Buckley Beal, the preeminent civil and employee rights and business litigation firm headquartered in Atlanta, has hired Kate Kacynski. She will be a litigator on the firm’s employment and civil rights team, representing clients who have experienced retaliation, sexual assault, harassment and discrimination on the basis of sex, age, national origin, religion and disability.

Ms. Kacynski will work closely with Mr. Ed Buckley, Managing Partner, who leads the civil and employment rights practice at Buckley Beal, as well as partners Anita Bala, Tom Mew and Ashley Wilson Clarke.

“Kate has a deep background in complex litigation as well as trial experience. She has impressed us as a quick study, with strong writing and a passion for advocacy,” said Mr. Buckley. “She is a great addition to our team and we are confident she’ll make a great impact, not just for our clients but also for our firm.”

Prior to joining Buckley Beal, Ms. Kacynski’s practice primarily involved defending large companies and financial institutions. She handled disputes over contracts, regulatory compliance, professional malpractice, intellectual property and even arson, and was responsible for all stages of litigation, from pre-suit settlement negotiations to assisting at trial.

At Buckley Beal, she’ll leverage her knowledge of how the "other side” works to give her individual clients a strategic advantage in pursuing and resolving their cases.

“I care deeply about justice, and I have the empathy and desire to serve others, helping people navigate the legal side of some of their toughest times,” Ms. Kacynski said. “Buckley Beal has an excellent reputation for advocating on behalf of people wronged by their employers and who need their civil rights protected. I’m excited to join the team at Buckley Beal where I will defend people’s rights.”

Ms. Kacynski comes from a family of lawyers – in fact her grandfather, Thomas E. Brennan, is a former Chief Justice of the Michigan Supreme Court. Though she earned her B.A. in English and Political Science from Colgate University in 2011 and initially pursued journalism as a career, covering the U.S. Supreme Court ignited her interest in the law.

She earned her J.D. cum laude from the University of Georgia School of Law, where she served as the Executive Notes Editor for the Journal of Intellectual Property Law and competed as a member of the school’s moot court program, for which she was inducted into the Order of Barristers. Her team finished as national quarterfinalists in the 2016 ABA National Appellate Advocacy Competition and their brief won the NAAC’s 2016 National Best Brief Award and the Scribes, the American Society of Legal Writers, 2017 National Best Brief Award. She also participated in Georgia Law’s Appellate Advocacy Clinic, where she represented a client before the Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit in a whistleblower retaliation case.

Ms. Kacynski is admitted to practice in Georgia, the U.S. District Courts for the Northern and Middle Districts of Georgia and the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals.

When not practicing law, she enjoys attending Atlanta United and Falcons games with her husband, and cheering for Michigan State University, her hometown team. Hobbies include cooking, cycling, skiing and playing the piano while her dog, Hugo, sings along. She’s a parishioner at the Cathedral of Christ the King.