Sharon is a Member in Stoll Keenon Ogden’s Louisville office and has been with the firm since 1991. She is part of the Labor, Employment & Employee Benefits practice, as well as the Securities & Corporate Governance and Mergers & Acquisitions practices and serves on the board of directors for the firm.
Focusing primarily on employee benefits, Sharon assists businesses and organizations across all sectors in maintaining compliant benefit offerings. She works with employers, from solo practitioners to partnerships to Fortune 500 companies.
Sharon is AV Preeminent® Peer Review Rated by Martindale-Hubbell®, is listed in Best Lawyers in America® and is honored as a Kentucky Super Lawyers® for her many legal accomplishments. She is a frequent speaker at seminars and community meetings.
Sharon is a current member and the former president of the Louisville Employee Benefits Council, and is a member of the ESOP Association and the Women Lawyers Association of Jefferson County. She previously served on the executive committee and board of directors for the Kentucky Shakespeare Festival, and on the board of directors for the Business and Professional Women of River City. She serves on various committees with the Cathedral of the Assumption, mainly related to its “Feed My Neighbor” program.
Labor, Employment & Employee Benefits: Sharon has more than 25 years of experience in the design and maintenance of qualified and nonqualified retirement plans, health and welfare plans, and executive deferred compensation plans. She also provides guidance on employee benefit issues in mergers and acquisitions, as well as the purchase and sale of businesses through employee stock ownership plans. She has done extensive work with the Internal Revenue Service and the Department of Labor on tax and ERISA compliance. Since the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act was signed into law in March 2010, Sharon has provided counsel to employers on the impact of the various components of the Act on their businesses and employees.
Securities & Corporate Governance: In the area of executive compensation, Sharon has provided counsel to privately held and publicly traded companies and nonprofit entities. She has experience with both equity- and performance-based incentive compensation, including stock option plans, phantom plans, restricted stock plans and stock appreciation rights. She regularly addresses IRC 280G and 409A compliance issues.
Mergers & Acquisitions: Sharon coordinates benefit program transitions, redesign, or terminations for employers in the process of buying and selling businesses. She advises employers on what can be changed and what should, or must, be protected.
Recognition
• AV® Preeminent™ Peer Review Rated by Martindale-Hubbell®
• Best Lawyers®, Lawyer of the Year, 2016
• Best Lawyers®, Employee Benefits (ERISA) Law, 1991-present
• Kentucky Super Lawyers® Honoree, 2007; 2015-2022
• Louisville Magazine Top Lawyer, Employee Benefits Law and Retirement Benefits/Pension Law, 2012-2014
• Woodcock Medal Recipient
Work Highlights
Reorganization, Refinancing and Acquisition of Major Healthcare Entity
Stoll Keenon Ogden represented a major healthcare services entity, its affiliated upstream and sister companies, its owners and its founding management team in comprehensive reorganization, refinancing and acquisition transactions totaling more than $300 million. The matters resulted in the closing of a senior secured term loan and revolving credit facilities secured by owned senior care facilities in four states with a 9-member syndicate of commercial banks; the requisition of waivers, consents and estoppels from various property lessors on leased senior care facilities in four states; restructuring of upstream holding companies and combination of two upstream ownership groups and boards of managers; the creation of a management company; the introduction of healthcare facility management agreements; the migration of payroll and benefits for more than 7,000 employees; the related restructuring of multiple lease and debt financing and supplier relationships; the creation and reorganization of multiple SPE organizations accompanied by extensive non-consolidation analysis and issuance of a substantive non-consolidation opinion to the lending syndicate; the exercise of purchase option and acquisition of multiple senior care facilities; the contribution of additional equity capital from the client’s majority owners; and the amendment and restructuring of multiple Master Lease and inter-creditor agreements.
