The Employment Law Summit – Atlanta

Destiny is a seasoned labor and employment attorney with over 18 years of legal experience spanning public service, private practice, corporate in-house roles, and pro bono work. A United States Army veteran, she began her legal journey with the SEIU in Washington, D.C. She continued on to Georgia, progressing to significant roles as Assistant Attorney General, Senior Counsel at a labor and employment law boutique, an HR professional, and currently in-house Senior Global Labor and Employment Counsel at Southwire Company. Throughout her legal career, Destiny has defended and advised on various legal matters across various practice areas in state and federal jurisdictions. A respected speaker and legal writer, Destiny regularly contributes her expertise to DEI&B and employment law panels and has written for publications such as the HR Daily Advisor and the Georgia Employment Law Letter. Destiny continues her path of service by providing pro bono legal services to the Georgia Justice Project. Dedicated to advancing inclusion and belonging, Destiny mentors new lawyers.

Tifanie R. Owens is a highly experienced attorney with 18 years of diverse legal experience. She began her career as an Assistant City Prosecutor for the City of Cincinnati, where she handled criminal prosecution matters. Shortly thereafter, she was promoted to Assistant City Solicitor for the City of Cincinnati, handling a variety of civil cases including Title VII litigation, labor union matters, collections, and general civil litigation on behalf of the city. Owens then transitioned to a practice focusing on high-asset family law cases as an Associate Attorney at Phyllis G. Bossin, Co. LPA. Soon thereafter, she was recruited by Cordell & Cordell to establish and manage multiple new offices for the firm. Owens’ expertise includes advising on divorce and child custody matters, personal injury litigation, negotiating commercial contracts, and handling various other civil and litigation issues. Currently, she serves as In-House Counsel at NextEdge Networks Holdings LLC, providing legal advice to management on commercial agreements and other civil and employment law-related matters.

Patrick Ouzts is the Vice-President, Assistant General Counsel for Atrium Hospitality, a leading hotel management company with 8,000 Associates and operations in 29 states.
Patrick received his law degree from Georgia State University (magna cum laude) in 2008 and his B.A. in English Education (cum laude) from Berry College in 2003.
As a lawyer, Patrick has represented school districts, airlines, and hotels, always in labor and employment matters. Outside of law, Patrick is a father of four, volunteer coach with various youth sports, and recreational golf/tennis player.

Mariángela Corales is the General Counsel, Vice President of Legal and Compliance, and Corporate Secretary for Goodwill of North Georgia. As head of Goodwill’s legal and compliance teams, she leads legal and business professionals agency-wide dedicated to legal and employment matters, risk management, safety, compliance, workers’ compensation, real estate development, DE&I initiatives, and she provides advice and counsel to the CEO and Board of Directors. Mariángela is as a lecturer at the Georgia Institute of Technology, a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA), and a board member for the Latino Community Fund.

Mariángela is a first generation Cuban-American, born and raised in South Florida. She attended Florida State University, earned her Bachelor of Arts from Florida International University and her Juris Doctor from the University of Miami. She resides in the metro-Atlanta area with her family.

As the Senior Corporate Counsel for Microsoft Corporation’s Global Financial Services Industry, Steve Rosenboro provides legal guidance to Microsoft’s corporate and regional leaders on how to plan, execute, and negotiate complex strategic transactions, and works with financial services customers, partners, and regulators on policy and regulatory compliance matters. Steve has nearly 30 years of operational and legal experience in various fields, such as cloud, SaaS, IoT, AI, Blockchain, innovation development, media and communications, government industry, on-line automotive, and financial services.

Since joining IDEX in 2022 as part of its Commercial team, Mr. Rego has acted as the lead attorney for several of the IDEX business units including the global IDEX Fire and Safety businesses; counseling on all aspects of their commercial operations. Most recently has been involved in revamping distribution agreements and channels partner agreement across several IDEX business units. Prior to joining IDEX Mr. Rego spent 20 years at Underwriters Laboratories Inc. (now UL Solutions). Initially joining UL in 2002 as a litigation attorney, Mr. Rego has served in several roles and functions within UL’s in-house legal team. While at UL he primarily managed employment and products liability litigation. He spent 2010 in Washington, D.C. supporting UL’s government affairs department and lobbying efforts. From 2011 through 2014 he supported UL’s internal M & A team performing internal due diligence on and negotiating purchase agreements completing four acquisitions during that time. He also served as the Corporate Secretary from 2014-2019 for both of UL’s Canadian affiliates, Underwriters Laboratories of Canada Inc. and ULC Standards.

He has represented UL globally in Europe and India and has recently managed the establishment of branch offices and partnerships in the Middle East (Dubai and Saudi Arabia).

In 2008 & 2103 he received the UL Mark of Excellence Award (UL’s highest award given on a yearly basis that rewards excellence in quality improvement) for his work on development of E85 Standards and hydrogen fueling stations.

