Julie has extensive, national experience defending businesses in complex cases involving claims of sexual assault, harassment, discrimination, workplace violence, wrongful discharge and retaliation. An accomplished litigator and trial/arbitration lawyer, Julie helps clients negotiate successful resolutions while managing the media attention that can often accompany these highly charged allegations.
Julie advises clients at every step of a dispute, from responding to initial allegations and complaints to conducting internal investigations, developing litigation strategies and negotiating favorable settlements. For those cases that go to trial/arbitration, Julie draws on her extensive experience in discovery, depositions, witness preparation, cross-examination and motions to gain the upper hand against even the most determined opposing counsel.
Julie also represents employers in a broad range of general labor and employment matters, including employee relations, reductions-in-force, Fair Labor Standards Act compliance, and whistleblower complaints, among other issues. To help clients minimize the likelihood of litigation, she regularly conducts investigations and provides training in anti-harassment, non-discrimination, and employee hiring, retention and supervision, among other areas. Julie advises a broad range of private-sector employers and has experience counseling defense contractors, for which she has developed an in-depth understanding of military regulations, and the application of related legislation such as the Defense Base Act.
On behalf of clients, Julie appears before numerous state and federal administrative agencies, including the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the Department of Labor (DOL), and the Texas Workforce Commission Civil Rights Division (formerly the Texas Commission on Human Rights). She has also represented clients in federal and state courts and arbitral forums across the country, and is admitted to practice in Texas state courts, the United States District Courts for the Southern, Northern, Eastern and Western Districts of Texas, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. She has handled cases in other parts of the country as well, including California, Florida, Kansas, Indiana, Maryland, New Mexico, Ohio, Oklahoma, Utah and Virginia.
Committed to helping advance knowledge in the area of labor and employment law, Julie is a contributor to the firm's blog, Hunton Employment & Labor Perspectives™, and is sought for her opinions by legal and business publications such as the Dallas Business Journal.