The story of Troutman Pepper is the story of our clients — their needs, their satisfaction, and their successes. Both by nature and by design, we’ve made a higher commitment to client care our defining characteristic.
We seek to exceed expectations and drive client value through:
Innovation as A Service
Putting clients first — and empowering our attorneys and staff to innovate toward that end — has led to exciting advances. Like our proprietary e-discovery service, bespoke technology solutions, and market-leading client feedback program. We’re proud to be among BTI’s 2020 Client Magnets — the top 10% of firms recognized for pioneering approaches and anticipating client needs.
Client-Driven Growth
Serving our clients at the highest-level means offering the right resources in the right places to meet business objectives. The 2020 merger of our predecessor firms expanded our geographic reach and deepened our bench in critical practice areas. We also have strengthened our focus on key sectors including energy, financial services, health sciences, private equity, and real estate. We meet our clients where they are — and where they want us to be.
An Inclusive Culture
Our culture is central to our client care promise. From partners and associates to professionals and administrative staff, mutual respect, inclusiveness, and teamwork define our workplace. The best ideas arise when everyone has a seat at the table.
Redefining Community
Clients know we live in their world and value what they value. We are committed to improving our communities and serving their legal needs. Individuals and groups firmwide contribute time and talent to a wide range of civic, cultural, charitable, educational, and professional organizations. Factor in the thousands of pro bono hours we devote to important cases and causes, and you will see a picture of a firm that understands the true meaning of community.
Informed. Involved. Invested.
At Troutman Pepper, we pride ourselves on a higher commitment to client care. Our attorneys are more than just your outside counsel. We’re your late-night sounding board for a risky business decision, the extra set of hands when you have too much on your plate, the connection between you and other leaders in your industry, and the trusted adviser who will make sure you look good at the next board meeting.
Every day, at every level of the firm, we strive to go beyond what our clients expect or appreciate and deliver what they value. Your goals are our goals, and we will work with you hand in hand to develop innovative and responsive solutions to today’s challenges and tomorrow’s opportunities.
Troutman Pepper’s Client Care Office brings the message of “a higher commitment to client care” to life. Led by the firm’s Chief Client Care Officer, the group partners with our attorneys and professional staff to deliver feedback, value, and client experience programs that strengthen and deepen your relationship with the firm. The Client Care Office represents the voice of the client inside Troutman Pepper and examines how everything the firm does traces back to one question: How does this impact and benefit our clients?
Whether you’re visiting one of our offices or dialing into a conference call and whether we’re drafting a small contract for you or representing you in a large multidistrict litigation — the Client Care Office works to ensure every interaction you have with our attorneys and firm is exceptional.
Atlanta Office
600 Peachtree Street NE
Suite 3000
Atlanta, GA 30308
Phone: (404) 885-3000
Ashley Z. Hager
Ashley is a Partner in the firm’s Labor and Employment practice. She works with companies of all sizes – from public companies to startups – providing employment-related counseling, drafting the contracts they need to both retain their executives and protect their company’s confidential information and customer relationships, and defending them in litigation.
With each client, Ashley helps members of management and human resources protect their company and minimize employment-related problems by providing general employment and human-resources consulting on issues such as compensation structures, leaves and discipline, disability and fitness-for-duty issues, outsourcing arrangements, employee and manager handbooks, federal contractor...
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Chelsea J. Harris
Chelsea is an associate in the firm’s Labor + Employment Practice Group. She focuses her practice on representing employers in litigation disputes, including employment discrimination, disability accommodations, leave, and wage and hour litigation, under both federal and state laws. She also counsels employers on numerous employment law issues, including employee manuals, restrictive covenants, and nondisclosure agreements.
Prior to joining the firm, Chelsea gained experience working as a term staff attorney for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, where she gained experience reviewing cases involving Title VII, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Rehabilitation Act, the...
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Constance Brewster
As part of a full range of services, Constance advises clients on:
- Compensation and benefits issues associated with corporate transactions, including negotiating transaction documents, drafting employee communications, performing 280G analyses, conducting due diligence, and assisting with benefits and compensation integration issues.
