Katelynn Gray

Areas of Practice

• Employment Advice and Counseling
• Employment Litigation
• Wage and Hour Litigation, including Class/Collective Actions
• Restrictive Covenants

Representative Matters

• Represented Fultra, a Mexico-based provider of motor transportation equipment and parts in North America and parent company of Fruehauf, in its acquisition of East Manufacturing, an aluminum trailer maker.

• Represented Park Avenue Dental Cosmetics before the New York State Division of Human Rights and successfully secured the dismissal of unlawful discriminatory practices charges related to race/color, pregnancy, sex, disability and familial status in violation of NY Exec. Law art. 15.

• Obtained an order from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit affirming summary judgment dismissing a former employee's race discrimination claim. Toussaint v. New York Dialysis Services, Inc.

• Successfully defended the former chief administrative officer of a leading financial services firm in an arbitration brought by a former employee alleging hostile work environment and discrimination.

• Obtained summary judgment dismissal of a former employee’s federal claims of race discrimination, religious discrimination, harassment, failure to accommodate, retaliation, and interference with FMLA rights. Reid v. Fresenius Medical Care North America, et al.

• Supervised and conducted internal investigations for management.

• Successfully defended construction company in an arbitration against claim of failure to pay prevailing wages.

• Obtained settlement that the client found favorable on behalf of home healthcare agency in a Fair Labor Standards Act and New York State class action lawsuit alleging failure to properly pay minimum wages and overtime.

• Won complete dismissal of discrimination lawsuit against a global leader in branded lifestyle apparel.

• Negotiated a favorable resolution of a threatened discrimination suit on behalf of a large New York City not-for-profit.

• Successfully defended a New York restaurant against claim for unemployment insurance.

Admissions

• New York
• U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York
• U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York
• U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit

Education

• Fordham University School of Law, J.D., 2013
  - Fordham International Law Journal
• Fordham University, B.A., 2010

Experience

• Duane Morris LLP
  - Partner, 2023-present
  - Special Counsel, 2021-2022
  - Associate, 2013-2020
• Goodman Solutions
  - Vice President and Assistant General Counsel, 2021
  - Sr. Director, Labor and Employment, 2020

Professional Activities

• New York State Bar Association
  - Member

Selected Publications

• Co-author, "New York Employees Will Soon Receive Pay for Breast Milk Expression Time and Prenatal Care Leave," Duane Morris Alert, April 29, 2024
• Co-author, "It's No Competition: New York City Legislature Proposes Sweeping Non-Compete Bills," Duane Morris Alert, March 8, 2024
• Co-author, "New York Frequency of Payment Claims Take Major Hit in Win for Employers," Duane Morris Alert, January 25, 2023
• Chapter Co-author, "TCPA Class Actions," Duane Morris Class Action Review 2023
• Co-author, "New Year, New York: What You Need to Know to Stay Compliant with Employment Laws in 2024," Duane Morris Alert, January 3, 2024
• Co-author, "Just In Time For The Holidays: New York Federal Court Gifts The Denial Of Plaintiffs’ Rule 23 Class Certification Motion In FDNY Bias Lawsuit," Duane Morris Class Action Defense Blog, November 30, 2022
• Author, "Failure-to-Accommodate Claim Defeated," SHRM.org, March 16, 2022
• Co-author, "U.S. Supreme Court Gives Green Light to CMS Vaccine Mandate and Full Stop to OSHA Vaccine-or-Test Mandate, Leaving Employers to Wonder: What Now?" Duane Morris Alert, January 19, 2022
• Co-author, "New York Employers Required to Provide Notice of Electronic Monitoring," Duane Morris Alert, January 4, 2022
• Co-author, "NYC Issues Guidance on Private Sector Vaccine Mandate, Expands Key to NYC Program," Duane Morris Alert, December 21, 2021
• Co-author, "New York State Adopts Mask Mandate for Businesses That Do Not Require Proof of Vaccination for Entry," Duane Morris Alert, December 13, 2021

• Co-author "Are Non-Compete Agreements Getting Kicked to the Curb?" New York Law Journal, November 2, 2018

