Larry A. Pankey — Atlanta Employment Discrimination & Civil Rights Attorney

Larry A. Pankey is a founding partner of Pankey & Horlock, LLC, in Atlanta, Georgia. For more than 34 years, he has represented employees, executives, managers, professionals, and businesses in complex employment, civil-rights, and commercial litigation in federal and state courts.

Mr. Pankey’s practice focuses substantially on employment discrimination, civil rights, retaliation, executive employment disputes, systemic and multi-plaintiff litigation, and complex federal litigation. His experience includes successful litigation under Title VII, the ADEA, ADA, FMLA, FLSA, Equal Pay Act, Rehabilitation Act, and 42 U.S.C. §§ 1981 and 1983.

Over the course of his career, Mr. Pankey has obtained multiple seven-figure results, including three seven-figure plaintiff jury verdicts, substantial equitable relief against governmental entities, federal employment-law trial victories, and repeated victories defeating summary judgment and other dispositive motions in employment-discrimination and civil-rights cases. His trial experience extends beyond employment and civil-rights litigation and includes successful plaintiff verdicts in complex federal RICO, fraud, professional-liability, business, and commercial cases.

Employment Discrimination & Civil Rights Litigation

Mr. Pankey represents employees and executives throughout Georgia in cases involving age discrimination, race and ancestry discrimination, sex discrimination, sexual harassment, pregnancy discrimination, disability discrimination, national-origin discrimination, discriminatory compensation, retaliation, whistleblower retaliation, reductions in force (RIFs), executive termination, severance disputes, and unpaid wages and overtime.

His federal practice includes litigation under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), Equal Pay Act, Rehabilitation Act, and 42 U.S.C. §§ 1981 and 1983.

Mr. Pankey has represented clients against private corporations, national and multinational employers, governmental entities, and municipalities in individual, collective, multi-plaintiff, and proposed class litigation. His cases frequently involve comparator and statistical evidence, discriminatory intent and pretext, corporate compensation systems, reductions in force, executive decision-making, constitutional rights, and retaliation.

Federal Employment Trial & Litigation Results

Mr. Pankey has successfully litigated employment cases through discovery, dispositive motions, pretrial proceedings, trial, and appellate proceedings.

In Fitzgerald v. Neal Pope, Inc., Mr. Pankey represented an employee in federal Title VII and § 1981 litigation involving race discrimination, hostile work environment, discriminatory discharge, and retaliation. After defeating summary judgment, the case proceeded to a non-jury Special Master trial. The Special Master recommended judgment for the plaintiff on multiple discrimination, hostile-work-environment, and retaliation claims and recommended $168,172.06 in back pay, compensatory damages, and punitive damages, together with attorney’s fees. The case subsequently settled before the scheduled jury trial.

In Brown v. Newton Granite & Marble, Inc., Mr. Pankey represented a female employee in federal Title VII sexual-harassment, sex-discrimination, and retaliation litigation. Following trial, the federal court entered judgment for the plaintiff totaling $260,000 plus costs, including $100,000 in punitive damages.

In Porter v. Sterling Online Processing Services, LLC, Mr. Pankey represented an employee in contested federal FLSA overtime litigation. After defeating the employer’s motion to dismiss and alternative motion for summary judgment, the case proceeded to trial. The court found for the plaintiff and entered judgment for unpaid overtime plus an equal amount of liquidated damages. The employer appealed to the Eleventh Circuit and subsequently dismissed its appeal with prejudice.

In Almond v. City of Canton, Mr. Pankey represented a female municipal fire inspector asserting gender discrimination under Title VII and the Equal Protection Clause through 42 U.S.C. § 1983. He defeated summary judgment on the Title VII and § 1983 discrimination claims and defeated the Fire Chief’s qualified-immunity defense on the individual-capacity § 1983 claim.

In Sanger v. Home Depot U.S.A., Inc., Mr. Pankey represented an HIV-positive employee asserting ADA disability-discrimination and FMLA interference claims. He defeated Home Depot’s motion for summary judgment in its entirety, with the court concluding that a reasonable jury could find that, absent the employee’s HIV-positive status, he would not have been discharged.

In Nowalk v. The Roof Depot, Inc., Mr. Pankey represented a pregnant employee in federal pregnancy-discrimination litigation. The court concluded that, despite the absence of a traditional comparator for the employer’s asserted insubordination rationale, the plaintiff presented a “convincing mosaic” of circumstantial evidence sufficient to permit a jury to infer intentional pregnancy discrimination. The case reached the federal trial calendar and settled immediately before trial.

