KarlaGrossenbacher

Partner

Karla helps clients with all manner of day-to-day compliance matters and defending employment claims. Her main focus is advising on workplace privacy matters.


More About Karla

Clients turn to Karla for labor and employment advice or assistance in defending against an agency claim, lawsuit, or demand letter alleging employment claims. Clients also come to Karla for her vast knowledge in workplace privacy matters, like data breaches involving employee information, use of biometric technology, GPS tracking of employees, and monitoring employee emails, texts, and social media. Clients also seek Karla's assistance when they need help with high-stakes workplace investigations.

Karla is the chair of the Washington, DC, office's Labor and Employment practice, the head of the firm's Workplace Privacy team, and co-chair of the firm's Workplace Biometric Privacy Compliance and Litigation group. From these positions, she has a deep, unique understanding of privacy matters at the intersection of technology and the workplace. She frequently presents and blogs on these topics, as well as monitoring developments in this area to stay ahead of the newest, cutting-edge workplace privacy matters.

Over her 25-year career, Karla has a strong track record of obtaining summary judgment for her clients in employment litigation. She also advises a wide variety of clients—nonprofits, emerging companies, and Fortune 500 companies—on labor and employment matters, as well as compliance matters related to workplace privacy, such as rolling out biometric technology in the workplace, responding to security incidents involving employee data, and the ability to monitor electronic employee communications in connection with an investigation, lawsuit, or other workplace action. Karla has also handled workplace investigations involving government officials accused of harassment, C-suite officers accused of sexual assault, harassment, and other inappropriate conduct in the workplace.

Karla's practice is tailored to her clients' needs. On advice matters, Karla can give clients specific direction to those unfamiliar with the law, or work collaboratively to brainstorm solutions. On litigation matters, Karla focuses on clients' goals for the litigation, whether it be to leverage a settlement without spending too much, or to win a trial at all costs. The clients' goals shape Karla's litigation strategy, staffing, and approach to the case from the get-go.

Karla enjoys working with her Seyfarth colleagues, as well as helping her many different clients on a daily basis. She particularly loves the human aspect of labor and employment law. At the end of the day, every matter has its source in the actions taken and decisions made by real human beings. To Karla, probing those actions and decisions in the context of litigation or advice is endlessly fascinating.

  • JD, Georgetown University Law Center
  • BA, Marquette University
    English and Theatre Arts
  • District of Columbia
  • Maryland
  • US Court of Appeals, Third Circuit
  • US Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit
  • US Court of Appeals, DC Circuit
  • US District Court, District of Columbia
  • US District Court, District of Maryland