Prior to joining UL, from 1999 through 2002 UL Mr. Rego worked for an intellectual property boutique law firm focusing his practice on copyright and trademark protection and prosecution. From 1997 through 1999 Mr. Rego was an Assistant Attorney General for the State of Illinois working in its General Litigation Division.
Mr. Rego holds a JD from DePaul University in Chicago, a MBA from The University of Notre Dame in South Bend, IN and a BS in Finance from Boston College in Chestnut Hill, MA.

Katherine Williams has been growing her career with Diaz Foods for the past 18 years, and currently serves as Chief Compliance Officer and EVP of Human Resources. Diaz Foods is an ethnic food importer distributing to restaurants and supermarkets in twenty-eight states. In her capacity, Katherine oversees the day-to-day human resources needs of 400 employees throughout 15 states as well as advising the other companies that fall under the Diaz Group. Additionally, she is responsible for the management of all legal issues that are presented to the companies. With her experience, education and institutional knowledge of the company, Katherine brings a unique perspective to the company as well as community that they serve.
While working at Diaz Foods, Katherine received her JD from Georgia State University through their part-time evening program. She also received a Bachelor of Arts in Spanish and International Business from GSU. Katherine serves on the board of Open Hand Atlanta, the Advisory Board of the Atlanta Community Food Bank, and is an Alumni of Leadership Atlanta Class of 2024. Although not an Atlanta native, Katherine has lived in Atlanta most her life. In her free time, Katherine enjoys volunteering, exploring the city she calls home, as well spending quality time with her dog at home.

Terri Stewart is a regional managing partner in the firm’s Atlanta office. She represents management in all areas of labor and employment law in state and federal courts as well as before state and federal agencies.

Her practice focuses on the defense of employment related lawsuits in trial and appellate courts, encompassing a variety of issues, including claims arising under Title VII, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), and related state claims such as trade secret infringement, restrictive covenants, breach of contract and tort actions.

Terri also frequently advises employers on reductions in force, drafts employment agreements, personnel policies, separation agreements and releases, and conducts on-site training on topics such as employment law compliance and avoidance of harassment claims.

Terri has been listed in Georgia Super Lawyers – Rising Stars since 2011. She also received the top “40 under 40” Award by the Atlanta Business Chronicle. The award honors the top 40 business people in Atlanta under the age of 40. Recently, she was chosen by the Daily Report, Atlanta’s leading legal newspaper, as a member of the 2015 class of “On the Rise” – the top 40 Georgia lawyers under the age of 40.Terri is also a recent graduate of the L.E.A.D. Atlanta Class (a division of Leadership Atlanta).

Jana Korhonen is an experienced employment litigator and practical, trusted advisor. Jana partners with clients to understand their businesses and regularly counsels clients on employment-related matters, including terminations, reductions in force, employee handbooks, discipline, internal investigations, systemic discrimination, leaves of absence, workplace accommodations, wage and hour compliance, and diversity and inclusion initiatives. Jana regularly advises clients on pay transparency, pay equity, and compensation audits. She has worked most closely with clients in the hospitality, manufacturing, entertainment, energy, and healthcare industries.

Jana has experience representing clients in federal and state courts, in mediations and arbitrations, and before administrative agencies. She has handled actions alleging wage and hour violations, discrimination, harassment, retaliation, failure to accommodate, tortious interference, whistleblower and wrongful termination claims.

Nathan represents and counsels employers in a broad range of employment matters arising under state and federal laws, including:

• Title VII
• The Americans with Disabilities Act
• The Age Discrimination in Employment Act
• The Family and Medical Leave Act
• The Fair Labor Standards Act
• The Occupational Safety and Health Act
• Contingent workers and independent contractors
• Restrictive Covenant and Trade Secret Litigation

For over ten years, Nathan has successfully defended lawsuits alleging single plaintiff and class claims, including alleged class-wide wage hour violations and systemic discrimination. He has obtained defense verdicts in jury and bench trials. He has represented clients in state and federal courts and before various federal and state agencies, including the EEOC, the NLRB, and the Department of Labor.

Greg Hare has been an employment lawyer at Ogletree Deakins his entire career, since 1991. He assists companies with human resources and employment-related litigation matters, including wrongful termination claims, sexual harassment, employment discrimination, employment contracts, trade secrets, and noncompete agreements.

Greg also counsels clients on traditional labor relations matters involving union avoidance, decertification, strike contingency planning, grievance administration and arbitration, collective bargaining, unfair labor practice litigation, and other matters involving the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).

Greg advises clients on a wide range of human resources topics and encourages companies to develop proactive human resources strategies that will minimize exposure to costly litigation and disputes. This includes conducting compliance audits, employment policy design and review, management training, and counseling.

Currently serving as Senior Director and Associate General Counsel for Employment & Litigation at Snowflake Inc., Anthony uses his extensive knowledge of employment law and litigation to manage risk and support business needs around the world.  During a period of rapid growth from 3,000 to 8,000 employees across 35 countries, he has built and leads a global legal team responsible for implementing scalable policies and addressing complex employment and litigation challenges.  Prior to joining Snowflake, Anthony held senior legal positions at Global Payments Inc., represented clients in litigation and employment matters at a law firm, clerked for a federal judge in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, and served as a judge advocate and infantry officer in the United States Marine Corps.  He continues to serve his country as a Colonel in the United States Marine Corps Reserve supporting military talent acquisition and recruiting efforts.  Outside of his professional life, he is passionate about his family, section hiking the Appalachian Trail, trail running, old Ford Broncos, and supporting the Atlanta Braves.

