Agenda

2026 Employment Law Symposium

“Pressure Proof”

8:00 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. | Registration and Breakfast

Pressure Check: A Conversation with North Carolina Labor Commissioner Luke Farley  

8:30 a.m. to 9:15 a.m. 

Speakers: Luke Farley, North Carolina Labor Commissioner, Genesis Torres, Labor and Employment Attorney, and Will Oden, North Carolina State Bar Board Certified Specialist in Employment Law

Genesis and Will sit down with Labor Commissioner Luke Farley for a candid conversation on where his office is headed — enforcement priorities, OSHA inspections, the Carolina Star Program, wage and hour enforcement, and what employers across the state need to know right now. Expect honest, straight-from-the-source insight.

Racing the Clock: Rapid Fire Employment Law Update

9:15 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. 

Speakers: Emily Massey, North Carolina State Bar Board Certified Specialist in Employment Law, Hayley Wells, North Carolina State Bar Board Certified Specialist in Employment Law, Avery Locklear, Labor and Employment Attorney, and X. Lightfoot, North Carolina State Bar Board Certified Specialist in Employment Law

Race the clock with four Ward and Smith attorneys as they sprint through the employment law issues putting the most pressure on employers right now: noncompetes, difficult employees, wage and hour traps, and internal investigations. Fast, practical, and built for people working under pressure.

10:00 a.m. to 10:15 a.m. | Break

Through the Maze: A Conversation with EEOC Leadership

10:15 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. 

Speakers: Tom Colclough, Director of Field Management and Programs, U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Justin Hill, North Carolina State Bar Board Certified Specialist in Employment Law, and Devon Williams, North Carolina State Bar Board Certified Specialist in Employment Law

Tom Colclough oversees enforcement across 53 EEOC field offices nationwide, and he’s bringing that vantage point to Cary. Justin and Devon sit down with him for a candid, on-the-record conversation about where the agency’s attention is right now. No script, just the federal perspective, straight from the source.

Frayed at the Edges: Interactive Case Study

11:00 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. 

Speakers: Ken Gray, North Carolina State Bar Board Certified Specialist in Employment Law, Grant Osborne, North Carolina State Bar Board Certified Specialist in Employment Law, and Genesis Torres, Labor and Employment Attorney

Three overlapping laws, one accommodation request, and an AI-generated curveball. Watch a realistic employment scenario fray at the edges as the ADA, the PWFA, and the FMLA, all pull at once, and step in to make the call yourself. This interactive case study puts you in the room at every decision point, where one wrong move is all it takes to unravel.

11:45 a.m. | Closing Remarks