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Carolyn Cairns
PRACTICE EMPHASIS:
Carolyn is a shareholder whose practice encompasses a wide variety of employment issues and includes employee relations counseling, training, investigations and fact-finding, drafting of handbooks and other policies and procedures, as well as litigation in the areas of discrimination, wrongful termination, employment contracts, non-competes, wage and hour issues, and employment torts. In addition, a significant portion of her practice is devoted to service as a mediator and arbitrator.
REPRESENTATIVE CASES:
- Has represented public and private corporations in the defense of claims of age discrimination, retaliation, race discrimination, disability discrimination, sex discrimination and sexual harassment, religious discrimination, national origin discrimination and wage and hour violations.
- Has represented individuals in claims of discrimination.
OTHER EXPERIENCE:
Prior to joining Stokes Lawrence, Carolyn was a trial attorney and supervisory trial attorney for the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and was a partner in the firm of Cairns & McKinnon.
ACTIVITIES:
Carolyn has been a lawyer representative and co-chair to the Ninth Circuit Judicial Conference, a trustee and past president of the Federal Bar Association of the Western District of Washington, a trustee of the King County Bar Association, chair of the Labor and Employment Law Section of the King County Bar Association, chair of the Pacific Coast Labor Conference, and chair of the Employment Law Section of the Washington State Trial Lawyers' Association. She was a member of the ADR Task Force of the Federal Bar Association and is a member of WSBA ADR Section, the ADR Roundtable, and the arbitration and mediation panels of the American Arbitration Association.
EDUCATION:
Carolyn obtained her law degree, magna cum laude, from DePaul University School of Law in 1976. She received her B.A. in English Literature, cum laude, from Wheaton College in 1970.
ADMISSIONS:
Carolyn is admitted to the Illinois Bar (1976) and the Washington State Bar (1980).
PRESENTATIONS AND PUBLICATIONS:
Carolyn is a regular presenter at seminars and employment law institutes, speaking on a wide range of topics, including mediation and arbitration, how to evaluate cases, substantive areas such as disability and sexual harassment law and trial practice and discovery topics. She is the author of "Mediation of Employment Disputes" in the Washington State Trial Lawyers' forthcoming Employment Law Deskbook. Carolyn also provides training to employer groups in sexual harassment and other employment-related topics.