Speaker, Workers’ Compensation and Beyond: Key Trends and Developments that Employers Need to Know, May 5, 2009
• “Emerging and Complex FMLA Issues,” NACUA 2009 March CLE Workshop on Higher Education Discrimination Law, Tempe, Arizona, March 18-20, 2009
• Speaker, The Employee Free Choice Act: A Wake Up Call for Non-Union Workplaces, March 10, 2009
• “Now Everyone is Disabled and May be Organizing a New Union - How to Deal with New and Proposed Labor/Employment Laws,” Fredrikson & Byron’s Health Law Webinar, February 11, 2009
• “FOUR EXECUTIVE ORDERS: New Requirements for Federal Contractors and a “Heads Up” for All Employers,” FredALERT: Employment & Labor, February 9, 2009
• Speaker, The Employee Free Choice Act: A Wake Up Call for Non-Union Workplaces, January 21, 2009
• “Employee Free Choice Act: What It Means and Why Non-unionized Employers Should Care,” co-authored with Richard Ross and Krista A.P. Hatcher, FredNEWS: Employment & Labor, November 25, 2008
• “New Legislation,” “Reductions in Force,” and “That’s What She Said: What Pop Culture Can Teach Us About Employment Law,” Fredrikson & Byron’s 24th Annual Employment & Labor Law Seminar, October 30, 2008
• “The Incredible Shrinking Workforce: Employee Terminations and Reductions in Force,” Health Law Webinar, October 8, 2008
• “Labor Law Update,” FredNEWS: Employment & Labor, September 2008
• “Navigating a Reduction in Force,” Employee Relations Law Journal, Autumn 2008
• “GINA Legislation: More Protection for Employees, More Complexities for Employers,” FredNEWS: Employment & Labor, July 2008
• “Navigating a Reduction in Force,” FredNEWS: Employment & Labor, March 2008
• Editor, Minnesota Employment Laws, (2008, Vol. 17A, Minnesota Practice Series), West Publishing
• “Key Workplace Issues for Healthcare Employers,” Health Law Webinar Series, November 14, 2007
• “Blogs: Why They Matter to Employers,” FredNEWS: Employment & Labor, August 2007
• Co-author, Minnesota Practice: Employment Law and Practice, (2nd ed., 2003, Vol. 17, Minnesota Practice Series), West Publishing
• Author, Prevent Harassment: Promote Respect, Employer Training, LLC. 
• Speaker, “Separation Agreements: What  Works and What Might Not,” 2007 Upper Midwest Employment Law Institute, May 2007
• Speaker, “Drafting Non-Discrimination Policies,” National Association of College and University Attorneys, March 2007
• Speaker, “When Cultures Clash at Work,” Training program for employees of Minnesota state, local and federal human rights agencies, March 2007
• Speaker, “Twenty Tough ADA and FMLA Questions and Their Answers,” 2006 Upper Midwest Employment Law Institute, May 2006

Professional Activities

• Chair, Ramsey County Bar Association, Labor and Employment Law Section
• Executive Council, Minnesota State Bar Association, Labor and Employment Law Section
• Member, National Association of College and University Attorneys
• Adjunct Faculty Member, William Mitchell College of Law

Honors & Distinctions

• Named Top 50 Women Minnesota Super Lawyers 2010
• Ranked in Chambers USA; America’s Leading Lawyers for Business
• Listed in the Best Lawyers in America for Labor & Employment Law
• Top 40 Labor and Employment Law Attorneys in Minnesota, Minnesota Law & Politics Magazine
• Top 100 Women Attorneys in Minnesota, Minnesota Law & Politics Magazine
• Listed in multiple “SuperLawyer” lists, Minnesota Law & Politics Magazine, Twin Cities Business Monthly
• Listed in Law and Leading Attorneys
• Rated “AV” by Martindale-Hubbell Legal Directory

Community Involvement

• Board of Directors, St. Paul Jewish Community Center
• Board of Directors, Minnesota Women Lawyers
• Board of Directors, Resources for Child Caring
• Board of Directors, Melpomene Institute