Kathryn Abernethy

Kathryn F. “Katie” Abernethy is a North Carolina Board Certified Employment Law Specialist, admitted to practice in North Carolina and Illinois. With 25 years of experience, she began her legal career at defense-side firms, where she represented major corporate clients in high-stakes litigation. Today, Katie focuses on employeeside advocacy in cases arising under federal and North Carolina statutes, including Title VII, the Equal Pay Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”), the North Carolina Retaliatory Employment Discrimination Act (“REDA”), the North Carolina State Whistleblower Protection Act, and wageandhour statutes (federal Fair Labor Standards Act and North Carolina Wage & Hour Act).

Prior to joining B&F, Katie spent eight years as a Lead Attorney and Partner at a North Carolina employment law firm. Since switching from the defense to the employee/ plaintiff’s side, Katie has successfully represented North Carolina employees in key cases at both the trial court and appellate court levels:

Appellate Representation

Katie was lead plaintiff’s and appellate counsel in Sempowich v. Tactile Systems Technology, Inc. (4th Cir. 2021), a published Fourth Circuit decision of first impression. The court ruled that the Equal Pay Act requires component-level parity, e.g., comparing base salary, separate from total compensation. This ruling has influenced national employment law standards and has been widely discussed in legal publications.

The full decision can be accessed here: 202245.P.pdf
Sample coverage of the decision: [natlawreview.com] EEOC’s U.S. Soccer Pay Stance Gets Early Fourth Circuit Tryout

Whistleblower Representation

• Ben Durant v. North Carolina Central University: Katie represented a former vice chancellor who alleged wrongful termination after reporting improper spending. The case received local press coverage: [wral.com], [abc11.com]
• Rob Morehead v. Department of Information Technology: Katie secured a settlement under the North Carolina Whistleblower Protection Act after Morehead raised concerns over waste and mismanagement of funds approved to update the State’s Medicaid IT systems. The case received extensive press coverage: [wral.com], [wral.com]

Other Key Wins

• Obtained summary judgment on behalf of plaintiff in a Wake County North Carolina Wage & Hour Act case (confidential).
• Won partial summary judgment in a North Carolina Wage & Hour Actcase pending in Alamance County Superior Court.

Education & Recognition

Katie earned her J.D. from Washington University School of Law (2001), where she graduated Order of the Coif (top 10% of law school graduating class), served as an Articles Editors for Washington University Law Quarterly and was a national moot court semi-finalist. She was selected by SuperLawyers as an Illinois Rising Star in 2011 and has been selected as a North Carolina SuperLawyer from 2022 to the present.