Chicago Adopts New Sexual Harassment Prevention Obligations for Employers

Nadine Abrahams is office managing principal of the Chicago, Illinois, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. She represents management in employment cases in federal and state courts and before administrative agencies. Prior to joining Jackson Lewis, Nadine was a partner with another prominent national labor and employment firm. She previously was senior counsel for the Employment Litigation Division of the City of Chicago Law Department. She has been based in Chicago her entire career and has extensive experience litigating all forms of labor and employment matters throughout the Midwest, in federal courts, state courts, and before administrative agencies. Nadine practices the spectrum of employment matters, including claims such as race, age, religion, national origin, disability and sex discrimination, sexual harassment, retaliatory discharge, and wage and hour issues. Her class action, collective action, and multi-plaintiff experience includes suits by both private parties and by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Nadine also routinely counsels clients on a variety of employment practices, including employment contracts and employee handbooks. She conducts employee training seminars, harassment investigations, and frequently speaks on employment-related topics.

James F. Botana is a principal in the Chicago, Illinois, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. He represents management in employment cases in federal and state courts, and before administrative agencies in a variety of employment and labor related claims. Prior to joining Jackson Lewis, he was a prosecutor and a senior attorney in the Employment Litigation Department of the Office of the Corporation Counsel for the City of Chicago. He has successfully prosecuted and defended numerous civil and criminal cases in trials and evidentiary hearings in federal and state courts. James has represented the City of Chicago in prosecuting criminal and quasi-criminal matters and has defended the City of Chicago in employment discrimination, civil rights, and insurance defense cases in state and federal court. Since joining Jackson Lewis in August 2000, James has continued to represent management before federal and state courts and administrative agencies in a variety of employment and labor related claims. He currently serves as a Special Assistant Corporation Counsel and represents the City of Chicago and its employees in a variety of claims. James was born in Havana, Cuba, and raised in Spain. He is fluent in Spanish and is frequently called upon by businesses with large Spanish-speaking workforces to train managers and supervisors as well as non-supervisory employees in both English and Spanish in best employment practices and to conduct investigations of employment related disputes. James is the former co-leader of Jackson Lewis’ Hispanic-American Attorney resource group, a group of attorneys in the firm who provide assistance in workplace law matters to businesses with a large Hispanic workforce. James is also a founding member of the firm’s Diversity Committee. James was recently reappointed to a second two-year term on the Illinois State Advisory Committee (SAC) of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights.

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.

Patrick Rocks is a principal in the Chicago, Illinois, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. Pat is a founding member of the Higher Education industry team. In that capacity, he represents higher education institutions in litigation brought by students and employees, including Title IX claims, whistleblower claims, and claims for breach of implied contract, promissory estoppel and injunctive relief. Since joining Jackson Lewis, Pat has devoted his practice to employment litigation and advice and counseling. His clients include colleges and universities, school districts, skilled nursing and hospice care providers, units of local government, manufacturers, and service providers. Pat advises or represents clients regarding wage and hour and WARN Act issues, reductions-in-force, selection procedures and a range of civil rights issues, including the Americans with Disabilities Act, section 1981 and Title VII claims, common law retaliation claims and whistleblower litigation. He also represents public bodies in Freedom of Information Act litigation. Pat served as the general counsel to the Chicago Board of Education, the third largest school district in the country, from 2005 to 2012. During his tenure at the Chicago Board of Education, he counseled and represented the Board and its senior management in a wide range of matters. He also managed the Board’s Department of Law, which includes 45 attorneys and the Board’s risk management, records retention, internal investigations and insurance programs. From 2002 to 2005, Pat served as the first assistant corporation counsel in the City of Chicago’s Law Department. As first assistant, he was the second highest official in the Law Department and assisted in the management of over 250 City attorneys assigned to 12 practice groups. From 1993 to 2002, Pat served as the chief of employment litigation in the City’s Labor Division and later as deputy of the Employment Litigation Division. In those roles, he managed a team of attorneys engaged in the defense of claims under sections 42 U.S.C. 1981 and 1983, Title VII, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Fair Labor Standards Act, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, the Rehabilitation Act and Illinois statutory and common law. Claims under section 1983 included first amendment retaliation and religious freedom, fourth amendment, and fourteenth amendment equal protection and due process property and liberty. In particular, Pat represented the City in consent decree and class action litigation involving selection procedures in the City’s police and fire departments. He has counseled clients on the development and validation of numerous selection procedures, including selections for promotional positions in the City’s police and fire departments and for teachers and principals in the Chicago Public Schools. Pat has substantial experience in the development and defense of municipal affirmative action programs, including the successful defense of affirmative action promotions in the Chicago Fire Department and the development of a race-neutral student assignment system following the vacation of the long-standing school desegregation consent decree in United States v. Board of Education.

James Hager is an associate in the Chicago, Illinois, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. His practice focuses on representing employers in workplace law matters, including preventive advice and counseling.