Margaret (Meg) Behringer Maloney, Attorney

Meg Maloney has been practicing law in Charlotte since she graduated from Duke Law School in 1985, where she won the Moot Court Competition for second and third year students. As an associate and partner with Moore & Van Allen, she handled a wide variety of employment law and litigation cases, counseling, litigation avoidance, and policies and procedures for local, regional, national and international clients. In 1996, she left private practice to become the first employment law attorney at First Union, which was faced with its first large employment law class action. At First Union, she was a Senior Vice President and worked closely with Human Resources and senior management. She was asked to serve on the Diversity Council for Capital Markets and the Legal Division, the Women's Advisory Board for Marketing and Product Development, and other company-wide committees. When First Union merged with Wachovia, she returned to private practice. She founded her own law firm in 2008. Since returning to private practice, she has broadened her practice to include more plaintiff's cases, which gives her a unique perspective. The lawyers of North Carolina have elected her one of the Legal Elite in the state for the past several years.  

Meg enjoys handling a wide variety of employment law matters. She has conducted internal wage and hour audits in most states, participated in audits by the DOL, and defended wage and hour class actions. Title VII, ADA , ADEA, FMLA, and other employment law issues make up a significant part of her daily counseling, negotiation, and litigation work. She regularly counsels senior executives on their way into and out of companies.  

Community service is an important part of her life. She served on the Board for Legal Services for eight years, two as President, and has handled pro bono cases for Legal Services, the Human Society of Charlotte, the Union County Humane Society, and other organizations. Support of the arts is a passion. Meg was on the Board of the Community School of the Arts for six years, and for the Charlotte Children's Choir for several more. Currently, she is focused on the North Carolina Dance Theater's marketing committee and on her work as Secretary of the Charlotte Women's Bar. Meg's husband is a US Airways pilot and a local realtor. They have two daughters.  

AREAS OF PRACTICE

Employment and Labor Law Counseling

• Advises clients on employment law issues in mergers and acquisitions, displacements, and restructurings.
• Counsels clients on state of the art policies and practices and develops guidelines to implement and enforce them.
• Training, support and counseling on compliance with the various state and federal employment laws related to wage and hour, discrimination, wrongful discharge, harassment, disability, leaves of absence, and similar issues.
• Advises on severance plans and incentive plans.
• Workplace violence, executive counseling, investigations, documentation on drug testing.
• Union avoidance climate interviews, education and training.
• Offer letters, employment agreements, noncompete agreements, and independent contractor agreements.

Employment and ERISA Litigation

• ERISA cases (claims and fiduciary duty).
• Cases alleging discrimination, harassment, wrongful discharge, slander/libel, emotional distress, breach of contract, as well as claims under the ADA, FMLA, ADEA, Title VII and comparable state laws.
• Cases involving non-competition, non-solicitation, confidentiality, and trade secrets.
• Wage and hour issues.
• Various forums including state and federal trial and appellate courts, administrative proceedings, and mediations and arbitrations.
• Individual, class and collective actions.
• General litigation.
• General business litigation.
• Personal injury and intellectual property.

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE

• First Union Corporation: 1996-01. Final position: Senior Vice President/Senior Employment law counsel in Legal Division. Other positions: First Union Diversity Counsel for the Legal Division and Capital Markets; Member of First Union Women's Advisory Board for Marketing and Product Development.
• Moore & Van Allen, PLLC: 1985-96; Final position: equity partner/member.
• J.D., Duke University School of Law, 1985, winner of moot court competition.
• B.S. in Philosophy, Northwestern University, 1982, Phi Beta Kappa.

PROFESSIONAL, CIVIC AND COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT

• North Carolina State Bar, North Carolina Bar Association, and Mecklenburg County Bar Association, American Bar. Association, Employment Law Section of the ABA.
• Board of Directors of Legal Services of Southern Piedmont (8 years, 2 as President and 2 ad hoc ).
• Board of Directors of Community School of the Arts (6 years).
• Member of the Women Executives of Charlotte.
• Pro Bono Assistance through Legal Services for Southern Piedmont.
• Secretary of Charlotte Women's Bar Association.

HONORS AND AWARDS

• Elected to Business North Carolina magazine's 2009 Legal Elite in the category of Employment Law.
• Selected for publication in North Carolina 2009 Super Lawyers.
• Mecklenburg County Bar Pro Bono Award.