In Caseman v. Tumbleweed Communications Corp., Mr. Pankey represented a 57-year-old award-winning sales executive in an ADEA case arising from a corporate reduction in force. He defeated summary judgment after the court found sufficient evidence to challenge the employer’s stated reasons for termination and require resolution by the factfinder.

In Harris v. City of Atlanta, Mr. Pankey represented a City employee asserting ADA disability discrimination and retaliation, FMLA retaliation, and unpaid overtime under the FLSA. Following discovery, he defeated the City’s motion for summary judgment on the principal ADA discrimination and retaliation claims, FMLA retaliation claim, and a portion of the FLSA claim. The litigation subsequently resolved through a court-approved settlement.

In Gentry v. We Care Senior Home Care of Georgia, Inc., Mr. Pankey represented an employee individually and on behalf of similarly situated employees in an FLSA collective action. He obtained partial summary judgment establishing overtime liability and individual liability against the company’s CEO. A court-approved collective settlement followed.

Mr. Pankey’s other federal employment results include successful dispositive-motion litigation involving ADEA age discrimination, ADA disability discrimination, FMLA interference and retaliation, pregnancy discrimination, § 1981 race discrimination, Title VII discrimination and harassment, Equal Protection claims, and FLSA overtime litigation.

Class, Collective & Systemic Employment Litigation

Mr. Pankey has substantial experience representing groups of employees in complex employment litigation involving centralized corporate practices, statistical evidence, compensation systems, wage-and-hour policies, and reductions in force.

In litigation against CompUSA, Inc., he represented commercial sales representatives in nationwide FLSA litigation challenging centralized overtime practices affecting a proposed group of more than 300 employees at approximately 225 stores. The litigation produced multiple Rule 68 judgments for employees. In related CompUSA litigation, plaintiffs obtained $181,732.66 in FLSA judgments plus an additional $121,816.54 judgment for attorney’s fees and costs.

Mr. Pankey currently represents eleven former senior managers and engineers in federal litigation asserting age discrimination under the ADEA and race and ethnic-ancestry discrimination under § 1981 arising from a corporate reduction in force. The plaintiffs allege statistical disparities in termination rates based on age and ancestry.

He also represents American managers in a proposed § 1981 class action against a global battery manufacturer alleging intentional race and ancestry discrimination in compensation. The plaintiffs allege that a centralized compensation system provided Korean managers greater salaries, expatriate allowances, housing benefits, tax equalization, bonuses, and other compensation than similarly situated American managers, with alleged disparities exceeding $100,000 annually in some instances.

These matters involve sophisticated issues of workforce statistics, corporate compensation structures, comparator evidence, centralized decision-making, reductions in force, discriminatory intent, pretext, and retaliation.

Executive Employment, Severance & Compensation

Mr. Pankey represents executives, senior managers, and professionals in disputes involving employment agreements, executive termination, severance compensation, discriminatory pay, Equal Pay Act claims, ERISA severance issues, restrictive covenants, retaliation, and reductions in force.

His experience includes representing senior corporate executives and professionals in compensation and severance disputes and negotiating a fully executed agreement requiring payment of a former governmental executive’s approved $200,629.02 severance package.

Civil Rights Litigation

Mr. Pankey’s practice includes federal civil-rights litigation under 42 U.S.C. §§ 1981 and 1983, including Equal Protection, First Amendment retaliation, race and ancestry discrimination, false arrest, false imprisonment, malicious prosecution, excessive force, governmental employment discrimination, and constitutional claims against individual government officials and municipalities.

His experience includes successfully defeating qualified immunity in § 1983 litigation, litigating constitutional claims against governmental officials, and representing individuals in cases involving police conduct, arrest, detention, prosecution, correctional medical care, excessive force, and municipal liability.

This combination of employment-discrimination and § 1981/§ 1983 litigation enables Mr. Pankey to handle complex cases in which workplace discrimination, governmental action, constitutional protections, and federal civil-rights statutes intersect.

Significant Jury Verdicts & Complex Trial Experience

Mr. Pankey’s trial experience extends beyond employment and civil-rights litigation and includes complex federal RICO, fraud, professional-liability, business, commercial, serious personal-injury, and governmental litigation.

In SouthStar Funding, LLC v. Sprouse, Mr. Pankey represented SouthStar Funding against its former closing attorney in federal litigation involving legal malpractice, fraud, and federal RICO violations arising from a mortgage-fraud scheme in Charlotte, North Carolina. Following a federal jury trial, he obtained a verdict awarding $150,000 in actual damages and $1,000,000 in punitive damages, together with costs and attorney’s fees.