Related Practices: Business Services, Labor, Employment & Employee Benefits, Tax, Bankruptcy & Financial Restructuring, Corporate Finance & Lending, Healthcare, Mergers & Acquisitions
News
118 SKO Attorneys Named to “2023 U.S. News Best Lawyers® in America”, Aug. 18, 2022
SKO Attorneys Selected to 2022 Kentucky Super Lawyers, Jan. 6, 2022
77 STOLL KEENON OGDEN ATTORNEYS HONORED IN “BEST LAWYERS IN AMERICA” 2022 Edition, Aug. 19, 2021
KENTUCKY SUPER LAWYERS RECOGNIZES 39 STOLL KEENON OGDEN ATTORNEYS, Dec. 11, 2020
73 Stoll Keenon Ogden PLLC attorneys are recognized in the 2021 edition of the Best Lawyers in America®, one of the most respected legal peer-review guides in the world., Aug. 20, 2020
COVID-19’s Impact on Workers’ Compensation Benefits in Kentucky and Indiana, Apr. 17, 2020
One Of My Employees Has Tested Positive For COVID-19. What Now?, Apr. 16, 2020
Kentucky Super Lawyers Recognizes 47 Stoll Keenon Ogden Attorneys, Nov. 27, 2019
SKO Attorneys Recognized Among 2020 Best Lawyers in America®, Aug. 15, 2019
Kentucky Super Lawyers Recognizes 52 Stoll Keenon Ogden Attorneys, Dec. 11, 2018
SKO Attorneys Recognized Among 2019 Best Lawyers in America, Aug. 15, 2018
SKO Attorneys Recognized Among Best Lawyers in America, Aug. 16, 2017
Five SKO Attorneys Recognized Among Top 50 Kentucky Super Lawyers, Nov. 18, 2016
Best Lawyers in America Chooses 61 SKO Attorneys for 2017 Publication, Aug. 30, 2016
30 SKO Attorneys Named “Top Lawyer” by Louisville Magazine, Mar. 2, 2016
Lea Pauley Goff and Richard G. Griffith named among Top 50 Kentucky Super Lawyers, Nov. 30, 2015
SKO Attorneys Named “Lawyer of the Year” by Best Lawyers®, Aug. 17, 2015
SKO Attorneys Recognized by Best Lawyers in America® 2016, Aug. 17, 2015
SKO Announces New Attorneys on Firm Board of Directors, Mar. 10, 2015
Kentucky Super Lawyers Recognizes 57 Stoll Keenon Ogden Attorneys, Nov. 24, 2014
SKO Attorneys Recognized by Best Lawyers in America® 2015, Aug. 18, 2014
33 SKO Attorneys Named “Top Lawyer” by Louisville Magazine, Mar. 25, 2014
SKO Attorneys Recognized by Best Lawyers in America® 2014, Aug. 19, 2013
34 SKO Attorneys Names “Top Lawyer” by Louisville Magazine, Mar. 5, 2013
61 SKO Attorneys Recognized by Best Lawyers in America® 2013, Sep. 7, 2012
53 SKO Attorneys Recognized by Best Lawyers in America® 2012, Sep. 6, 2011
Brown-Forman to Sell Fetzer Vineyards and Related Assets to Viña Concha y Toro S.A., Mar. 2, 2011
53 SKO Attorneys Recognized by Best Lawyers in America® 2011, Aug. 6, 2010
49 SKO Attorneys Recognized by Best Lawyers in America, Aug. 6, 2009
39 SKO Attorneys Recognized by Best Lawyers in America, Sep. 19, 2007
Kentucky Super Lawyers Recognizes 24 SKO Attorneys, June 19, 2007
Louisville Magazine Recognizes SKO Attorneys as Best Lawyers in America, Mar. 15, 2006
Publications
U.S. Supreme Court Rules Title VII Prohibits Discrimination Against LGBT Employees, June 17, 2020
Re-opening Kentucky and Indiana’s Economies: A Summary, Apr. 29, 2020
New Department of Labor FAQs Provide More Clarity on Upcoming Paid Leave Requirements, Apr. 1, 2020
Kentucky and Indiana Unemployment Insurance Information and Resource, Mar. 26, 2020
Families First Coronavirus Response Act Signed Into Law, Mar. 19, 2020
Sixth Circuit Holds: Contract Provision Shortening Title VII Statutory Limitations Period is Unenforceable, Nov. 6, 2019
Misclassification of Workers as Independent Contractors Not a Violation of Federal Labor Law, Sep. 16, 2019
Employees May Take FMLA Leave For Medical Parent/Teacher Conferences, Sep. 11, 2019
NLRB Overrules Precedent: Property Owners May Exclude Off-Duty Contractor Employees From Premises, Sep. 4, 2019
