Emily C. Atmore

Emily Atmore is an employment attorney who helps companies of all sizes and industries navigate the complexities of ever-changing employment and labor laws. Emily frequently advises and defends employers in matters involving discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wrongful termination, protected leave, and wage and hour violations, as well as noncompetition, nonsolicitation, and trade secret issues. Emily also regularly conducts workplace investigations and prepares employee contracts, handbooks, and policies.

Emily has extensive experience litigating employment disputes in federal and state court, arbitration, and before administrative agencies, and also draws on years of experience litigating complex commercial disputes, including commercial contract, trade secret, and unfair competition matters.

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Education

University of Minnesota Law School, J.D. 2018; Minnesota Law Review; Dean’s List; Dean’s Distinguished Scholarship; Mackall, Crounse & Moore Scholarship; American Bar Association Mendes Hershman Writing Award; Stinson Leonard Street Law Review Award; President, Business Law Association

University of St. Thomas, B.A., Business Administration (Accounting), 2015, magna cum laude

Admissions

Minnesota

United States District Court for the District of Minnesota

United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit

Representative Experience

• Regularly defend Fortune 200 companies, as well as mid-size and smaller employers, against complaints before the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and multiple state agencies, including conducting investigations and witness interviews, drafting position statements and legal analysis, participating in agency interviews, and navigating appeals and further administrative review; strong record of favorably resolving administrative complaints on behalf of medical device, technology, senior housing, healthcare, retail, transit, and automotive companies. 
• Counsel employers on day-to-day compliance matters, including preparing employee contracts, handbooks, and policies, conducting comprehensive handbook and policy reviews, navigating termination and post-termination employee issues, and addressing Minnesota-specific legal issues such as wage and hour requirements, tip pooling, and Minnesota's Paid Leave Law.  
• Regularly conduct workplace investigations and advise clients on employee ADA workplace issues, fitness-for-duty processes, and vendor investigations, including developing a new intake, investigation, and closure process for complaints received nationwide.
• Independently investigate and prepare client-ready responses to agency discrimination charges for healthcare, transit, and technology clients, several of which were dismissed within weeks of submission.
• Independently investigate and prepare responses to agency discrimination charges for healthcare, transit, and technology clients.
• Serve as a trusted, go-to employment advisor to a national senior living company, regularly leading its EEOC and state agency charge responses, employee terminations, and workplace investigations, including during a period covering for the client's in-house counsel on leave.
• Advise clients on trade secret and non-compete disputes involving departing employees and competitors, executive departures requiring forensic investigation and preservation of company property, and sensitive internal investigations into employee misconduct.
• Obtained a rare from-the-bench dismissal with prejudice of a former employee's breach of contract and employment discrimination claims against a global athletic apparel company in Minnesota federal court.
• Achieved a favorable resolution of a former employee kitchen-sink discrimination and retaliation lawsuit against a multinational technology company in Oregon federal court.
• Reached a successful resolution of a race discrimination and retaliation lawsuit filed by a former employee against a semiconductor equipment manufacturer following dismissal of the employee's underlying agency discrimination charge.
• Resolved a highly sensitive whistleblower retaliation and gender discrimination matter involving individual liability claims against a company executive on behalf of a medical device company.
• Negotiated a favorable settlement on behalf of a global medical device company after winning a hard-fought motion to transfer venue in an employment lawsuit brought by a former employee.
• Achieved full-sweep victory at summary judgment in a Minnesota employment discrimination and retaliation lawsuit brought by former independent insurance agent against national insurance company.
• Secured voluntary dismissal of baseless negligence claims by disgruntled former employee of third-party contractor on behalf of Minnesota-based wholesale distributor of lumber goods.
• Negotiated and resolved wage and hour matters across industries, including reaching class-wide settlements on behalf of a sports and entertainment company and home healthcare company.
• Successfully appealed and overturned to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit on behalf of an insurance company defending a breach of contract class action, overturning a district court's summary judgment order and injunction and significantly narrowing the class's potential damages theories.

Pro Bono Representation

• Advised small business in Oregon regarding employee and independent contractor classification issues, an area of law that Emily has written multiple articles about.
• Represented League of Women Voters-Minnesota, Common Cause-Minnesota, and Minnesota Second Chance Coalition as amici curiae before the Minnesota Court of Appeals and the Minnesota Supreme Court in an action seeking to restore voting rights for citizens previously convicted of felonies and now living in the community on probation and supervised release.
• Represented clients through the Main Street Relief Project—a task force of Stoel attorneys who provided no-cost legal services to independent restaurants, bars, and retail establishments during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Successfully negotiated settlement in lease litigation on behalf of nonprofit organization providing residential treatment services to adolescents recovering from substance abuse.

Client Successes

Speaking Engagements

Publications

Press Releases

• Included in Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch^® in America (Commercial Litigation, Labor and Employment Law—Management, Litigation—Labor and Employment), 2025–present
• Listed among Rising Stars (Business Litigation, Employment Litigation), Minnesota Super Lawyers^®, 2025–present
• Named a Minnesota Lawyer “Up & Coming Attorney,” 2023
• Stoel Rives LLP Andrew Guy Pro Bono Award, 2021

Professional

• Minnesota Law Review, Managing Editor
• Federal Bar Association, Member
• Minnesota State Bar Association, Member
• Hennepin County Bar Association, Member

Civic

• ACLU of Minnesota, Volunteer, 2020–present
• Minnesota Women Lawyers, Partner Leadership Committee, 2020–present
• Minnesota Women Lawyers, Mentor, 2019–2023
• Volunteer Lawyers Network, Volunteer, 2019–present

Firm Activities

• Minneapolis Recruiting Committee, Member, 2023–present
• Firmwide Inclusion Committee, Member, 2022–present
• Stoel Women Attorneys Group, Board of Directors, 2023–2025
• Firmwide Associate Committee, Co-Chair and Member, 2022–2024