Kayla Ernst advises employers on all aspects of employment law and represents employers when complaints are filed against them. Kayla advises employers on issues relating to managing their workforce, terminations, employee complaints, discrimination, leave and accommodation, employee classification, wage payment, and more. She also assists employers in the drafting and implementation of employment policies. On the litigation side, Kayla regularly represents employers in state and federal courts and before state and federal agencies such as the EEOC or NLRB.
Kayla received her juris doctor from The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law, where she graduated summa cum laude, Order of the Coif, and finished first in her class. At law school, Kayla served as a managing editor of the Ohio State Law Journal, and she worked in the Justice for Children Legal Clinic, where she represented children in immigration and delinquency matters. During law school, Kayla also worked as a legal intern at the Ohio Industrial Commission.
Prior to law school, Kayla received her Bachelor of Arts, magna cum laude, from Kenyon College, where she majored in English. During college, Kayla played on the varsity basketball team for four years and was a three-time first team All-Conference player. Her senior year she was named North Coast Athletic Conference Player of the Year and Academic All-American, among other honors. Since college, she was named to the NCAC Women’s Basketball All-Decade Team. She now enjoys playing on Ice Miller's basketball team in a local lawyers basketball league.
During summers prior to and during college, Kayla worked as a factory worker at a manufacturer of concession equipment in Cincinnati, Ohio. Her experience included working in the wiring department and working on the assembly line. Kayla also spent a summer as an office clerk at a law firm in Cincinnati where she filed documents in various courts, worked as a receptionist and performed other office-related jobs for secretaries and attorneys. From these experiences, Kayla gained an appreciation for the complex issues faced in both blue-collar and white-collar workplaces, which motivated her to enter labor and employment law.
Kayla is admitted to practice in all Indiana state courts, the U.S. District Courts in the Northern and Southern Districts of Indiana, and the Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.