Holli L. Hartman
Holli Hartman’s practice focuses on employment counseling and litigation, with an emphasis on providing guidance to employers to avoid litigation. She has ten years of litigation and courtroom experience and manages a multitude of employment matters for employers, including discrimination, harassment and retaliation litigation, wrongful discharge, wage and hour claims and compliance, terminations and reductions in force, noncompetition agreements and the protection of trade secrets, family leave issues, Americans with Disabilities Act enforcement, employee retention plans, compensation and executive agreements, employment class and collective actions, whistleblower actions and employee policy handbook advising and drafting.
Holli handles all aspects of litigation, including case evaluation and budgeting, settlement and alternative dispute resolution, discovery, motions practice, jury and non-jury trials and arbitrations, appellate briefing and argument. Aside from her employment law practice, Holli has experience in litigating and resolving business disputes involving construction defect and delay law, First Amendment/media law, trust and estate probate matters, real estate development and general breach of contract and business tort causes of action.
Some of Holli’s work with Baker Hostetler includes:
- Handling the briefing for a case in which the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed judgment as a matter of law in favor of a transportation industry client on a Section 1981 race discrimination claim, which negated a jury decision in favor of the plaintiff employee.
- Initiating and handling all aspects of an appeal in which the Colorado Court of Appeals overturned a trial court order denying a client’s motion to compel arbitration.
- Co-chairing a bench trial in which the U.S. District Court, District of Colorado, granted mandatory injunctive relief in favor of a client who sought restoration of railroad crossing easement that had been removed by a railway company.
Holli also has authored a number of articles or presented to employer representatives on a variety of employment topics, including the following:
- “Dealing with Difficult Employment Issues During Turbulent Economic Times,” Presenter, Baker Hostetler Employment Law Roundtable (January 21, 2009)
- “Work-Force Reductions,” ColoradoBiz Magazine (December 2008)
- “Strategies for Reducing Liability When Terminating Employees,” Presenter, Baker Hostetler Employment Law Roundtable (September 15, 2005)
- “Thinking Beyond ‘You’re Fired!’” ColoradoBiz Magazine (August 2005)
- “Terminations, Workforce Reductions, Corporate Restructuring,” Author and Presenter, Employment Law Update for Sterling Education Services, LLC (April 6, 2004)
Prior to joining Baker Hostetler, Holli was a reporter for The Des Moines Register newspaper in Des Moines, Iowa, where she reported and authored articles on the Iowa presidential caucuses, state government and politics, and business and economic development. While employed by the Register, Ms. Hartman also served as a business copy editor for USA Today in Arlington, Virginia.
After graduating from the University of Denver Sturm College of Law, Holli clerked for the Honorable Ann D. Montgomery, U.S. District Court, District of Minnesota. During her clerkship, Holli received experience and familiarity with patent and intellectual property litigation, ERISA litigation and various federal jurisdiction issues.
Holli also dedicates time to community service and has served on a number of boards and committees. She tutors elementary students on Tuesday nights during the school year at an elementary school in Denver. She has volunteered as a substitute teacher in the Denver Public Schools as part of the Denver Bar Association’s Guest Teacher Initiative. She serves as a member of the University of Denver Sturm College of Law Alumni Council and has served in the past on a number of committees for the Denver Bar Association, including the Executive Council for the Young Lawyers Division, the Bar’s officer and trustee nominating committee and the Bar’s annual Barrister’s Benefit Ball planning committee. Holli also has worked as a cooperating attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union Foundation of Colorado on litigation involving government freedom of information issues and prisoners’ rights.
During her free time, Holli can be found traveling to foreign countries, riding her bike across Iowa or solving New York Times crossword puzzles.