Honors & Awards
- Kentucky Super Lawyers®, 2018-2023 (Employment & Labor)
- The Best Lawyers in America®, 2016-2025 (Litigation - Labor & Employment)
- The Best Lawyers in America®, 2019-2025 (Employment Law - Management)
- The Best Lawyers in America®, 2020-2025 (Labor Law: Management)
- The Best Lawyers in America®, 2021, 2025 (Employment Law - Individuals)
- The Best Lawyers in America®, "Lawyer of the Year", 2019, 2022 (Litigation - Labor and Employment)
- The Best Lawyers in America®, "Lawyer of the Year", 2024 (Employment Law - Individuals)
- A. M. Best Client Recommended, 2018
Admissions
Kentucky, 1998
U.S. District Court Eastern District of Kentucky, 2003
U.S. District Court Western District of Kentucky, 1998
U.S. Court of Appeals 6th Circuit, 2000
U.S. District Court Northern District of Indiana, 2022
Education
University of Louisville School of Law, Louisville, Kentucky, J.D., 1998
University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, B.A., 1994
- Major: History
Overview
Cindy Effinger knows that real businesses need real life, practical solutions for their employment-related legal issues. Answers to employers’ questions are rarely black and white—and they always depend on the unique needs of a particular business. As an employment law attorney, Cindy enjoys the challenge of navigating those gray areas. She takes the time to get to know the character and culture of each company she advises to provide counsel that is specifically tailored to their needs, and she crafts policies that are practical to implement, all while maintaining compliance with federal, state, and local laws.
Cindy’s practice in Louisville, Kentucky, focuses primarily on employment litigation, involving matters such as business disputes, claims of discrimination and harassment, non-compete and other restrictive covenant agreements, wage and hour issues, and contract disputes. Prior to her work at McBrayer, Cindy represented plaintiffs in employment matters; her knowledge and experience from the other side of the table allows her to build even stronger cases and arguments for her clients today. Cindy also assists clients with audits and investigations performed by the U.S. Department of Labor and the Kentucky Labor Cabinet, helping employers to prepare accordingly and resolve any issues that may arise.
In addition to her litigation work, Cindy works with clients on crafting human resources policies and developing employee handbooks, from FMLA and leave issues to ADA accommodation requests to social media policies and beyond. She is also involved in resolving employee relations issues. Her background lends itself well to consulting with businesses with regard to client and competitor issues as well as disputes among business owners themselves.
Cindy understands that employment law evolves rapidly and that issues can arise at the drop of a hat. Clients can always count on her to stay up to speed and to be available with a quick response when an issue emerges unexpectedly. There is never a dull moment in Cindy’s practice—and she wouldn’t have it any other way.
Primary Practice
Additional Practice Experience
Professional Activities
Professional Activities
- Kentucky Bar Association, Member, 2007-Present
- Louisville Bar Association, (Law Day in the Schools Program), 2007-Present
- Lawyers Mutual Insurance Company of Kentucky, Board of Directors, 2007-2009
- Better Business Bureau of Louisville, Board of Directors, 2017
News & Insights
News
- December 17, 2024
- August 15, 2024
- January 9, 2024
- August 17, 2023
- May 12, 2023
- April 24, 2023
- April 13, 2023
- January 17, 2023
- December 29, 2022
- August 18, 2022
- December 30, 2021
- August 19, 2021
- July 29, 2021
- Super Lawyers, December 10, 2020
- The Lane Report, October 19, 2020
- August 20, 2020
- Business Lexington, December 19, 2019
- Super Lawyers, December 2, 2019
- U.S. News – Best Lawyers® in America, September 4, 2019
- July 1, 2019
- March 12, 2019
- December 19, 2018
- Louisville Business First, August 18, 2017
- Attorneys from McBrayer law offices in Lexington and Louisville achieved a 2018 listing in U.S. News Best Lawyers in AmericaAugust 15, 2017
Seminars & Speaking Engagements
- November 6, 2024
- November 2, 2023
- A Seminar for EmployersThe Mane on Main, 201 East Main Street, 15th Floor, Lexington, Kentucky, March 22, 2023
- October 26, 2022
- July 12, 2022
- October 27, 2021
- More Advice for the Continuing Workplace Challenges of COVID-19Webinar, September 15, 2021
