Teri-Ann Gross, Esq.
Ms. Gross’ professional background has been quite diverse, with over 37-years combined experience working as a lawyer, human resources professional, trainer and facilitator, mediator, lobbyist, and project director. She has a successful track record in public service and in the for-profit sector with proven capabilities in project management, communications, marketing, organizational development, career development and crisis management. She recently received a certificate in Mediation from Harvard Law School, Program on Negotiation.
Her current law practice is dedicated primarily to Social Security Disability Law, as well as other areas of disability law, including private long-term disability insurance disputes and accommodation requests under the Americans with Disabilities Act. When Ms. Gross moved to Louisiana, she was a consultant for an international outplacement firm. As a consultant she provided outplacement support to displaced employees by helping them define and connect to their next career opportunity.
Before moving to Louisiana, Ms. Gross was a trial attorney with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, and over a 10-year period held a variety of positions with the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) in Washington, D.C. She was involved with legislative advocacy on the state and local level to implement laws that addressed hate crimes and discrimination; obtained legal representation for victims of discrimination and mediated their disputes; was a founding member of the Maryland Civil Rights Coalition and the Washington Regional Task Force Against Campus Prejudice, which she co-chaired; and directed ADL’s anti-bias education and diversity training programs in D.C., Maryland, and Northern Virginia.
Her introduction to the ADL was far from your typical job search. She had sought their assistance with a religious accommodation problem while working as a legislative aide to a Washington, D.C. City Councilmember. When ADL agreed to intervene on her behalf, instead of agreeing to reasonable terms for employment separation, the Councilmember fired her and went on TV and defamed her. A lawsuit ensued, and while she was out of a job, she jokingly said, “you got me fired, the least you can do is give me a job,” and so they did!! The ADL hired Ms. Gross, and she became the person to call with discrimination complaints. You can read about the case at Gross v. Winter, 876 F.2d 165 (D.C. Cir. 1989).
