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2026 Regional Compliance Webinar: West Region Update

Tuesday, Oct. 27
9:00 am PT | 12:00 pm ET

The compliance landscape surrounding absence and disability management is changing at a dizzying pace. DMEC’s annual compliance update webinar series is intended to help employers who might be struggling to keep up with the changes impacting their organizations. Each session in this five-part series focuses on a different region of the United States — bringing you the latest developments in circuit court decisions, legislative updates, leave and accommodation guidance, and other critical compliance news.

This webinar will cover content specific to the Western region of the United States: Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, Arizona, New Mexico, Alaska, Washington, Oregon, California, and Hawaii (9th and 10th circuit courts).

Learning Objectives

  • Gain a practical understanding of how the various disability and leave management laws work together throughout the region.
  • Understand recently updated and pending legislation impacting absence and disability management in the West.
  • Learn about recent circuit court decisions that impact disability and absence management under the jurisdiction of the 9th and 10th circuit courts.
Register today

Presented by

Kurtis Urien
Of Counsel
Jackson Lewis P.C.
Melisa Panagakos
Principal and Office Litigation Manager
Jackson Lewis P.C.

This session qualifies for the following CEUs:

1 ADMS, 1 CDMS, 1 CLMS, 1 PHR, and 1 SHRM

TO QUALIFY FOR CEUs

  • You must attend the full duration of the webinar. Following the webinar and once attendance has been confirmed, you will receive an email with CEU reporting information.
  • You must register for and watch the webinar individually. Group participation does not qualify for CEU credit.
  • CLMS Exclusively offered by DMEC, the Certified Leave Management Specialist (CLMS) program is the only professional designation of its kind that provides interactive, hands-on training to ensure your programs effectively comply with state and federal leave laws. Learn more about the CLMS program.

Exclusively offered by DMEC, the Certified Leave Management Specialist (CLMS) program is the only professional designation of its kind that provides interactive, hands-on training to ensure your programs effectively comply with state and federal leave laws. Learn more about the CLMS program.

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Registration Fees

DMEC Members

Free

Non-Members

$99

DMEC members receive free registration for webinars.

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Kurtis Urien
Of Counsel
Jackson Lewis P.C.
Kurtis Urien (yoo-RYE-in) is of counsel in the Orange County office and focuses on advice and counsel in labor and employment law. Kurtis is a member of the California Advice and Counsel resource group.
Kurtis builds and leads high-performance teams that deliver on evolving California and national employer needs while protecting brands and managing risk. His entrepreneurial spirit, combined with his business experience, has shaped him into an advice and counsel attorney with a strong focus on meeting business objectives by finding ways to say “yes” while complying with the ever-changing employment law landscape. He enjoys solving complex challenges and collaborating with talented professionals to help protect clients’ brands.
Kurtis counsels employers on a variety of employment law issues, including wage and hour compliance, M&A due diligence and preparation, employment agreements, compensation and commission agreements, background checks, onboarding and terminations, independent contractor classifications, FLSA classifications, workplace investigations, workplace accommodations, employee handbooks and policies, workplace violence, leaves of absence, restrictive covenants, confidentiality agreements, and litigation avoidance.
Kurtis partners with companies to help them find equal footing with employees in California’s ever-changing employment law environment. He is committed to helping employers develop practical, real-world solutions to challenges that can often seem stacked against them.
Prior to joining Jackson Lewis, Kurtis practiced business and corporate law in addition to employment law counseling. A self-described business enthusiast, he enjoys learning about clients’ industries, operations, and services and uses that understanding to craft tailored solutions. He began his legal career practicing employment litigation defense and successfully advocating for employers.
While attending law school, Kurtis was a member of Law Review, serving as an article author, editor, and symposium member, and also served as a Dean’s Fellow mentoring fellow students. Since graduating from law school, Kurtis has taught employment law, human resources, and other business-related courses at the collegiate and graduate levels.
Melisa Panagakos
Principal and Office Litigation Manager
Jackson Lewis P.C.
Melisa Panagakos is a principal and office litigation manager in the Denver, Colorado, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. She understands that workplace law is about people and details. She is known for her personal and relatable demeanor with clients and witnesses, a critical factor when presenting complex matters to juries. Melisa defends her clients with practical yet persuasive strategies and does not shy away from trial. Indeed, she secured a defense verdict in a complicated race and age discrimination federal jury trial for one of the firm’s major clients.
Melisa has also successfully resolved more than a dozen complex class and collective FLSA and state law wage and hour matters, as well as protected confidential and trade secret information in non-compete matters. She stays current in class action litigation trends and workplace challenges and enjoys sharing her insights with clients.
Melisa excels at preventive counseling, and clients turn to her frequently for advice on a range of workplace matters, including leave and accommodation issues, performance counseling, and terminations. Clients frequently ask Melisa to conduct workplace trainings on performance management, anti-discrimination, and harassment.
As a native New Mexican and a graduate of Colorado State University and the University of New Mexico School of Law, Melisa has a particular affinity for companies in the Rocky Mountain area and always enjoys in-person visits to better understand her clients’ businesses.
In her spare time, Melisa enjoys being outside with her family, trail running, climbing the Peloton leaderboard, and riding Lucky, the horse she has had since her childhood equestrian competitions.
Allison Morgan
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Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Fusce quis arcu placerat, condimentum nisl vel, mollis metus. Etiam lobortis, libero eget blandit pretium, augue ipsum pellentesque lorem, scelerisque aliquet magna enim non ligula. Proin ac imperdiet augue, non auctor ex. Aliquam felis felis, ultricies venenatis dapibus quis, elementum eget magna. Aliquam erat volutpat. Phasellus felis ex, semper vitae erat a, consequat ullamcorper leo. Donec mattis lobortis tincidunt. Nulla pulvinar ac nisl eget ornare. Aliquam elementum elit sit amet dignissim tempus. Ut sed ante vitae eros ultrices porta.

