Laura A. Elkayam

Laura helps employers implement best practices to promote compliance with federal, state, and local labor and employment laws, while remaining mindful of each company’s unique business strategies and objectives.

Laura advises employers on matters pertaining to nearly every aspect of the employment relationship, including hiring, termination, leaves of absence, and wage and hour issues. She counsels clients on compliance with a variety of employment laws, including Title VII, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) and the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Laura also drafts and revises employee handbooks and drafts and negotiates employment agreements, separation agreements, and restrictive covenants.

Laura litigates, arbitrates, and mediates in the defense of claims brought against employers in state and federal courts, government agencies and alternate dispute resolution venues (such as the American Arbitration Association). She works with a diverse client base, ranging from large health care providers to small family-owned businesses. Laura works with clients to investigate claims, prepare defense strategies, and pursue favorable outcomes creatively and efficiently.

While in law school, Laura was a member of Chicago-Kent’s Moot Court Honor Society. She received the Honorable Edmund Burke Award for Excellence in Forensic Oratory and the Fay Clayton Award for Outstanding Oral Advocacy. In the 2011 Moot Court National Championship, her team was awarded Best Brief and her work was published in the Houston Journal of Health Law & Policy.