Kathryn M. Eppright

Kathryn M. Eppright is the Chairman of the firm's Employment Law Practice Group and a member of the firm's Civil Litigation and Business and Real Estate Transactions Practice Groups. Kathy's practice focuses on employment litigation and counseling in addition to real property and business litigation. This combination of experience has given Kathy a unique perspective on dispute resolution. In the field of employment law in particular, Kathy frequently provides pre-litigation counseling to assist clients in preventing future personnel claims and disputes.

Kathy graduated from Fordham University in 1989 with a B.A. in Philosophy. In 1992, Kathy received her law degree from Fordham's School of Law and joined the firm that same year.

Kathy has handled cases ranging from employment discrimination and sexual harassment to real property and business disputes. In addition to actions brought in state court, Kathy has successfully defended claims of discrimination, harassment and wage and hour claims filed with the Department of Fair Employment and Housing, the EEOC, the California Labor Commissioner and the U. S. Department of Labor.

Some of the matters Kathy has handled include:

Lead counsel for individual defendants employed by a national restaurant chain in a multiple-plaintiff sexual harassment case that was successfully resolved through mediation.
Lead counsel for joint defendants in a complex multi-million dollar partnership dispute that ended in a favorable settlement.
Served as assistant trial counsel or "second chair" on a seven-month trial of multi-party employment discrimination and harassment cases against a major public agency employer.
Successfully defended wage and hour and discrimination claims filed with the California Department of Labor Standards Enforcement.
Successfully prosecuted a real property dispute involving use and ownership of billboards, winning on summary judgment.
Defended a Texas corporation in a fraud case alleging misrepresentation in the marketing of investments in California, which resulted in a favorable settlement following the filing of a motion for summary judgment.

Kathy is admitted to practice in all of the courts of the State of California, as well as the Northern, Southern and Central Districts of California of the United States District Courts as well as the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

In 2001, Kathy served as President of the San Luis Obispo Bar Association after several years of service as a Board Member. Kathy also served as a member of the Board of the San Luis Obispo Children's Museum. Kathy has provided hundreds of hours of pro bono legal services for various community organizations, including the California Rural Legal Assistance program, the San Luis Obispo Women's TRO Clinic, the San Luis Obispo Chamber of Commerce and the San Luis Obispo Mozart Festival. Kathy has also served as a volunteer judge pro tem for the San Luis Obispo Superior Court. She is currently a member of the San Luis Obispo County Women Lawyers Association.

In 2003, Kathy was appointed by the State Bar of California Board of Governors to the California Commission on Access to Justice, joining other lawyers, as well as judges and a variety of community leaders, on this 23-member commission. Kathy will serve a 2-year term.

In addition to litigation services, Kathy is available as an investigator of complaints of sexual harassment, gender, race, disability or other forms of discrimination. Kathy also provides training and speaks to employers and professional human resource associations on current employment law subjects.