Meg Vergeront, Partner

Practice

Meg's practice focuses primarily on employment and constitutional law. She helps private and public sector employers find common sense solutions to the day-to-day workplace problems they face, from hiring and firing and everything in between. She also defends employers in federal and state forums against a broad range of claims, from harassment and discrimination claims, to wage and hour claims, to claims of union contract violations.

Her experience includes:

• Helping employers create and implement key employment policies, like anti-harassment and drug and alcohol testing policies, and employee handbooks.
• Conducting employment practices audits designed to ensure that businesses' key employment practices are legally sound.
• Anti-harassment training.
• Drafting non-compete and non-disclosure agreements.
• Assisting employers with COBRA compliance.
• Routinely helping private and public sector employers make their way through the reasonable accommodation process required under state and federal disability anti-discrimination laws.
• Negotiating highly favorable settlements for private and public Wisconsin employers in litigation involving claims of alleged sexual harassment, sex and disability discrimination and retaliation.
• Successfully defending clients in federal court and administrative forums against sex, race and disability discrimination, harassment, retaliation and deprivation of constitutional rights claims.
• Advising group health plans on matters of compliance with HIPAA and COBRA, as well as claims review and plan and claim administration issues.
• Drafting ordinances regulating sexually oriented businesses designed to help communities combat the adverse secondary effects of such businesses.
• Successful defense at trial and on appeal of a municipality's ordinance prohibiting nude or semi-nude dancing in establishments that serve alcohol against claims that the ordinance violated the First Amendment, resulting in a published appellate decision that established important, and favorable, precedent for municipalities seeking to combat the adverse effects caused by the combination of sexually oriented businesses with alcohol.

Meg is admitted to practice in Wisconsin. Click here for her lawyer rating.

Education

University of Wisconsin Law School (J.D., 1993; cum laude)

University of Wisconsin - Madison (B.A., 1989; graduated with distinction)

Professional Recognition and Awards

Selected by peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America (since 2010).

Selected by peers as a Wisconsin Rising Star in employment/labor law (Milwaukee Magazine, December 2007).

Publications

Co-author of chapters on the "Wisconsin Fair Employment Act" and "Family and Medical Leave Act" in the Wisconsin Attorney's Desk Reference, published by the State Bar of Wisconsin (1994-present)

Co-author, "Disability Law in Wisconsin Workplaces," Wisconsin Lawyer (October 2004)

Co-author, "Employee Handbooks in the Municipal Workplace," Municipal Lawyer (May/June 2003)

"Employee Handbooks," The Municipality (May 2002)

"First Amendment Rights of Local Officials," Wisconsin Counties (July 1998)

Teaching Experience 

Author and presenter of educational materials for various seminars addressing state and federal developments in employment law, including:

• state and federal Family and Medical Leave Acts; 
• anti-discrimination laws; 
• hiring and firing do's and dont's; 
• the Americans with Disabilities Act 
• First Amendment; and, 
• wrongful discharge.

Professional Memberships and Activities

American Bar Association

State Bar of Wisconsin (Board Member: Labor & Employment Law Section, chair Program Selection Sub-Committee)

Dane County Bar Association