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Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Fusce quis arcu placerat, condimentum nisl vel, mollis metus. Etiam lobortis, libero eget blandit pretium, augue ipsum pellentesque lorem, scelerisque aliquet magna enim non ligula. Proin ac imperdiet augue, non auctor ex. Aliquam felis felis, ultricies venenatis dapibus quis, elementum eget magna. Aliquam erat volutpat. Phasellus felis ex, semper vitae erat a, consequat ullamcorper leo. Donec mattis lobortis tincidunt. Nulla pulvinar ac nisl eget ornare. Aliquam elementum elit sit amet dignissim tempus. Ut sed ante vitae eros ultrices porta.

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Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Fusce quis arcu placerat, condimentum nisl vel, mollis metus. Etiam lobortis, libero eget blandit pretium, augue ipsum pellentesque lorem, scelerisque aliquet magna enim non ligula. Proin ac imperdiet augue, non auctor ex. Aliquam felis felis, ultricies venenatis dapibus quis, elementum eget magna. Aliquam erat volutpat. Phasellus felis ex, semper vitae erat a, consequat ullamcorper leo. Donec mattis lobortis tincidunt. Nulla pulvinar ac nisl eget ornare. Aliquam elementum elit sit amet dignissim tempus. Ut sed ante vitae eros ultrices porta.

Lindsay Lueken

VP, Disability & Leave Operations

BROADSPIRE

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Fusce quis arcu placerat, condimentum nisl vel, mollis metus. Etiam lobortis, libero eget blandit pretium, augue ipsum pellentesque lorem, scelerisque aliquet magna enim non ligula. Proin ac imperdiet augue, non auctor ex. Aliquam felis felis, ultricies venenatis dapibus quis, elementum eget magna. Aliquam erat volutpat. Phasellus felis ex, semper vitae erat a, consequat ullamcorper leo. Donec mattis lobortis tincidunt. Nulla pulvinar ac nisl eget ornare. Aliquam elementum elit sit amet dignissim tempus. Ut sed ante vitae eros ultrices porta.

Alice Cotti

VP, Government Segment Business Solutions

AFLAC

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Fusce quis arcu placerat, condimentum nisl vel, mollis metus. Etiam lobortis, libero eget blandit pretium, augue ipsum pellentesque lorem, scelerisque aliquet magna enim non ligula. Proin ac imperdiet augue, non auctor ex. Aliquam felis felis, ultricies venenatis dapibus quis, elementum eget magna. Aliquam erat volutpat. Phasellus felis ex, semper vitae erat a, consequat ullamcorper leo. Donec mattis lobortis tincidunt. Nulla pulvinar ac nisl eget ornare. Aliquam elementum elit sit amet dignissim tempus. Ut sed ante vitae eros ultrices porta.

Seth Turner, Chief Strategy Officer
Seth Turner

Chief Strategy Officer

ABSENCESOFT

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Fusce quis arcu placerat, condimentum nisl vel, mollis metus. Etiam lobortis, libero eget blandit pretium, augue ipsum pellentesque lorem, scelerisque aliquet magna enim non ligula. Proin ac imperdiet augue, non auctor ex. Aliquam felis felis, ultricies venenatis dapibus quis, elementum eget magna. Aliquam erat volutpat. Phasellus felis ex, semper vitae erat a, consequat ullamcorper leo. Donec mattis lobortis tincidunt. Nulla pulvinar ac nisl eget ornare. Aliquam elementum elit sit amet dignissim tempus. Ut sed ante vitae eros ultrices porta.

Kurtis Urien
Of Counsel
Jackson Lewis P.C.
Kurtis Urien (yoo-RYE-in) is of counsel in the Orange County office and focuses on advice and counsel in labor and employment law. Kurtis is a member of the California Advice and Counsel resource group.
Kurtis builds and leads high-performance teams that deliver on evolving California and national employer needs while protecting brands and managing risk. His entrepreneurial spirit, combined with his business experience, has shaped him into an advice and counsel attorney with a strong focus on meeting business objectives by finding ways to say “yes” while complying with the ever-changing employment law landscape. He enjoys solving complex challenges and collaborating with talented professionals to help protect clients’ brands.
Kurtis counsels employers on a variety of employment law issues, including wage and hour compliance, M&A due diligence and preparation, employment agreements, compensation and commission agreements, background checks, onboarding and terminations, independent contractor classifications, FLSA classifications, workplace investigations, workplace accommodations, employee handbooks and policies, workplace violence, leaves of absence, restrictive covenants, confidentiality agreements, and litigation avoidance.
Kurtis partners with companies to help them find equal footing with employees in California’s ever-changing employment law environment. He is committed to helping employers develop practical, real-world solutions to challenges that can often seem stacked against them.
Prior to joining Jackson Lewis, Kurtis practiced business and corporate law in addition to employment law counseling. A self-described business enthusiast, he enjoys learning about clients’ industries, operations, and services and uses that understanding to craft tailored solutions. He began his legal career practicing employment litigation defense and successfully advocating for employers.
While attending law school, Kurtis was a member of Law Review, serving as an article author, editor, and symposium member, and also served as a Dean’s Fellow mentoring fellow students. Since graduating from law school, Kurtis has taught employment law, human resources, and other business-related courses at the collegiate and graduate levels.