• Co-author, "The Ninth Circuit Gives Support to Equal Pay Day," Duane Morris Alerts, April 12, 2018

• Co-author, "Losing Sleep Over Live-In Home Care Workers: NYSDOL Confirms "13 Hour Rule" in Response to New York State Appellate Court Rulings," Duane Morris Alert, October 25, 2017
• Co-author, "Taking the "Direct" Out of Direct Deposit: New York Attempts Crackdown on Employers' Ability to Pay Wages by Direct Deposit and Debit Card," Duane Morris Alert, February 28, 2017
• Author, "An Ivy League Feat for Student Assistants: NLRB Reverses Itself, Holding Student Assistants Can Organize," Duane Morris Alert, August 31, 2016
• Co-author, "New York's New 12-Week Paid Family Leave Law," Duane Morris Alert, April 29, 2016
• Co-author, "New York's New $15 Minimum Wage Plan," Duane Morris Alert, April 29, 2016
• Co-author, "NLRB Abandons Well-Established Joint-Employer Standard," Duane Morris Alert, August 31, 2015
• Author, "U.S. Supreme Court Holds Federal Agencies Can Issue New Interpretations Without Engaging in the Formal Rulemaking Process," Duane Morris Alert, March 23, 2015
• Author, "N.Y. Wage-and-Hour Update: Gov. Cuomo Eliminates the Annual Wage Notice Requirement," Duane Morris Alert, January 5, 2015
• Author, "U.S. Supreme Court Decides Time Spent in the Security Screening Process Is Not Compensable Under the FLSA," Duane Morris Alert, December 11, 2014
• Author, "Supreme Court Invalidation of NLRB Recess Appointments Clouds Many Board Decisions," Duane Morris Alert, July 1, 2014
• Co-author, "New York City Amends Paid Sick Leave Law to Encompass Employers of Five or More," Duane Morris Alert, March 13, 2014
• Co-author, "Department of Labor Extends FLSA Minimum Wage and Overtime Protections to Direct Care Workers," Duane Morris Alert, September 30, 2013
• Co-author, "New York City Bill Prohibits Discrimination in Employment Based on Pregnancy," Duane Morris Alert, September 30, 2013

Media Hits

• Quoted, "Some Companies Have Cut Back on Background Screening," HR Magazine, Summer 2022 
• Quoted, "Aegon PM Who Created Faulty Models Had Arrest Record," Ignites, September 11, 2018

Selected Speaking Engagements

• Speaker, "Developments in Workplace Law and Practice: Current Trends in Employment, Labor, Benefits, and Immigration and Their Impact on Your Business," Duane Morris LLP, New York City, May 8, 2024 
• Speaker, "The Challenges of a Hybrid Workforce," Duane Morris Institute (DMi), Webinar, August 9, 2023
• Speaker, "New York City and State Legal Update," Duane Morris Institute (DMi), Webinar, February 7, 2023
• Speaker, "Nipping Retaliation Claims in the Bud," Duane Morris Institute (DMi), Webinar, July 12th, 2022
• Speaker, "Beyond the OSHA ETS COVID-19 Vaccine/Testing Mandates and Workplace Safety," Duane Morris Institute (DMi) Webinar, January 26, 2022
• Speaker, "OSHA’s ETS: Vaccine and COVID Testing," Duane Morris Institute (DMi), Webinar, November 10, 2021

• Presenter, "Nipping Retaliation Claims in the Bud," Duane Morris Institute (DMi) Webinar, December 5, 2019

• Speaker, "Trends in Employment Litigation – Pay Equity," Reinsurance Association Of America, Westin Grand Central, New York, July 18, 2018

• Speaker, "Losing Sleep Over Wage and Hour and Healthcare Regulatory Requirements for Home Healthcare Workers," Duane Morris LLP, New York, January 23, 2018

• Speaker, Duane Morris' Developments in Workplace Law and Practice, New York, May 4, 2017
• Panelist, "Developments in Workplace Law and Practice: Employment, Labor, Benefits and Immigration," May 5, 2016