Calendar of Events

Panel Discussion with Missy McJunkins Duke, Amber Wilson Bagley, & Greg Northen Attorneys with Cross, Gunter, Witherspoon & Galchus, P.C.

Description: In this webinar, participants will learn about the ever changing federal vaccine mandates and be provided with an update about where these laws currently stand. Missy, Amber, and Greg will address preemption – when does federal law apply and when does Arkansas law apply? We will address Arkansas’s recently effective legislation that provides an exemption process for those who elect not to be vaccinated despite employer requirements. Missy, Amber, and Greg will also discuss how employers should analyze and consider religious and medical accommodation requests.  

Learning Objectives:

• Understanding the current status of federal vaccine requirements
• Understanding Arkansas law regarding vaccines and testing
• How to better analyze and consider accommodation requests

SPEAKER BIOS:

MISSY MCJUNKINS DUKE regularly represents employers, both private and public, before the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Wage & Hour Division of the Department of Labor, as well as related federal and state court litigation. She also represents school districts throughout Arkansas concerning employment matters, including discipline, discharge, and leave issues. She has extensive experience advising public entities on compliance with the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act and defending such entities in FOIA litigation. 

Missy is Chair of the Arkansas Bar Association’s Labor and Employment Section and an active member of the American Bar Association’s Labor and Employment Section and Federal Labor Standards Legislation Committee, the American Employment Law Council, and the Arkansas Bar Foundation's Board of Directors. She was appointed by former Arkansas Governor Mike Beebe as Commissioner on the Arkansas Early Childhood Commission and as a member of the Arkansas Advisory Committee to the United States Commission on Civil Rights. She also served a six-year term on the Arkansas State Board of Law Examiners and is currently serving in her second three-year term on the Arkansas Continuing Legal Education Board, both appointed by the Arkansas Supreme Court. Missy was also appointed by Governor Mike Beebe as Special Associate Justice of the Arkansas Supreme Court for the case styled as 09-1011, Grand Valley Ridge LLC., Tom A. Terminella a/k/a Thomas A. Terminella v. Metropolitan National Bank.

Missy has been included in Best Lawyers in America since 2009, Mid-South Super Lawyers since 2008, and Chambers & Partner's list of top attorneys since 2013. Missy is active in the community, having served on the Boards of Directors for Reach Out and Read Arkansas, Fulbright Elementary PTA, Junior League of Little Rock, Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families, and Central Arkansas Executives Association. Missy was named an Arkansas Business 40 Under 40 in 2011. 

AMBER WILSON BAGLEY practices in the areas of employment law, commercial/corporate litigation, healthcare law, and municipal law. Amber served as a Judicial Clerk for the Honorable Annabelle Clinton Imber and the Honorable Tom Glaze, both Justices of the Arkansas Supreme Court. She is a member of the American Bar Association, American Health Lawyers Association, Arkansas Association of Women Lawyers, and the Arkansas Bar Association, where she has served as chair of the Health Law Section and is a tenured member of the House of Delegates for Pulaski County. She has been included in top-attorney lists from Best Lawyers in America, Mid-South Super Lawyers, and Chambers and Partners and was named the 2021 VOCALS Attorney of the Year Award for substantial time and effort dedicated to pro bono work. She earned her Juris Doctor from the University of Arkansas William H. Bowen School of Law and her Bachelor of Arts degree from Ouachita Baptist University. 

GREGORY J. NORTHEN  practices primarily in labor and employment, wage and hour, public housing matters, and civil and business litigation. Greg’s litigation experience includes practicing before federal and state courts in Arkansas, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals, and various federal and state agencies, including the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, National Labor Relations Board, Department of Labor’s Wage & Hour Division and Arkansas Department of Workforce Services. He also assists clients with drafting and implementing up-to-date forms, policies, procedures and training for various labor and employment issues. Greg also currently serves on the CGWG Executive Committee and is frequent presenter on a wide array of personnel issues facing businesses, including wage compliance, supervisor training, discipline issues, and pandemic preparedness.

 After serving as the District Representative for Arkansas and Oklahoma to the American Bar Association's Young Lawyers Division Council, Greg is currently serving as Delegate to the American Bar Association’s House of Delegates.  Greg has also previously served on the ABA YLD’s Labor & Employment Committee.  Greg currently serves as the Chair-Elect for the State Council of the Associated Builders and Contractors of Arkansas. He also served as the President of the Board of Directors for the Maumelle Chamber of Commerce in 2018. Greg has been named a “Rising Star” by Mid-South Super Lawyers each year since 2014 and was included in the 2021 and 2022 editions of Best Lawyers in America in multiple practice areas. He is a graduate of Harding University and the University of Arkansas School of Law.

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