2026 Employment Law Symposium

We’re thrilled by the strong response! The Employment Law Symposium is now at capacity. To join the waitlist, please email rsvp@wardandsmith.com.

Compliance expectations keep rising, and the cost of getting it wrong keeps climbing. Pressure proof means having the tools to manage that pressure before it becomes a problem.

Ward and Smith’s 2026 Employment Law Symposium is back on Thursday, October 1, from 8:00 a.m. to 11:45 a.m., at The Umstead Hotel and Spa in Cary, NC, designed to address the compliance pressure you’re actually feeling right now.

Four sessions. Two conversations you won’t get anywhere else. Ward and Smith’s 2026 Employment Law Symposium puts you across the table from North Carolina’s own Labor Commissioner and a national EEOC director, then races through the compliance calls actually keeping HR leaders up at night: noncompetes, wage and hour traps, difficult employees, and internal investigations.

The morning opens with a fireside-style, unscripted conversation with Commissioner Luke Farley, North Carolina’s youngest elected Labor Commissioner in a century. No prepared remarks, just a real conversation. Genesis and Will sit down with him to talk about where his office is headed and what employers should keep an eye on. Expect honest, straight-from-the-source insight.

From there, the morning sprints through a four-topic rapid fire briefing from Ward and Smith’s Labor and Employment Practice Group, and turns to a candid exchange with EEOC field leadership. It closes with an interactive case study that drops you into a real accommodation call, the ADA, the PWFA, the FMLA, and an AI-generated curveball, all at once.

Built for HR executives, CFOs, in-house counsel, and business owners who feel the pressure of getting workforce compliance right. Space is limited. Register here to hold your seat.

Program Highlights

• Get Commissioner Luke Farley’s read on where North Carolina labor enforcement is headed, then put it to work in your own safety and wage programs.
• Stress test your noncompete and restrictive covenant agreements against where North Carolina law actually stands today.
• Walk out with a playbook for managing a difficult employee and administering discipline that holds up when it’s challenged.
• Learn the three wage and hour missteps most likely to catch your organization off guard, from bonus policies to remote and out-of-state workers.
• Build an internal investigation process that protects privilege and holds together under pressure.

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We’re expecting a full house! Register now to hold your spot, save the date, and get ready to learn how to stabilize your organization under pressure.