Mrs. Kelly D Gemelli, AWI-CH

Partner

Gemelli Employment Law

Kelly D. Gemelli is a trusted legal adviser and seasoned employment law practitioner with significant experience in advising and representing clients in the public and private sector. Kelly provides advice on a wide variety of employment concerns including disability leave and accommodation, discrimination, harassment, retaliation, high-risk terminations, employment agreement disputes, and wage and hour issues. 

After litigating employment disputes for over 20 years and serving as outside counsel for many small to Fortune 500 clients, Kelly gained experience in partnering with employers  to find practical solutions to everyday employment decisions. 

Kelly routinely conducts and manages workplace investigations with a special focus on challenging and high-profile matters. She is a well-respected professional in the field of employment law, having investigated class-based discrimination claims, claims of bullying, harassment, discrimination, retaliation, theft, whistleblowing, embezzlement, and other allegations of workplace misconduct. Kelly graduated from the Association  of Workplace Investigators (AWI) Training Institute and is an  AWI Certificate Holder (AWI-CH).

Kelly also provides training seminars on a wide variety of employment topics. She has presented and trained professional groups and all levels of management in specialized areas of employment law, including the prevention of sexual harassment and discrimination, how to conduct workplace investigations, implicit bias, workplace violence, workplace accommodations, sensitivity in the workplace, managing leaves of absence under FMLA and California state leave laws, and the effective management and prevention of claims.

Kelly is an active member of Lawyers Club of San Diego, San Diego County Bar Association (SDCBA) and a graduate of the inaugural SDCBA Leadership Academy. She is a board member and Vice-President for Crown Point Junior Music Academy and volunteers her time with Professional Alliance for Children and Crawford Academy of Law. 

Kelly lives in San Diego and enjoys traveling, camping, and spending time at the beach and baseball fields with her husband and two sons. She spends her free time playing pickleball and is an avid San Diego Padres fan.