Katherine S. Bailey
Associate
Kate represents employers in a wide range of labor and employment matters. Her experience spans disputes of all sizes, from putative class actions to single-plaintiff litigation, and she has helped employers secure favorable results at the trial and appellate levels. Kate has also represented companies in employment and consumer-related disputes involving biometric privacy. Her practice includes counseling employers on understanding and complying with federal, state, and local employment laws.
Kate has worked on litigation at the trial and appellate levels, and she has defended companies against a broad range of claims, including those brought under Illinois' Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA), the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), Illinois' Minimum Wage Law, ERISA, Title VII, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), the Equal Pay Act, the Fair Housing Act (FHA), and the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA). Her experience includes putative class and collective actions, as well as single-plaintiff litigation. Kate has also represented employers in investigations conducted by federal and state agencies.
Beyond litigation, Kate counsels employers regarding compliance with federal, state, and local employment laws. She has helped clients draft handbooks and develop policies on a variety of employment-related matters, including COVID-19 considerations, remote work, drug testing, and employee classification. Kate also assists clients with required workplace trainings.
Prior to joining the firm, Kate was an associate at an international law firm, where she represented employers in federal and state proceedings and counseled employers regarding federal, state, and local laws. Kate also served as a judicial clerk to the Honorable Frank P. Geraci Jr., Chief Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York, and as an intern at the U.S. Attorney's Office in the Northern District of Illinois.
- Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch® in America, Litigation - Labor and Employment, 2025
- University of Michigan Law School Dean’s Scholar
- University of Michigan Law School – Certificate of Merit: Enterprise Organization, Winter 2016 (awarded for top grade in class)
- University of Michigan Law School’s 92ndHenry M. Campbell Moot Court Competition – Semifinalist and recipient of “Best Brief” award for both Petitioner brief and Respondent brief
- University of Michigan Law School’s 91stHenry M. Campbell Moot Court Competition – Quarterfinalist
- University of Michigan Law School’s 1L Oral Advocacy Competition – Finalist
- Northwestern University Dean’s List
- Northwestern University, McCormick School of Engineering Dean’s Scholar
- Northwestern University National Merit Scholarship Recipient
Credentials
Education
Kate received her J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School in 2017, where she was an executive editor on the Michigan Law Review and published author in the same, and she served as a research assistant to multiple professors. She received her B.A. in psychology in three years from Northwestern University in 2012.
Admissions
- Illinois
Clerkships
- USDC - Western District of NY for the Honorable Frank P. Geraci, Jr.
Related Insights & News
Publications
Speaking Engagements
- “Human Resources and Employment Matters,” Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Legal Clinic, 2019
- “Medical Marijuana in the Workplace,” Society for Human Resource Management, Illinois Valley, 2019
November 21, 2024
Winston Attorneys Recognized in Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch® in America 2025
August 15, 2024