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“Laura Malugade does an amazing job of providing solid guidance. HB is top notch.”

Senior human resources manager, compressed air solutions company

Overview

Laura is a trusted advisor who provides practical and strategic advice to employers on all aspects of the employment life cycle. 

Laura is a quarterback for clients. She oversees U.S. labor and employment matters nationwide for multiple global manufacturers and other Fortune 500 companies, taking a lead role in guiding strategy and moving litigation towards a favorable resolution. Her method is to fully immerse herself in a client’s business, take the time to understand the dynamics of the situation, and build a strategy that will not only solve the immediate problem, but work to prevent future litigation.

  • Counseling: Day-to-day counseling with human resource professionals, in-house counsel, and other business leaders is a central focus of her practice. She actively partners with clients to determine how best to minimize risk, developing and implementing policies and practices that keep companies out of court and moving forward. She is on the cutting edge of the intersection between employment law and the recent explosion of artificial intelligence as a member of the firm’s Technology practice group and regularly presents on the topic as well as assists clients as companies begin to encounter legal challenges to the use of artificial intelligence in the workplace.   
  • Litigation: In addition to extensive experience in state and federal courts, Laura has also litigated claims before administrative agencies across the U.S., including the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and corresponding state agencies, the National Labor Relations Board, and the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission. She handles both single plaintiff and class action litigation, including allegations of discrimination, harassment, and retaliation and wage and hour violations, as well as contested OSHA citations involving serious injuries or fatalities. 
  • Corporate transactions: Alongside her preventative counsel and litigation work, Laura devotes a significant portion of her practice to assisting with labor and employment matters in the midst of mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, and other corporate transactions. She handles the employment-related aspects of purchase agreements, due diligence, and assists in transitioning and integrating employees as companies change or merge. In 2023 and 2024 to date, she handled the labor and employment aspects for more than $3.5 billion worth of deals.

While Laura works with a wide variety of clients, she has a special focus on the manufacturing industry. She’s long been fascinated by how products are made and was herself employed in a cheese factory prior to her legal career. Laura values seeing client operations in person and establishing an in-depth knowledge of each’s client manufacturing procedures so that she can offer customized, fully informed counsel.

“Laura Malugade does an amazing job of providing solid guidance. HB is top notch.”

Senior human resources manager, compressed air solutions company

Industries

Services

Recognition

  • Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch® in America
    • Labor and Employment Law - Management, 2021-2025
  • Wisconsin Law Journal
    • Power 30 Employment Lawyers, 2024
  • Wisconsin Super Lawyers
    • Rising Star, 2017-2023

Education

  • J.D., Marquette University Law School
    • cum laude
      • CALI Excellence for the Future Award Legal Writing 
      • Marquette Law Review, Associate Editor
  • B.A., University of Utah
    • Political Science
    • magna cum laude

Admissions

  • U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Wisconsin
  • Wisconsin
  • U.S. District Court, Western District of Wisconsin
  • U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Michigan

Professional Memberships and Certifications

  • Certificate in Diversity & Inclusion, Cornell University - School of Industrial and Labor Relations
Experience
  • Represents Fortune 500, publicly traded, global industrial manufacturer in U.S. employment matters.
  • Represents global commercial laundry equipment manufacturer with over $1 billion in revenue in all U.S. employment matters.
  • Represents Conagra Brands, Inc. in the Midwest region, representing client in all labor and employment matters, including administrative, single-plaintiff litigation, arbitrations, and unfair labor practice charges.
  • Represents multiple firm clients in defense of wage and hour class and collective actions.
  • Oversaw labor and employment aspects for more than $3.5 billion worth of corporate transactions in the past year or two.
  • Successfully represented national steel manufacturer in connection with sexual harassment and retaliation claim by obtaining summary judgement in favor of employer on all counts in Utah federal court.
  • Successfully represents major food wholesaler and national manufacturer of protein powder in litigation against OHSA involving serious injuries and fatalities by obtaining favorable settlements.
  • Successfully defended a wage and hour overtime class and collective action in Wisconsin federal court by defeating all claims on summary judgment.
  • Regularly assists national and global clients with discrimination, harassment, retaliation, and unfair labor practice charges across the country.
News Releases | November 07, 2022
Husch Blackwell Elects 29 to 2023 New Partner Class
Media Mentions | October 2020
Best Lawyers® 2021: The Midwest Issue
Outside the Office

With two small children at home, most of Laura’s free time is devoted to her family. She loves reading with her daughter and son and taking both kids to local parks and playgrounds.

Community Leadership
  • Milwaukee Public Museum, HR Committee
  • College Possible, Board of Directors, 2016-2020
  • Inhabit Inc., Board of Directors, 2014-2018