Kerrie M. Murphy received a B.A. in Psychology from the University of Iowa and a J.D. from Drake University Law School. Following law school, she served as Assistant City Attorney for Sioux City, Iowa, and later Des Moines, Iowa. Ms. Murphy is an experienced trial attorney, having litigated in all areas of civil litigation, including insurance defense, workers’ compensation, equal opportunities and employment law, personal injury, and commercial litigation.
In addition, Ms. Murphy has been the lead attorney in numerous cases that were brought to successful completion as a result of dispositive motions. She also has significant experience in binding arbitrations and mediations. Ms. Murphy has litigated cases of all sizes under a variety of employment laws, including ADA, FMLA, Title VII, ADEA, 42 USC Section 1981, and their state law equivalents. She has also defended litigation involving state law claims of wrongful termination, defamation, and interference with business relationships. Ms. Murphy’s experience includes defense of discrimination, harassment and retaliation claims asserting violations based on various protected categories, including but not limited to sex, sex plus, race, age, pregnancy, religion, and national origin. She works frequently with expert witnesses, including economists and medical professionals.
A significant part of Ms. Murphy’s employment practice involves investigations and preparation of responses to complaints filed at the local, state, and/or federal commission levels. She frequently counsels clients on a variety of human resource matters to prevent claims, including the review of employee handbooks, advice on policy changes, and management of employee issues that arise on a daily basis.
Her workers’ compensation experience includes handling claims for municipalities and large corporations, as well as small business owners. Ms. Murphy has defended work-related injury claims, including cumulative trauma injuries, such as carpal tunnel syndrome; back, neck and shoulder injuries; upper and lower extremity injuries; as well as cases involving employees with a history of multiple injuries. Her experience also includes successful representation of clients where an alleged employee is actually an independent contractor.
Ms. Murphy’s insurance defense experience includes handling litigation involving property and casualty claims, bodily injury claims, and wrongful death claims. She is adept at reviewing medical records, completing written discovery, and conducting fact witness and expert witness depositions. Ms. Murphy has significant experience working with expert witnesses, such as physicians, accident reconstruction engineers, and economists.
Ms. Murphy is admitted to practice in the State of Iowa, the U.S. District Court for the Northern and Southern Districts of Iowa, and the U.S. Court of Appeals 8 th Circuit. Her professional memberships include the Iowa State Bar Association, Blackstone Inn of Court, Polk County Women Attorneys Association, DRI, and Iowa Defense Counsel Association. EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES & EMPLOYMENT LAW, WORKERS’ COMPENSATION, AND LITIGATION
