Genna Walsh
Genna Walsh is an attorney at Benowitz Law Corporation where she represents Oregon employees on a wide variety of labor and employment law cases including employment contracts, at-will employment, discrimination, whistleblower protections, wrongful termination, harassment, retaliation, paid leave, wage and hour violations, workplace safety violations, employee misclassification, and class actions. Genna joined Benowitz Law Corporation in November 2024.
Genna earned her Bachelor of the Arts degrees in Literary Journalism and Political Science from the University of California, Irvine in 2009. She achieved her Juris Doctor degree from Willamette University College of Law in Salem, Oregon in 2024, with certificates in Health Law, Law & Business, and Advocacy and Dispute Resolution.
While in law school, Genna authored and published two articles in the American Bar Association’s Health eSource. Genna traveled to Arusha, Tanzania with a group of law students studying international children’s rights and volunteered at Inherit Your Rights, a local NGO advocating for women and children’s rights. Genna also spent a year in the Estate Planning clinic serving low income individuals and tribal members in the community.
Genna shares a passion for advocacy work and believes in being a voice for clients who need support in asserting their rights. Genna is a skilled negotiator with a background navigating commercial and residential real estate transactions in Los Angeles since 2014.
Outside the practice of law, Genna enjoys all things health and wellness, yoga, hiking, snowboarding, cooking, walks with her pup Zelda, and spending time with her fiancé Austin, family, and friends.
- Oregon
- Oregon Labor & Employment Law Section
- Oregon Health Law Section
- Oregon Cannabis & Psychedelic Law Section
- Psychedelic Bar Association
Notable Appellate Cases
- Troester v. Starbucks Corp. (2018) 5 Cal.5th 829, California Supreme Court: Obtained reversal of summary judgment order and set precedent holding that California’s “hours worked” definition does not recognize a de minimis exception (contrary to the FLSA)
- Augustus v. ABM Security Services, Inc. (2016) 2 Cal.5th 257, California Supreme Court: As amicus curiae on behalf of the California Employment Lawyers Association (CELA), submitted brief largely adopted by the Court in its ruling that California law prohibits on-call and on-duty rest periods.
- Valencia v. SCIS Air Security Corp. (2015) 241 Cal.App.4th 377, Court of Appeal, Second Appellate District: Obtained a reversal of a denial of class certification and grant of summary adjudication in favor of employer in wage and hour class action on grounds that the Airline Deregulation Act (ADA) does not preempt California’s wage and hour laws.
- Chavez v. Southern California Edison Co. (2015) No. B253514, Unpublished, Court of Appeal, Second Appellate District: Obtained reversal defense verdict after jury trial in male-on-male sexual harassment case where court gave erroneous jury instruction over plaintiff’s objection.
Notable Appellate Cases
California
Memberships
California Employment Lawyers Association
Justice HQ