Sadiqa Banks has 14.5 years of experience in employment law, which involves employment litigation, federal agency, corporate employment consulting, HR development, corporate employment investigations, and employment training and development. Currently, Sadiqa is the Associate General Counsel, Employment & Immigration for a fintech, OppFi. Prior to OppFi, Sadiqa served as Assistant General Counsel & HR Consultant at Engage PEO.
Sadiqa has been described as having a 360-degree view of the employment relationship. She ultimately promotes, “Your career. Your responsibility.” She teaches this approach to help employees be proactive about their career path and how they can better participate and show up in the workplace.
Sadiqa is born and raised in New York City, holding a J.D. from Thurgood Marshall School of Law – Texas Southern University, and a B.A. from John Jay College of Criminal Justice, City University of New York.

Amy Cisrow-Peterson serves as Assistant General Counsel, Litigation Management to Rack Room Shoes Inc. and its subsidiary, Off Broadway Shoes Inc., members of the Diechmann Group, with over 525 retail shoe stores operating in 38 states.  The Deichmann Group, is a German-based privately held shoe retailer that operates in over 17 countries with stores throughout Europe and Eastern Europe and sells well over 100 million pairs of shoes annually.

In her role as Assistant General Counsel Amy handles a variety of corporate matters (within the retail, technology, human resources, sales, landlord/tenant and supply chain areas), oversees and manages all litigation (which consist of a broad range of high dollar transactional and litigation matters, including but not limited to contract disputes, general liability claims, intellectual property disputes, employment claims and class action lawsuits).  Amy  also counsels  middle and senior management across multiple geographies in regards to legal issues that arise from actual or anticipated lawsuits and occasionally represent the organization in small claims proceedings (where jurisdictionally allowed). Finally, Amy also manages retained outside legal counsel and legal vendors.  As a result of the distinctive blend of Amy’s practice, she encounters the challenges involved with dealing with opposing counsel not only through retained counsel, but directly as well. Amy finds that her prior courtroom and private practice experience allows her to provide unique resolutions to her corporate client/employer.

Prior to joining Rack Room Shoes Inc., Amy served as a Staff Attorney with The South Carolina Centers for Equal Justice (SCEJ), a non–Profit Corporation that provides free legal services in a wide variety of civil legal matters to low-income residents of South Carolina.  While serving in this role, ninety percent (90%) of her practice was concentrated in litigation. Her time working with SCEJ was a rewarding experience and has proven to be an invaluable tool in formulating successful commercial litigation strategies and in representing her client in Federal and State Employment Commission proceedings.

Outside of her duties at Rack Room and Off Broadway Shoes, Amy is involved with the Charlotte Chapter of the Association Corporate Counsel, Women of Color of Corporate Counsel, The Minority Corporate Counsel Association, and the Diversity Counsel of the Carolinas.  In 2015 Amy was one of seventy participants (out of 600 applicants)  selected by the National Society of Corporate Compliance & Ethics to participate in the FBI and US Department of Justice Corporate Compliance Outreach Event in Washington, DC and Quantico, VA. This event, a partnership between the Society of Corporate Compliance and Ethics and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, was developed to help train management level corporate employees on the dangers of internal economic espionage and money laundering, as well as the development of a comprehensive plan to address emerging cyber threats.

Amy’s distinctive background of private and corporate practice combined with her strong management skills and sound business acumen provide a creative and resourceful problem-solving approach.  Amy is a firm believer that in order to keep justice blind you must encourage the free exchange of diverse ideas within the legal community.

Jason M. Loring, FIP, CIPM, CIPP/US, is a partner in Jones Walker’s Corporate Practice Group and co-leader of the firm’s privacy, data strategy, and artificial intelligence team. He advises clients on data privacy and protection, cybersecurity, data governance, breach response, data strategy, and artificial intelligence and machine learning, as well as strategic technology transactions and related commercial matters. He is a member of the executive committee of the Georgia State Bar’s Privacy & Technology Law Section. Jason received a juris doctor from Wake Forest University School of Law and a bachelor of arts from College of Charleston.

Jim is a partner in BAL’s Atlanta office. His nearly 40 years of practicing business immigration law and personal experience living and working abroad give him the perspective necessary to deliver straightforward, comprehensive and practical immigration solutions to his clients. He also advises on immigration compliance matters, including I-9 compliance, E-Verify and SSN issues.

Jim co-chaired the business immigration group at his prior firm for more than 20 years, focusing on immigration platform development and program design in addition to large-volume immigration portfolio management.

Jim has provided pro bono representation to LGBTQ+ foreign nationals appearing before U.S. government agencies. He is also a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association.

Jim enjoys cooking for his family, camping in the North Georgia mountains and spending time with his German Shepherd Kai.