Memphis HR Executive Wins $3.27 Million Verdict After Law Firm Fires Her for Flagging Gender Pay Gap

Andrea Jaye Mosby spent more than two decades practicing labor and employment law before Reaves Law Firm hired her in May 2022 as its Chief People Officer. Her mandate was broad: build a compliant, people-first culture and oversee every human-resources function at the Memphis firm.

Within weeks of starting, Mosby noticed that Reaves was offering a male job applicant substantially more than a female employee in a comparable role was earning. She raised the discrepancy directly with the firm's founder and CEO. According to trial testimony, he responded by calling her disloyal and dismissing her concern about the pay gap. She also flagged potential misclassification of a secretary under the Fair Labor Standards Act. By June 2022, roughly a month after she joined, the firm terminated her employment, citing poor performance and insubordination.

Mosby, represented by William Ryan and Janelle Osowski of Donati Law in Memphis, filed suit in federal court. The complaint alleged retaliation under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, the Equal Pay Act, and the Fair Labor Standards Act. The core argument was straightforward: the firm fired her not because of her performance, but because she did exactly what an HR officer is supposed to do when she sees a pay disparity.

After a three-day trial, the jury sided with Mosby on all claims. On May 7, 2025, it returned a verdict of $3,274,857, broken down as $258,269 in back pay, $516,539 in compensatory damages, and $2.5 million in punitive damages. U.S. District Judge Samuel H. Mays, Jr. later added front pay, liquidated damages, and prejudgment interest totaling approximately $356,000, bringing the full judgment above $3.6 million.