Joan C. McKenna

Overview

Joan McKenna defends employers faced with discrimination, retaliation, and wage and hour litigation under Title VII, the ADEA, the ADA, FLSA, FMLA, and state employment statutes. Joan’s ability to translate complex regulatory requirements into practical workplace policies and workable strategies that prevent litigation is second to none in the region. Her approach to dispute resolution combines aggressive courtroom advocacy with preventive counseling that reduces exposure, a balance refined through years representing clients in high-stakes disputes, trials, and administrative proceedings.

Employers value that Joan doesn’t just react to claims—she identifies compliance gaps before agencies do and advises on documentation systems that can withstand scrutiny. Joan’s litigation style is methodical, discrete, and unrelenting. She dismantles plaintiff cases by mastering the factual record early, identifying inconsistencies that undermine credibility, and building defenses around contemporaneous documentation rather than post-hoc explanations. Opposing counsel quickly learns she doesn’t concede ground on discovery or let weak claims survive to settlement discussions.

Joan’s employment practice extends beyond litigation defense. She speaks regularly to employer groups on emerging compliance issues and served as contributing editor to the Virginia Employment Law Letter, giving her insight into regulatory trends before they hit the courts. That forward-looking perspective helps clients stay ahead of enforcement patterns rather than scrambling to respond. Joan’s counsel reflects what she’s learned from thousands of workplace disputes: the policies that survive legal challenges aren’t the most elaborate – they’re the ones employees understand and managers consistently enforce.

Honors & Speeches

Honors

• AV Rated, Martindale-Hubbell, 2015 through present
• Legal Elite, Labor/Employment, Virginia Business magazine, 2015-2020
• Influential Women of Law, Virginia Lawyers Weekly, 2019
• Graduate, LEAD Virginia, Class of 2015

Speeches

• Speaker, “Marijuana In the Workplace,” American Society of Anesthesiologists, Practice Management Conference, Las Vegas, Nevada, January 17, 2020
• Speaker, “Religious Accommodation in the Workplace,” Virginia State Bar Annual Meeting, June 2016
• Speaker, “Hot Topics in Employment Law,” Sterling Education, Richmond, Virginia, February 2014
• Speaker, “FMLA – Tools and Tips for Compliance,” Lord Fairfax Community College Workforce Solutions, Middletown, Virginia, November 2013
• Speaker, “The Family and Medical Leave Act: Where We’ve Been, Where We Are, and Where We’re Going,” Lord Fairfax Community College Workforce Solutions, Middletown, Virginia, March 2013
• Speaker, “The New ADA Landscape: Developments in Disability Law After the ADAAA Amendments,” US Law Women’s Collection, Austin, Texas, April 2012
• Speaker, “ADA Reasonable Accommodations and Examinations,” Charlottesville, Virginia, February 2011
• Speaker, “Will You Be My Friend? What Employers Need to Know About Social Networking,” In-house Webinar, Richmond, Virginia, January 2011
• Speaker, “Employment Law Implications of Social Networking,” Virginia Association of Non-Profit Homes for the Aging, Richmond, Virginia, November 2010
• Speaker, “What’s Keeping Employers Up at Night, in the Courts, or in the Minor Leagues: Recent Court and Regulatory Developments including Changes to FMLA,” Labor & Employment Law Update, Virginia Beach, Virginia, April 2008
• Speaker, “Employee Leave for $200, Alex: It’s Jeopardy on Employee Leave Statutes,” Labor & Employment Law Update, Charlottesville, Virginia, Spring 2007
• Speaker, “What’s Hot in Virginia Employment Law: An Overview of Recent Trends and Case Developments, Current Developments in Employment Law,” Albemarle-Charlottesville Human Resources Association, Charlottesville, Virginia, May 25, 2006
• Speaker, “What’s New in Employment Law,” Virginia Department of Criminal Justice, Virginia Beach, 2006
• Speaker, “Fair Labor Standards Act Litigation in Schools,” Virginia School Boards Association Annual Convention, Williamsburg, Virginia, November 2003
• Speaker, “Hiring and Firing: How to Do it Right, SES Employment Law Update, Richmond, Virginia, September 23, 2003

News

Professional

• Member, Labor & Employment Section, Virginia Bar Association
• Member, Board of Directors President, 2016-2017, Virginia Women Attorneys Association
• Member, Society for Human Resource Management
• Member, Richmond Bar Association