- A Webinar for Employers - How to Handle the Newest Set of Workplace Challenges from COVID-19Webinar, March 3, 2021
- February 24, 2021
- A McBrayer WebinarOctober 29, 2020
- Webinar, May 15, 2020
- ARGI, January 30, 2020
- Tricks and Treats for HR ProfessionalsOctober 30, 2019
- On-Site Supervisor Training on Issues of Harassment, Discrimination, Retaliation and Medical LeaveHuman Resources Consulting
- The Current State of Reasonable Accommodation: Attorney Cindy Effinger speaks at Kentucky Society for Human Resource Management (KySHRM) Annual Conference 2018Kentucky Society for Human Resource Management (KySHRM) 34th Annual Conference 2018August 28, 2018
- University of Kentucky Office of Continuing Legal EducationLexington, KY, June 7, 2018
- Employment Law for EmployersAugust 29, 2017
- Kentucky Chamber ConferenceLexington, KY, May 3-4, 2016
- Kentucky ChamberLouisville, Kentucky, May 24-25, 2016
- Kentucky ChamberLexington, KY, May 9-10, 2017
- Kentucky ChamberLouisville, Kentucky, May 23-24, 2017
- Kentucky Society of Human Resource Managers (KYSHRM) 32nd Annnual ConferenceWhat HR Professionals Should Know About the Recent Trends in NLRB Decisions and GuidanceLouisville, Kentucky, August 30-September 2, 2016
- The EEOC Strikes Back: New Guidance on RetaliationLexington, KY, January 26, 2017
- Same-sex Marriage, EEOC Interpretations of Title VII and other LGBT Issues in EmploymentLexington, KY, November 5, 2015
- Mental Health Issues in the Workplace: Don't Let Them Drive You CrazyLexington, KY, November 5, 2015
- Harassment and Discrimination UpdateLexington, KY, November 5, 2015
- Mental Health Issues in the Workplace, and Possible Effects of Expanded Insurance Coverage for Mental Health TreatmentLouisville, KY, September 23, 2015
- 27th Annual Kentucky HR UpdateLexington, KY, May 26, 2015
- 27th Annual Kentucky HR UpdateLouisville, KY, May 12, 2015
- Getting It "Write": A McBrayer Employment Law Seminar, Louisville, KYSeptember 30, 2014
- Getting It "Write": A McBrayer Employment Law Seminar, Lexington, KYSeptember 28, 2014
- The HR Deposition Demystified, KY SHRM Conference, September 24, 2014
- Lessons in Workplace Liability, Business First, June 10, 2014
- May 29, 2014
- EEOC Update, 26th Annual Kentucky HR Update, Lexington, KY, May 28, 2014
- EEOC Update, 26th Annual Kentucky HR Update, Louisville, KY , May 21, 2014
- Two Trending Issues in Employee Relations, ADP, April 17, 2014
- October 10, 2013
- September 25, 2013
- Social Media: Strategy and Implementation Are you protected?, Kentuckiana Chapter of Information Systems Audit and Control Association (ISACA), June 21, 2013
- June 13, 2013
- Legal Issues for Restaurants, Bars and Hotels - A Critical Update, McBrayer law, February 2013
- Kentucky Pharmacists Association annual meeting, Employment Law, 2012
- Fayette County Bar Association, Bench & Bar, Employment Law, June 26, 2012
- Employment Policies and Procedures: A Critical Legal Update for Employers, McBrayer, 2009 - Present
Articles
- Business First of Louisville , February 26, 2016
- HRKentucky.com Newsletter, Kentucky Chamber of Commerce, July 10, 2015
- The EEOC in 2014, Kentucky Chamber, HR Newsletter, July 2014
- Facebook Friends & Workplace Enemies, Kentucky Chamber HR Newsletter, November 2013
- Inclement Weather and Time Off Issues: To Pay or Not to Pay, Kentucky Chamber Human Resource, November Newsletter, 2012
Blogs
Blog Posts
- New Kentucky Law Protects Businesses from COVID-19 Liability April 27, 2021
- The DOL's Final Rule for Overtime Salary Threshold is Dead in the Water December 3, 2024
- FTC Ban on Noncompetes Struck Down August 29, 2024
- TWO Threshold Hikes for the Price of One: DOL Issues Final Overtime Salary Threshold Rule April 25, 2024
- It's Official: FTC Issues Final Rule Banning Non-Competes April 25, 2024
- WEBINAR - Scary Stories from the HR Department, Volume VI: Who Killed Non-Competes? November 3, 2023
- DOL Moves to Raise Salary Floor in Proposed Overtime Rule September 11, 2023
- NLRB Gets Back in the Time Machine, Reverts to Previous Independent Contractor Test June 16, 2023
- WEBINAR - Scary Stories from the HR Department, Chapter V: Invasion of the Employee Snatchers! November 2, 2022
- View More »
Corporate Law Blog
Employment Law Blog
Intellectual Property Blog
Legal Insight and Litigation
Multimedia
Multimedia
- Our Clients - ARGI
- Employment Law - Keep Your Terminations from Being Terminal