- All aspects of defined contribution and defined benefit plans, including plan design, administration, compliance, governmental submissions, plan amendments, participant communications, plan merger and termination, and withdrawal liability and mitigation for multiemployer plans.
- Governance and fiduciary issues, including establishing benefit plan committees and investment subcommittees, preparing board and committee resolutions, negotiating service provider and vendor...
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Emily E. Schifter
Emily is an associate in the labor and employment practice, where she represents clients in a variety of labor and employment-related matters, including employment discrimination, leave, disability accommodation, and wage and hour litigation. Additionally, she counsels employers on many aspects of employment law and human resources issues, including employee handbooks, policies and restrictive covenants drafted under various states’ laws for a variety of circumstances, including as part of mergers and acquisitions.
Before joining the firm, Emily served as a law clerk to a federal judge, where she gained experience working on litigation involving a variety of matters and...
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Evan Gibbs
Evan is a Partner in the firm’s Labor and Employment practice. He is a practical, results-oriented attorney who partners with business clients to deal with their most critical corporate espionage matters. These matters typically involve the theft or unlawful retention of trade secrets and other confidential information by groups of, or individual former executives and employees. Additionally, these matters involve the enforcement of restrictive covenants such as noncompetes and nondisclosure agreements. Evan leverages his deep experience with digital forensics and his team of technical experts to ensure his clients’ matters are handled using the most cutting-edge forensic technology available....
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Moses Tincher
Moses Tincher is an associate in the firm’s Labor and Employment practice, representing clients in a variety of employment-related matters, including Title VII discrimination, harassment, retaliation, breach of restrictive covenants, trade secret misappropriation, and other business torts and forms of unfair competition. Moses also counsels clients in various labor and employment law-related areas, including the development of employee handbooks and policies under various states’ laws, workplace investigation and training, and reviewing and drafting other forms of employment agreements and contracts, including in mergers and acquisitions.
Prior to joining the firm, Moses served as a law clerk to a...
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Richard W. Gerakitis
Richard is a partner in the Labor + Employment Practice Group and handles a variety of complex commercial litigation matters. He has more than 35 years of experience in litigation, mediation and arbitration. Richard handles all types of employment matters, representing management in both union and nonunion settings. His specialties include trade secret claims; noncompetition covenants; employee breach of fiduciary duty claims; individual and class actions involving Title VII sex discrimination, religious discrimination and race discrimination claims; age discrimination claims; retaliation claims; Sections 1981 and 1983 civil rights claims; Fair Labor Standards Act, workplace safety (OSHA), Sarbanes-Oxley and other...
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Seth T. Ford
Seth is a Partner in the firm’s Labor and Employment practice. On behalf of clients ranging from startups to Fortune 100 Companies, in union and nonunion settings, Seth litigates and advises on matters involving confidentiality and non-compete agreements, trade secret misappropriation, union activities and unfair labor practices, whistle-blowing, discrimination, and wage and hour laws. He has successfully litigated labor and employment matters as lead counsel in over a dozen states and throughout the Southeast, including a variety of class and collective action claims. Seth regularly provides counsel to clients engaged in IT and software based business consulting, heavy equipment...
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Shirley D. Akrasih
Shirley is an associate in the firm's Labor + Employment Practice Group. Her practice includes litigation and counseling related to a variety of employment matters, including Title VII and ADA discrimination, harassment and retaliation, labor arbitrations, trade secret misappropriation, employment-related cannabis regulation, and employee handbooks and policies.
Shirley graduated from Howard University School of Law, where she completed her Juris Doctor and served as a staff editor for the Howard Law Journal. While in law school, Shirley worked as a Federal Legislative and Regulatory Affairs Legal Clerk for an American insurance company. She also served as a judicial...
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Yane P. McKenzie
Yane works with organizations of all sizes that hire foreign nationals requiring work-authorized visas. She counsels companies and individuals at every step, from exploring the available visa options and entrance of the individual into the United States to maintaining a specific status in the country on a temporary or permanent basis. She also provides actionable advice with respect to government audits/site visits and I-9/E-Verify matters.
She has experience in a wide range of visa categories, including E-1/E-2, L-1, H-1B, TN and O-1, as well as PERM labor certifications and green card applications. Yane has also been successful at...
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