Your first international hire seems simple. It isn't. I help US companies get it right before it gets expensive.
Navigate the legal complexity of building & managing a global workforce with Woodhead’s Law.
Most employment lawyers know one country well. Woodhead's Law knows how employment law works and how it gets enforced across the globe. Whether you're hiring your first employee abroad or managing a workforce spread across multiple countries, Woodhead's Law gives you legal counsel that covers your entire operation, not just the piece in front of you right now.
Woodhead's Law works with startups and growing companies in tech, pharma, consumer goods, professional services, and manufacturing that have a presence in the United States and a workforce — or ambitions for one — beyond it. All services available in English & Spanish.
Flat Fee Services
Global Employment & Outsourcing Risk Exposure Audits
Compensation & Benefits, Payroll Compliance, Health & Safety, Worker Classification/Misclassification, Discrimination, Unions & Collective Bargaining, Hiring & Firing, Telework/Remote Work, Child Labor & Forced Labor, Non-Compete Agreements, Non-Disclosure Agreements, Pregnancy/Maternity/Paternity/Parental Leave & Accommodations + More
Global HR Policy Audits
A thorough review of your global HR policies — identifying gaps, risks, and recommendations before they become problems. Includes core topics listed above + additional such as remote work, remote hiring, work authorization & visas, right to work, and distributed teams.
Country Entry Memos
Know the context and risks before you hire.
Employer of Record (EOR) and Personal Employer Organization (PEO) Guidance & Contract Review
Understand what an EOR will and won’t do for your company related to proactive compliance and reactive litigation.
Employment Type Guidance
Deciding between using an EOR, setting up a foreign entity, or hiring contractors. Understand and address risks related to independent contractor misclassification, including co-employment, workforce misclassification, and permanent establishment (PE) risk.
B-Corp Fair Work and Human Rights Standards Counsel
Translate B Corp standards into practice.
Employee Handbook Reviews
Your handbook should reflect where your people actually are. Woodhead’s Law reviews it for legal gaps and cross-border inconsistencies.
Human Rights Due Diligence on Suppliers & Partners
Before you sign a contract, do you know how your suppliers and partners treat their workers? Woodhead’s Law reviews your supply chain from direct partners to their contractors and beyond — for forced labor, child labor, unsafe conditions, and other violations that create legal and reputational risk. For a sense of what this looks like in practice, see some sample supplier vetting questions.
Employment Risk Exposure Due Diligence for Buyers & Investors
Ensure that the business your investment will support or that you are acquiring isn’t built on child labor or forced labor, illegal subcontracting, or other costly violations that will harm your return and reputation.
Ongoing & Advisory Services
Fractional Global Employment Counsel
Receive in-house counsel on all of your company’s global, international, and cross-border labor and employment matters. Retainer or hourly.
International Commercial Arbitration and Trade Agreement Disputes
I represent employers and serve as specialist counsel in international commercial arbitrations and in disputes arising under the labor provisions of U.S. free trade agreements, including proceedings under the USMCA Rapid Response Labor Mechanism.
Engagements typically take one of three forms:
Sole or co-counsel in cross-border employment, executive, and labor disputes.
Specialist counsel on the international labor, trade agreement, or treaty-compliance dimensions of broader commercial arbitrations and enforcement proceedings.
Strategic advisory on forum selection, treaty and trade agreement defenses, RRM exposure assessments, and dispute positioning before formal proceedings begin.
This work draws directly on fourteen years at the U.S. Department of Labor advising foreign governments and multinational employers on international labor standards, the labor obligations of U.S. free trade agreements, and treaty enforcement.
Sourcing & Managing Quality Local Employment Counsel
Local laws and litigation require local counsel, and expert oversight from a lawyer who knows employment globally.
Union Engagement & Negotiations
Engage productively with employees that have organized or are in the process of forming a union. Woodhead’s Law has an approach that preserves profit while respecting rights.
Incident/Workplace Investigations
Accidents, terminations, harassment, and other issues require experienced counsel to conduct interviews, review evidence, and guide your company on next steps. Virtual, hybrid, or in-person options.
Government Relations & International Organization Engagement
Woodhead’s Law has experience strategically engaging with U.S. and foreign labor/employment law enforcement officials, policymakers, advocacy organizations, NGOs, worker organizations, business associations, and more.
Crisis Management
When a legal or compliance issue becomes a public one, Woodhead’s Law helps you address the root cause and navigate the fallout.
Not sure which service fits your situation?
That's normal.
Most founders come to Woodhead's Law with a specific problem but lack clarity on the solution.
Book a consultation and we'll figure it out together.