Shelly Freeman
As a Founding Member of FineLine HR Consulting (“FineLine”), Shelly brings a unique combination of experiences that benefit her clients. She has more than 30 years of experience as a labor and employment attorney, including as a winning trial lawyer. She has also been an HR Director for a large company operating in multiple states. Shelly’s ability to deliver some of the most intricate of employment laws with humor, real life examples, and—most importantly—in accessible terms that non-lawyers understand, makes her a sought-after trainer and speaker in both the private and public sectors.
Admitted to Bar in Missouri 1988
Admitted to Bar in Kansas 1989
U.S. Supreme Court
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
EDUCATION
John E. Reid & Associates, Inc. – The Reid Technique of Interviewing and Interrogation, 2016 University of Kansas School of Law, J.D., 1988
Wichita State University, B.A., magna cum laude, 1984
National Institute of Trial Advocacy Trial Training, 1995
EXPERIENCE
As a Founding Member of FineLine HR Consulting, Shelly counsels and consults with employers on the full range of human resource issues; conducts independent investigations; provides dispute resolution services for harassment, discrimination and other serious employee complaints; and develops and conducts management and supervisory training on HR-related topics for companies throughout the country. Shelly’s video training product, “The Workplace Training Series,” was named one of HR Executive Magazine’s “Top Training Picks.” The award-winning series has been updated to include the latest legal enactments and developments, and has been converted to InSite™ Online HR Training, an interactive e-training platform.
After more than a decade as a Labor & Employment lawyer, Shelly was the Director of Corporate and Field Human Resources for a multi-unit retailer with locations across the country. While there, she managed and directed a full range of human resource functions for the manufacturing, distribution and retail components of a 10,000+ employee workforce.
Currently, as a Founding Member of FineLine, Shelly combines the experience of more than 30 years as an employment lawyer and HR practitioner to assist companies with HR challenges. Shelly is the Past President of SHRM-KC (formerly Human Resource Management Association of Greater Kansas City), a SHRM affiliate and Superior HR Merit Chapter.
Shelly is a frequent speaker and trainer for many organizations including the American Bar Association (Labor and Employment Law Section), the Missouri Bar, the Heartland Labor and Employment Law Institute, the University of Kansas School of Law, the Missouri Chamber of Commerce; the Kansas City Chamber of Commerce, and many private companies. In October 2008, she participated as a guest panelist in the Edgar Snow Symposium in Beijing, China.
HONORS
• Selected among The Best Lawyers in America® (Labor & Employment), 2012-2016
• Selected as one of Missouri/Kansas Super Lawyers, 2006-2016
• One of 25 Women Who Mean Business selected by the KC Business Journal in 2006
• Named Contributor of the Year by SHRM-KC, 2005
• Martindale Hubbell® “AV” Rating
ACTIVITIES AND MEMBERSHIPS
• SHRM-KC (formerly named HRMA-GKC) – President, 2004; Examiner – Paragon Award
• Board Member – Humane Society of Greater Kansas City
• Board Member – Harmony Project KC
• Board Member – GRACE (Giving Recovering Addicts/Alcoholics a Chance to Evolve)
• Member, Mid-America Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce (MACLCC)
• Mentor, Steve Metzler MAGLCC Mentor Program
• American Heart Association – Circle of Red 2016