Tracey A. Kennedy

Kennedy, a corporate defense attorney with decades of experience in the courtroom, has become a go-to lawyer when companies get hit with workplace-related lawsuits.

In November, she was able to defeat a gender discrimination suit just as the fervor of the #MeToo movement began.

The case, brought against the Anaheim Ducks hockey team’s arena management company, presented claims that the female plaintiff, a longtime executive at the company, was the victim of gender discrimination and retaliation by the CEO.

The plaintiff, who sought damages for past and future wages, was earning more than $300,000 a year at the time she was let go.

“The facts were different than those you’d expect in a discrimination claim,” Kennedy said. “She was a high-level executive claiming to be a victim of discrimination.”

Angela Wergechik, who had been an employee for 21 years, sued the company after she had been fired shortly after filing a complaint for sex discrimination. She said in the lawsuit that the company was a boys’ club, complete with men-only trips to the CEO’s homes and lavish golf outings. Wergechik v. Anaheim Area Management LLC, 30-00786770-CU-WT-CJC (Orange Super. Ct., filed May 27, 2015).

But Kennedy successfully countered the plaintiff’s narrative.

She showed that her termination came after she disappeared from work for a week without explanation and then took medical leave for more than a year.

“All of the plaintiff’s promotions and raises over the years came from the CEO who was allegedly discriminating against her,” Kennedy said.

After deliberating for two days, the jury found in favor of Kennedy’s client on all claims, except for one: failure to provide a personnel file in a timely manner, which came with a meager $750 price tag.

— Nicolas Sonnenburg