Katherine S. Somervell

Practice Experience

Katherine Somervell focuses her practice on all aspects of employment law. She enjoys being able to help her clients solve issues as diverse as dealing with problem employees to ensuring that the documents setting forth their employee benefit plans are compliant with ERISA. Having spent over a dozen years practicing solely in the employment and employee benefits arena, she is able to draw on those years of specialized experience to provide her clients with creative yet pragmatic solutions designed to ensure compliance with state and federal laws and minimize exposure to litigation or investigation.

Representative Work

• Assisting national pharmaceutical company with resolving complex discrimination claims based on both the ADA and FMLA
• Working with businesses to ensure that their employee handbooks are consistent with state and federal laws and provide optional provisions tailored to the client's specific needs
• Preparing employee benefit plan documents and summary plan descriptions to ensure compliance with state and federal regulations
• Assisting plan sponsors in responding to DOL audits and working creatively with the DOL to minimize the client's potential exposure to penalties 
• Drafting a health benefit plan compliant with state and federal mandates for a self-insured employer and successfully obtaining insurance department approval for the plan 
• Successfully defending a local college against a discrimination claim brought by disabled student