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Live Webcast

How to Say Goodbye: Arizona and Federal Laws About Termination


Total Credits: 2 CLE

Average Rating:
Not yet rated
Bundle(s):
2026 Nuts and Bolts of Employment Law Series
Categories:
Employment & Labor Law |  Business & Commercial Law |  Civil Litigation |  Corporate Counsel
Faculty:
Denise M Blommel |  Abby Susan Areinoff Harbicht |  Daniel L Bonnett |  Jeffrey Silence
Format:
Audio and Video
Co-Sponsored by:
The State Bar of Arizona Employment & Labor Law Section
Access:
Expires 180 day(s) after program date.

Dates


Description

Seminar will provide practical information about the federal and Arizona laws surrounding the termination of employment, including: 

    • Exceptions to employment at will, 
    • Whistleblowing, 
    • Wrongful discharge, 
    • Constructive discharge, and 
    • Termination torts.  

Faculty will also focus on alternative dispute resolution (arbitration and mediation), federal preemption of state claims, exclusive remedies, requirements for claims against the State, and retaliation claims.  


Guest Star Faculty
Daniel Bonnett, Martin & Bonnett PLLC
Jeffrey Silence, Silence Law Group, PLLC

Chairpersons
Abby Areinoff Harbicht, Areinoff Harbicht Law, LLC
Denise Blommel, Denise M Blommel PLLC

Faculty

Denise M Blommel Related Seminars and Products

Denise M Blommel PLLC


Denise M. Blommel is an attorney in Scottsdale, Arizona. She is admitted to practice in the state and federal courts of Arizona and Nevada. Her practice centers on the employer-employee relationship.

Denise is a former Field Attorney with the National Labor Relations Board and a former Assistant Chief Counsel of the Industrial Commission of Arizona. She represents employers and employees in employment and labor matters.

Denise belongs to the State Bar of Arizona, State Bar of Nevada (inactive), the American Bar Association, and the Arizona Employment Lawyers Association. She is Past President of the State Bar of Arizona’s Senior Lawyers Division.

Denise was awarded the State Bar of Arizona’s Member of the Year for 1998-1999. She was also awarded the State Bar Employment & Labor Law Section Member of the Year in 2014. Denise is one of the authors of the State Bar’s Arizona Employment Law Handbook and a co-author of articles in the January 2022, January 2021, and December 2013 State Bar’s Arizona Attorney about the State Board of Education’s expanded jurisdiction, COVID-19 in the Workplace, and the Affordable Care Act; and two articles in the April 1994 and April 1998 Arizona Attorney about Workers' Compensation, the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Family Medical Leave Act. Denise served as Chair of the Employment & Labor Law and Co-Chair of the Workers’ Compensation Law Sections of the State Bar of Arizona.

Denise holds a Bachelor of Arts in Government and Economics, with Highest Distinction (Summa Cum Laude), Honors, Phi Beta Kappa and Phi Kappa Phi, from the University of Arizona. She serves on the Dean’s Advisory Board to the W.A. Franke Honors College at the University of Arizona. Her law degree is from Arizona State University. Denise and her Moot Court teammates placed second in the nation in the National Moot Court competition – team, brief, and speaker.

Denise is a frequent presenter for government, business, educational and community groups. She taught Human Resources Law for the ASU Master of Legal Studies Program in 2014 and 2015 and was active with the former ASU Law Group.

Denise has been a mediator with the U.S. Postal Service for 25 years. She and her husband, Don Doerres, are regular presenters of “Soft Skills for a Hard World,” a seminar to improve workplace communication and resolve conflict. Denise and Don belong to the University of Iowa Alumni Association and Denise is a life member of both the ASU and U of A Alumni Associations.

Denise served on the Board of Directors for 20 years for Girl Scouts – Arizona Cactus-Pine Council. The Girl Scouts awarded Denise the Thanks Badge in 2000; the Thanks Badge II in 2005, and the Impact Award in 2020, their highest volunteer honors. She currently serves as Chair of the Council’s Personnel Committee. Denise and Don live in Scottsdale and are active at St. Patrick Catholic Community.

Denise's website is at www.azlaborlaw.com. Her telephone number is 480-993-3939 and her mailing address is 6945 E. Sahuaro, Suite 125, Scottsdale, AZ 85254. Her email address is denise@azlaborlaw.com.


Abby Susan Areinoff Harbicht Related Seminars and Products


Abby Areinoff Harbicht is an attorney in Prescott, Arizona limiting her practice to employment law and human resources consulting. She is admitted to practice law in both Arizona and California.

