Skip to Content

Experience 

Colleen joined Johnson Pope in 2002 after practicing for five years in Chicago.  Colleen practices in the areas of labor and employment law, public sector law and commercial litigation.  In addition to representing employers in all aspects of employment litigation, Colleen advises clients on day to day employment and personnel policy issues.  Colleen has extensive experience defending property owners from Title III ADA access cases.  She also represents governmental entities not only in employment issues but also in administrative issues, sunshine law and public records law.

Distinctions & Memberships 

  • Admitted to the Illinois Bar, 1997 (currently inactive status)
  • Admitted to the U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois , 1997
  • Admitted to the United States Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit , 2002
  • Admitted to the Florida Bar, 1999
  • Admitted to the United States District Court, Middle District of Florida, 2002
  • Admitted to the United States Circuit of Appeals for the 11th Circuit, 2006
  • The Best Lawyers in America© since 2018, Litigation – Labor and Employment
  • Super Lawyers since 2018 – Employment Litigation Defense
  • Clearwater Bar Association, Chair of Labor and Employment Section 2012-2013, 2013-2014
  • Leadership Pinellas Class of 2006
  • Junior League of Clearwater-Dunedin
  • Florida Bar Grievance Committee

Education 

  • Vanderbilt University – B.A. with a double major in Political Science and Sociology, 1994
  • University of Illinois College of Law – J.D. 1997

Colleen joined Johnson Pope after practicing for 5 years in Chicago. Colleen practices in the labor and employment group and the commercial litigation group. Colleen has experience representing businesses and individuals in all types of disputes. She also has successfully represented businesses and individuals in employment related matters including discrimination and harassment claims involving age, race, sex, religion, marital status, national origin, and disability under local, state and federal laws as well as claims under the Fair Labor Standards Act and both the state and federal whistle-blower statute.

Colleen counsels clients on employment policies including terminations, leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act, reasonable accommodations under the ADA and has drafted employee handbooks, employment contracts, non-compete agreements and severance agreements.

Colleen has extensive experience defending property owners in ADA access cases in federal court.

Articles

By Joan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. Wood September 2021

  We know that the announcement of The White House: Path out of the Pandemic: President Biden’s COVID-19 Action Plan (the “Action Plan”) has left many of us with more questions than answers.  We are closely monitoring the situation and will provide a more detailed summary when the applicable Occupational Safety […]

Categories: Articles, Blogs, COVID-19 task force, Labor & Employment

By Joan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. Wood July 2021

With the rise in vaccination rates and the increased return of workers to the workplace, the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (“OSHA”) and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) have issued updated guidance for employers and employees relating to safety standards and vaccine policies.  Specifically, on May 28, 2021, the […]

Categories: Articles, Blogs, COVID-19 task force, Labor & Employment

By Joan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. Wood May 2021

The past few weeks have seen a flurry of activity at both the federal and state level relating to COVID-19.  Most recently, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (“CDC”) issued updated guidance concerning the use of masks for fully vaccinated individuals.  This article will provide you a brief overview […]

Categories: Articles, Blogs, COVID-19 task force, Labor & Employment

By Joan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. Wood March 2020

At the end of January 2020, the Pinellas County Board of County Commissioners made significant amendments to the Wage Theft and Recovery Ordinance, which applies to any entity or person who employs a person (even just one person) within Pinellas County.  These amendments became effective in February 2020.   With […]

Categories: Articles, Blogs, Labor & Employment

By Joan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. Wood September 2019

Joan M. Vecchioli, Esq., Colleen M. Fynn, Esq., Rachael L. Wood, Esq. invite you to attend their seminar series Best Employment Practices Topics will include Animals in the Workplace Department of Labor Developments Common Employer Mistakes Wednesday, October 23, 2019 8:30 a.m. – Noon Continental Breakfast served Ruth Eckerd Hall […]

Categories: Articles, Blogs, Labor & Employment

By Joan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. Wood September 2019

Many of our clients have been inquiring about their obligations regarding animals in the workplace. For employers, these obligations may vary depending on whether the person wanting to bring an animal into the workplace is a customer or an employee.  Customers If the person is a customer and the business […]

Categories: Articles, Blogs, Labor & Employment

By Joan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodColleen M. Flynn, Joan M. Vecchioli & Rachael L. Wood April 2019

We have seen rapid developments in wage and hour laws over the past several months that will affect a wide range of industries and professions. These developments under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) include Opinion Letters issued by the United States Department of Labor (“DOL”) and proposed rules by […]

Categories: Articles, Blogs, Labor & Employment

By Joan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodColleen M. Flynn, Joan M. Vecchioli & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. Wood October 2018

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has long required that its resources be targeted to ensure the strongest possible impact in its efforts to stop unlawful employment discrimination. In 2017, the EEOC revised its Strategic Enforcement Plan (“SEP”) for Fiscal Years 2017-2021 to identify six (6) substantive area priorities and […]

Categories: Blogs, Labor & Employment

By Joan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodColleen M. Flynn, Joan M. Vecchioli & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. WoodJoan M. Vecchioli, Colleen M. Flynn & Rachael L. Wood August 2018

Welcome to our Labor and Employment Group blog where we will discuss legal issues and address questions that frequently arise in our practice and provide updates and analyses of statutory and case law developments in the area of Labor and Employment Law.  Our Labor & Employment Group regularly represents employers […]

Categories: Blogs, Labor & Employment

View More Results