Speakers

GUEST SPEAKERS

Luke Farley, North Carolina’s 20th Commissioner of Labor

Luke Farley was sworn in as North Carolina’s 20th Commissioner of Labor in January 2025, becoming the youngest Labor Commissioner elected in a century and the youngest sitting member of the Council of State. Before entering public service, Commissioner Farley spent more than 14 years as an attorney in private practice, concentrating on workplace safety law. A graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Wake Forest University School of Law, he is committed to making North Carolina the safest place to work and the best place to do business.

Tom Colclough, Director of Field Management and Programs, U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission

Enforcement pressure looks different depending on which side of the table you’re sitting at, and Tom Colclough has seen nearly every angle of it since joining the EEOC in 1988. As the agency’s Director of Field Management and Programs, he oversees 53 field offices nationwide in matters of investigation, charge processing, education, and outreach, giving him a rare, ground-level view of where enforcement pressure is building across the country. He has held progressively senior positions including Area Director for the Raleigh Area Office, Deputy District Director and District Director for the Charlotte District, and, since October 2024, his current national leadership role. He holds a degree from Saint Augustine’s University and a master’s degree from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, and is a retired North Carolina National Guard Lieutenant Colonel.

WARD AND SMITH SPEAKERS

Ken Gray, NC State Bar Board Certified Specialist in Employment Law

Ken Gray is a North Carolina State Bar Board Certified Specialist in Employment Law and leads Ward and Smith’s Labor and Employment Practice Group. His practice spans more than three decades of employment and labor law counseling and litigation, including cases before the North Carolina Supreme Court and the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals.

Justin Hill, NC State Bar Board Certified Specialist in Employment Law

Justin Hill is a North Carolina State Bar Board Certified Specialist in Employment Law in Ward and Smith’s Raleigh office, whose practice focuses on labor and employment matters. He works with businesses, employers, and human resources professionals across the state and is also a member of the firm’s Professional Licensing and Name, Image, and Likeness practice groups.

X. Lightfoot, NC State Bar Board Certified Specialist in Employment Law

X. Lightfoot is a North Carolina State Bar Board Certified Specialist in Employment Law whose practice focuses on labor and employment law, serious personal injury and wrongful death, and civil litigation. He regularly advises employers on personnel policies, employment discrimination and harassment, employee discipline and termination, drug and alcohol testing, and wage and hour matters.

Avery J. Locklear, Labor and Employment Attorney

Avery J. Locklear is a labor and employment attorney at Ward and Smith who supports individuals, human resources professionals, and businesses of all sizes across diverse industries. Her practice encompasses noncompete and restrictive covenant guidance, handbook and policy review, and matters related to Title VII and wage and hour laws.

Emily Massey, NC State Bar Board Certified Specialist in Employment Law

Emily Massey is a North Carolina State Bar Board Certified Specialist in Employment Law and a member of Ward and Smith’s Labor and Employment Practice Group. She advises employers on a wide range of employment matters, including employment discrimination, noncompete and restrictive covenant agreements, personnel policies, and wage and hour compliance.

Will Oden, NC State Bar Board Certified Specialist in Employment Law

Will Oden is a North Carolina State Bar Board Certified Specialist in Employment Law who has practiced employment law with Ward and Smith for more than two decades. He counsels and represents employers across a broad range of employment matters in state and federal courts and before the EEOC, USDOL, OSHA, and the NC Department of Labor. Will also serves as a mediator and arbitrator and was one of the first attorneys in North Carolina to earn board certification in employment law, having helped lead the effort to create the specialization.

Grant Osborne, NC State Bar Board Certified Specialist in Employment Law

Grant Osborne is a North Carolina State Bar Board Certified Specialist in Employment Law with more than 30 years of practice experience in employment and labor law. He counsels clients in the health care, financial, hospitality, construction, business services, employee staffing, and nonprofit sectors, and serves as Chair of the North Carolina State Bar Board of Legal Specialization’s Employment Law Specialty Committee.

Genesis E. Torres, Labor and Employment Attorney

Genesis E. Torres is a labor and employment attorney in Ward and Smith’s Raleigh office who assists businesses, employers, and human resources professionals in navigating complex employment law matters. She provides guidance on compliance with local, state, and federal regulations and represents employers in a wide range of workplace matters, from training and policy development to dispute resolution and litigation.

Hayley R. Wells, NC State Bar Board Certified Specialist in Employment Law

Hayley R. Wells is a North Carolina State Bar Board Certified Specialist in Employment Law in Ward and Smith’s Asheville office whose practice focuses on labor and employment law, alcoholic beverage law, and civil litigation. She regularly advises individual and corporate clients on covenants not to compete, employment discrimination, discipline and termination, harassment, wrongful discharge, wage and hour matters, and employment handbooks and agreements.

Devon D. Williams, Co-Managing Director and NC State Bar Board Certified Specialist in Employment Law

Devon D. Williams is a North Carolina State Bar Board Certified Specialist in Employment Law and one of Ward and Smith’s Co-Managing Directors. She maintains a robust labor and employment practice, handling complex workplace matters across the state.