Monique Gougisha Doucette

Practice Groups: Employment Law; Workplace Investigations and Organizational Assessments; Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG)

Industry Groups: Hospitality

Monique joined Ogletree Deakins in 2009 and is the office managing shareholder in New Orleans, Louisiana. She has over 20 years of experience handling and managing employment litigation with a concentration on complex discrimination, harassment and whistleblower claims for clients in a variety of business sectors including construction, energy, banking, and hospitality. She is also a trusted adviser for clients on workplace misconduct and sexual harassment issues, and she provides engaging, customized workplace respect/anti-harassment training for employers.

Monique is the chair of the firm’s Workplace Investigations and Organizational Assessments Practice Group. She leads internal investigations of critical, and often sensitive and high profile, issues for firm clients. These include investigations of complex matters involving claims of pattern/practice discrimination, systemic inequity in workplace practices, executive misconduct, sexual assault, and unconscious bias. Monique has assisted clients in various industries with organizational and cultural impact assessments, mitigating brand-altering crisis, and developing strategic action plans based on investigative findings. She also trains HR personnel on best practices for handling investigations.

Monique is a frequent speaker on various employment law topics and a contributing author to publications such as Bloomberg Law, the Louisiana Bar Journal, New Orleans CityBusiness, and HR Magazine. She is also an avid supporter of the local arts and education in New Orleans by serving on the executive board of directors for the New Orleans Ballet Association, as well as the board of directors for Urban League of Louisiana, the New Orleans Film Society, and the advisory board for the New Orleans Opera Association. She is a member of the A.P. Tureaud Chapter of the American Inns of Court. In 2018, Monique served on the board of directors of the New Orleans chapter of the Society of Human Resources Management (SHRM) as the board attorney. In August 2019, Monique was appointed by the Mayor’s Office as a member of the Ethics Review Board – the board authorized to enforce the Code of Ethics for the City of New Orleans and work cooperatively with the Office of Inspector General, who conducts criminal and administrative investigations involving city employees.

National Bar Association (Labor and Employment Section)

American Bar Association (Management Liaison, Equal Opportunity in the Legal Profession committee, Labor & Employment Law Section; Employment Rights & Responsibilities committee, Labor & Employment Law Section)

American Inns of Court (New Orleans, A.P. Tureaud Chapter)

Louisiana State Bar Association

New Orleans Bar Association

National Employment Law Council