Result: $1.15 million plaintiff jury verdict, plus costs and attorney’s fees.

In SouthStar Funding, LLC v. Rhodes, Mr. Pankey represented SouthStar Funding in federal litigation arising from a mortgage-fraud scheme in Raleigh, North Carolina. Following a federal jury trial, he obtained a verdict awarding $237,245.80 in actual damages and $1,500,000 in punitive damages, together with costs and attorney’s fees.

Result: $1,737,245.80 plaintiff jury verdict, plus costs and attorney’s fees.

In Heard v. Jackson, Mr. Pankey represented a motorist who suffered serious injuries when the defendant’s vehicle crossed the centerline and struck her vehicle. Following a jury trial in the Superior Court of Forsyth County, Georgia, he obtained an approximately $1 million plaintiff verdict. The litigation also produced a published appellate decision in which Mr. Pankey represented the plaintiff-appellee and successfully defended a significant evidentiary ruling. The Georgia Court of Appeals affirmed. Jackson v. Heard, 264 Ga. App. 620, 591 S.E.2d 487 (2003).

Result: Approximately $1 million plaintiff jury verdict; favorable published appellate decision.

In Forsyth County v. Martin, Mr. Pankey represented lakefront homeowners in litigation seeking to compel Forsyth County to repair and maintain the Pine Lake dam. After the trial court directed a verdict against the County on ownership of the dam, the jury returned a verdict requiring Forsyth County to repair the dam rather than breach it. The resulting judgment required the County to rebuild and repair Pine Lake Dam, work estimated to cost approximately $1 million, and awarded the homeowners nearly $79,000 in litigation expenses and attorney’s fees. On appeal, the Georgia Supreme Court upheld the homeowners’ substantive victory and, on their cross-appeal, directed entry of judgment requiring the repaired dam to restore Pine Lake to its 1141 MSL normal pool elevation. Forsyth County v. Martin, 279 Ga. 215, 610 S.E.2d 512 (2005).

Result: Plaintiff jury victory requiring approximately $1 million in dam repairs; nearly $79,000 in litigation expenses and attorney’s fees; favorable Georgia Supreme Court decision.

In SouthStar Funding, LLC v. Oyewole, Mr. Pankey represented SouthStar in litigation concerning overstated real-estate appraisals used in mortgage-lending transactions. Following trial, the jury returned a $150,000 plaintiff verdict for negligent misrepresentation. The court subsequently denied the defendant’s motion to set aside the judgment and for a new trial.

His broader litigation experience includes wrongful death, serious personal injury, false arrest, malicious prosecution, fiduciary duty, restrictive covenants, contract, fraud, professional liability, mortgage fraud, federal and Georgia RICO claims, and other complex civil litigation.

Over more than three decades of practice, Mr. Pankey has handled cases through extensive discovery, depositions, expert testimony, dispositive motions, pretrial proceedings, jury and non-jury trials, post-trial proceedings, and appeals.

Professional Recognition & Teaching

Mr. Pankey has been selected to Georgia Super Lawyers ten times, including eight consecutive selections from 2020 through 2027.

He is a member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum and has been recognized among The National Trial Lawyers’ Top 100 Trial Lawyers.

Mr. Pankey formerly served as an adjunct professor of law at John Marshall Law School, where he taught Employment Discrimination and Constitutional Law, as well as Civil Procedure, Ethics, Jurisprudence, and other courses. His experience teaching Employment Discrimination and Constitutional Law complements a litigation practice focused substantially on federal employment-discrimination and civil-rights law.

He has also lectured on employment law, legal ethics, litigation, and mortgage-fraud litigation.

Education

Boston University School of Law
Juris Doctor

University of Georgia
Bachelor of Arts, Philosophy and Intellectual History

University of Cambridge, Institute of Continuing Education
Undergraduate Diploma in Creative Writing: Advanced Non-Fiction (Level 5)

Bar Admissions

Georgia — Admitted 1992
Massachusetts
District of Columbia

Published Writer

In addition to practicing law, Mr. Pankey is a published writer. His fiction and nonfiction have appeared in Post Road Magazine and The Bangalore Review. His short memoir, Why She Cried, was longlisted for the Fish Publishing Short Memoir Prize.

Outside his law practice, Larry enjoys maintaining his bonsai collection and working on his ever-growing collection of classic muscle cars.