Abby belongs to the California and Arizona Bar Associations. In addition, she is a member of the Arizona Employment Lawyers Association, the American Bar Association, the Yavapai County Bar Association, and the National Employment Lawyers Association.

Abby graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Economics degree, cum laude, from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania where she majored in Human Resources and Labor Relations. She received her Juris Doctorate degree, with honors, from Loyola Law School in Los Angeles.

Abby’s law career started with Jackson, Lewis, Schnitzler and Krupman (now Jackson Lewis) in both their Los Angeles and New York offices. Following that, she spent the majority of her career working within corporations. In these corporate positions, she held dual responsibility for human resources and employment law, overseeing all matters related to employee rights and employer responsibilities. Her positions included serving as Chief Human Resources Officer, or equivalent, for AECOM Technology Corporation, Sony Pictures, The Disney Stores Worldwide, Charles Pankow Builders, Ltd., The National Childhood Cancer Foundation, Fox Broadcasting Company, Pacific Sunwear, and Wet Seal. Abby applies her prior experience representing management to now primarily protecting the rights of employees and supporting non-profits, focusing her practice in all areas of employment law including discrimination, retaliation, and wrongful discharge.

Abby has been a selected speaker for the Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM), Professionals in Human Resources Association (PIHRA), the National Human Resources Association (NHRA), and the Prescott Area Human Resources Association (PAHRA). She is a recipient of the NHRA Award for Outstanding Strategic Leadership.

Abby teaches Management and Business Law as an Adjunct Professor at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University’s School of Business. She volunteers as a SCORE mentor, providing support and consulting to small and emerging businesses. Abby serves as General Counsel for several non-profit organizations and is a founding member and Vice President of Large Animal Shelters and Emergency Readiness (LASER), a volunteer organization that works with Yavapai County Emergency Management to provide safe sheltering for barn animals during emergency evacuations.

Abby’s website is at www.areinoffharbichtlaw.com. Her telephone number is 626-590-1337 and email address is abby@areinoffharbichtlaw.com.


Daniel L Bonnett Related Seminars and Products

Partner

Martin & Bonnett PLLC


DANIEL L. BONNETT is a graduate of Augustana College (Ill.), the Drake University School of Law, and founding member and partner of Martin & Bonnett, PLLC. Mr. Bonnett is admitted to practice in the states of Illinois, Iowa and Arizona as well as the United States Courts of Appeals for the Sixth, Seventh, Eighth, Ninth and Tenth Circuits and United States District Courts for the Districts of Arizona, Central District of Illinois, Northern District of Iowa and Connecticut. Mr. Bonnett has litigated a wide variety of individual plaintiff and labor union matters as well as collective and class actions involving a wide range of labor and employment law, covering workplace issues, discrimination, retaliation, wage and hour, and wrongful discharge under state and federal statutes including Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Americans with Disabilities Act, Age Discrimination in Employment Act, Family Medical Leave Act, Employee Retirement Income Security Act, Fair Labor Standards Act, National Labor Relations Act and various other federal civil rights and employment statutes. He is rated AV® Preeminent™ - Judicial Edition by Martindale Hubbell and selected for inclusion in Super Lawyers of the Southwest and The Best Lawyers in America.®

Mr. Bonnett is a member of the American Bar Association, the ABA Labor and Employment Law Section’s Employment Rights and Responsibilities Standing Committee, an American Bar Foundation Fellow, a member and Fellow in the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers, the National Employment Lawyers Association, Federal Bar Association, Arizona Employment Lawyers Association, Arizona State Bar Association, Illinois State Bar Association, and named the recipient of the Rogers/Hayden Outstanding Achievement Award by the Arizona State Bar, Labor and Employment Law Section in 2025. Mr. Bonnett has written and presented on numerous panels and programs extensively at the national and level covering topics related to current labor and employment law issues.


Jeffrey Silence Related Seminars and Products

Attorney

SIlence Law Group, PLLC


Jeffrey Silence is owner of Silence Law Group, PLLC. He has been President of the Arizona Employment Lawyer’s Association for several years. He is also a member of the Arizona State Bar Employment & Labor Section Executive Council.

Jeff is a frequent presenter at CLEs and an active litigator in state and federal court. He had the best mentor anyone could ask for, Kraig Marton. He enjoys paying it forward.

Jeff has over ten years of experience in the following areas:
• Employment
• Defamation
• Education
• Commercial

Jeff likes figuring out new ways to leverage technology to make law more fun and profitable. He spends his free time running, listening to interviews and books, and hanging out with his wife and daughter.

jeff@silencelaw.com | (602) 932-8358


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