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EXPERIENCE

Tamara M. Gerrard has been litigating cases in Hawaii for eighteen years, twelve of which have been as a director in the employment law department at Torkildson, Katz, Moore, Hetherington & Harris. During that time, Tamara has appeared in both federal and state courts and before state agencies. Recent representative matters include:

• Obtaining a unanimous defense verdict in favor of employer after three week jury trial of a disability discrimination claim in the Circuit Court of the Fifth Circuit, State of Hawaii in 2011;
• Obtaining summary judgment in federal court on behalf of employer as to Title VII claim for race and sex discrimination, prevailed on appeal to the Ninth Circuit in 2009 and successfully defeated plaintiff’s application for certiorari to the United States Supreme Court in 2010;
• Prevailing on claim brought against employer alleging termination for having suffered work injury, administrative hearing before State of Hawaii Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, Wage Standards Division, Hearings Branch, decision and order May 25, 2010; and
• Prevailing on behalf of employer in private arbitration of employee’s claim for breach of implied contract against employer, decision issued January 10, 2010.

Aside from litigating cases, Tamara regularly counsels employers regarding compliance with federal and state employment laws, including leave entitlement, wage and hour issues, reasonable accommodation under disability law, and harassment investigations.

RECOGNITIONS/DISTINCTIONS

• Tamara was selected for inclusion in the 2010 and 2011 Best Lawyers in Hawaii in the area of employment law.
• Tamara was twice elected to serve as Chairperson of the Labor and Employment Section of the Hawaii State Bar Association (HSBA).

COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT

Tamara enjoys educating and training employers and the public on employment law and compliance matters.  She speaks on legal ethics and employment law issues to numerous professional and nonprofit groups, including the Hawaii State Bar Association, the Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii, SHRM Hawaii, the American Payroll Association, the Hawaii Claims Association, and nonprofit educational programs including Castle Colleagues (Directors of Preschools and Other Early Childhood Education Programs) and Weinberg Fellows (Executive Directors of Nonprofits).  Tamara has also lectured on  labor and human resources issues for the University of Hawaii Executive MBA program.