Federal Appeals Court Finds the EEOC’s Criminal Background Check Guidance Unenforceable, Aug. 12, 2019
Kentucky Court of Appeals: Non-Lawyers May No Longer Represent Employers During Unemployment Proceedings, May 1, 2019
Kentucky Clarifies Accommodations for Pregnant Workers, Apr. 17, 2019
Senate Bill 7 Restores Kentucky’s Approval of Employment Arbitration Agreements, Mar. 15, 2019
Kentucky Employers Can’t Enforce Arbitration Agreements Required for Employment, Oct. 18, 2018
New NLRB rulemaking may change the joint-employer standard, Oct. 4, 2018
In Landmark Decision, U.S. Supreme Court Strikes Down Mandatory Union Fees, July 19, 2018
Five Reasons to Contact Your Labor and Employment Lawyer Now, Jan. 11, 2018
The Loan Zone: Curing Late Payments on Loans From Qualified Employer Retirement Plans, Nov. 29, 2017
Labor Secretary Confirms June 9, 2017, Effective Date for Investment Advice Conflict of Interest Rule, June 2, 2017
Is Your Website ADA Compliant?, May 17, 2017
U.S. Department of Labor to review investment advice conflict of interest rule, Mar. 24, 2017
Federal Court Blocks New Overtime Regulation, Nov. 23, 2016
Kentucky Supreme Court Strikes Down Local Minimum Wage Ordinance, Oct. 24, 2016
Major Changes Announced for Retirement Savings as the Department of Labor Issues New Fiduciary Standards for Advisers, May 4, 2016
What happens on a new employee’s 91st day under ACA?, June 28, 2013
Predicted Tax Trends in the New Economy, Mar. 19, 2013
Seminars
"The Affordable Healthcare Act: Its Impact on Your Business," 2013 Kentucky Cable Telecommunications Association Annual MeetingAug, 28, 2013
"Your 401(k) Plan - Compliance with IRS and DOL Regulations," CPAs in Business and Industry Conference presented by the Kentucky Society of CPAsSept. 16, 2011
"Fiduciary Responsibility and the ESOP Trustee," 7th Annual Tri-State ESOP Conference, co-presenter2008
"Business Succession Planning with ESOPs," 2007 Business Life Cycle Series, panel moderator2007
"What is 409(p) and Why Do We Care," 6th Annual Tri-State ESOP Conference, co-presenter2007
"Education Assistance Programs," Corporate Education Connection Series, presenter2007
"Annual Employee Benefits Law Update," Indiana University Southeast Human Resources Breakfast Series, presenter2003-2007
"Health Savings Accounts - The Latest Health Benefit Plan," presenter2004
"Nuts and Bolts of 401(k) Plans," Lorman Education Services, presenter2001-2003
"HIPAA Compliance in Kentucky: Understanding the Security and Privacy Regulations," Lorman Education Services, presenter2003
"Section 125 Cafeteria Plans," Lorman Education Services, presenter2003
"Integrating Retirement Plans into Estate Planning Process," Lorman Education Services, presenter2001
Affiliations
• Louisville Bar Association
• Kentucky Bar Association, Member Services Committee, 2012-2015
• American Bar Association
• Lets Dance Louisville/Feed My Neighbor, Steering Committee, 2014-present
• The ESOP Association, 2000-present
• Women Lawyers Association of Jefferson County, 1995-present
• Kentucky Public Pension Oversight Board, Member
• Focus Louisville Alumni Group
• Louisville Employee Benefits Counsel, 1991-present; Past President
• Kentucky Shakespeare Festival, former Board of Directors
• Business & Professional Women/River City, former Board of Directors
Distinguished: An excellent rating for a lawyer with some experience. This rating indicates the attorney is widely
respected by their peers for high professional achievement and ethical standards.
Notable: This rating indicates that the lawyer has been recognized by a large number of their peers for strong ethical standards.
