Oppenheimer Investigations Group LLP, 1300 Clay Street, Oakland, CA (2026)

06/23/2026

What if the most important workplace decisions you make have to be made without complete certainty?

In "Why Workplace Investigations Are Exercises in Judgment, Not Certainty," published in HR Executive, OIG Partner and Attorney Investigator Danielle Drossel explores a reality that experienced investigators know well: investigations rarely produce absolute certainty.

As Danielle writes, "the goal of an investigation is not certainty. It is enough information to make a reasonable, informed decision."

Instead of seeking certainty, most workplace matters require investigators and decision-makers to evaluate competing accounts, assess credibility, weigh evidence, and exercise sound judgment.

The piece comes at a time when organizations face growing expectations around accountability, transparency, and defensible decision-making. For leaders, HR professionals, and attorneys, the question is often not whether every fact can be known with complete confidence, but whether they have gathered enough reliable information to act fairly, consistently, and responsibly.

With OIG, Danielle conducts workplace investigations and trainings for organizations nationwide. A former public sector defense attorney and frequent speaker on credibility assessments, retaliation, workplace culture, and AI in investigations, she helps organizations navigate difficult workplace issues with fairness, rigor, and practical judgment.

Read the article here: https://oiglaw.com/publication/why-workplace-investigations-are-exercises-in-judgment-not-certainty/

06/13/2026

Questions about fairness, credibility, accountability, and organizational trust exist in workplaces and institutions everywhere.

The official launch of the AWI South Africa Chapter last year reflects the continued growth of workplace investigations as a profession across countries and legal systems. The new chapter brings together investigators, employment lawyers, mediators, arbitrators, and labor and dispute resolution leaders across Johannesburg, Cape Town, and online.

For the launch of the chapter, OIG Managing Partner Vida L. Thomas and OIG Founding Partner Amy Oppenheimer led a sold-out investigator training attended by professionals from across the region. Speakers included leaders from South Africa’s labor law and dispute resolution community and a strong and growing number of other professionals engaged in this work.

One of the strongest themes running through the experience was how many shared questions investigators across countries are navigating around fairness, impartiality, investigative rigor, and organizational trust - and how much there is to learn from one another across workplaces, institutions, and cultures.

“AWI South Africa Chapter Launches,” by Tanya Venter, Vida Thomas, and Amy Oppenheimer, appears in the latest issue of the AWI Journal. (Venter, Tanya, Thomas, Vida, and Oppenheimer, Amy. 2026. “AWI South Africa Chapter Launches,” The AWI Journal, Volume 17, Number 1.)

06/08/2026

AI is showing up in complaints, witness statements, workplace communications, and investigations. Most organizations are still figuring out where the technology is helpful, where it's risky, and where guardrails are needed. Employee relations professionals are on the front lines of getting this right.

Over the few past years, our OIG attorney-investigators have been speaking and writing extensively on AI's role in investigations, including presentations for the Association of Workplace Investigators and articles for Law.com. Our attorneys have explored topics ranging from AI-generated complaints and investigation reports to bias, hallucinations, confidentiality concerns, and the practical guardrails organizations need in place.

At the same time, we're examining how AI can responsibly strengthen our own work. We've been testing where it can help pressure-test analysis and improve efficiency, while helping clients and fellow investigators navigate the legal, practical, and ethical questions emerging from a rapidly evolving technology that has generated a great deal of interest and attention.

On June 16, OIG Partners and Attorney Investigators Christina Ro-Connolly and Ilona Turner will join Kelsie Beckfield, Director of Employee & Labor Relations at Medtronic for an HR Acuity conversation about what they're seeing from the field and what employee relations professionals should be thinking about now.

Our clients from California to New York, Pennsylvania and New Jersey and beyond are navigating these questions right now. Wherever you are, we hope you'll join us to explore what responsible, effective AI use looks like in practice.

Register here:

https://www.hracuity.com/resources/webinars/ai-in-employee-relations-lessons-from-the-field/

06/02/2026

What does it take to build a lasting legal career and become the kind of attorney-investigator whom clients trust with high-stakes problems?

In this recent Law.com “How I Made Partner” feature, OIG Partner and Attorney-Investigator Tracey Merwise reflects on the lessons that shaped her path from law firm partnership to an in-house counsel role in tech, to conducting workplace investigations full-time.

Some of the advice she shares with those just starting their legal careers:

- Develop deep expertise in your field so you become a go-to resource

- Bring creative, practical solutions to the table

- Seek out mentors and mentor others

- Nurture professional relationships

- Treat the client’s problems as your own

That last point applies to investigations work in a way that is very different from advocacy work. In investigations, clients navigating difficult workplace situations need impartiality most of all. In her work at OIG, Tracey provides clients with independent investigations that give them new insights into workplace dynamics and a basis for sound remedial action.

Tracey’s broad experience across tech and corporate workplaces, working with C-suite teams, and within complex organizational dynamics continues to inform her thoughtful and impartial approach to investigations for our clients at OIG.

Read the full Law.com feature here: https://www.law.com/2026/03/11/how-i-made-partner-treat-the-clients-problems-as-your-own-says-tracey-merwise-of-oppenheimer-investigations-group/?utm_source=chatgpt.com

05/28/2026

Many ADA disputes begin not with hostility, but with process failures: delayed responses, inconsistent treatment, and incomplete investigations.

In “Two Places ADA Compliance Breaks Down — and How to Fix Both,” published in Corporate Compliance Insights, OIG attorney Rachel Reddick, and her industry colleague Jennifer Robins, examine two common points where disability accommodation processes more often fail in practice - failure to recognize an ask for accommodation, and mishandling of those early requests.

The piece comes at a moment when courts continue to closely examine how employers respond to accommodation requests, including in the recent Husband v. Target Corporation decision, where a California appeals court affirmed summary judgment for the employer after finding the company had reasonably responded to the employee’s accommodation requests and participated appropriately in the interactive process.

Rachel’s practice spans workplace investigations and trainings for organizations across both the West Coast and East Coast, where she investigates matters including those involving disability accommodation, responsiveness, documentation, and fair process.

Read the article here: https://www.corporatecomplianceinsights.com/2-placed-ada-compliance-breaks-down-fix-both/

05/20/2026

We’re glad to support Transgender Law Center, the nation’s largest trans-led legal organization and a longtime force in impact litigation, policy advocacy, and civil rights work. Their work spans employment, healthcare, education, immigration, and protections against discrimination. They are considered leading advocates for improving legal protections and ensuring the human rights of transgender and gender non-conforming people across the U.S.

We’re glad to support organizations like TLC. Their work helps strengthen legal protections, expand access to justice, and push institutions toward more equitable treatment in workplaces, schools, healthcare systems, and public life more broadly.

At OIG, we’re honored to support organizations that help create workplaces, schools, and communities where people can participate fully and safely as themselves. We’re also proud to say that OIG’s Ilona Turner served as Legal Director for the organization from 2012-2018.

05/19/2026

Our firm founder, Amy Oppenheimer, was recently featured in "Conversations with Investigators" with investigator, attorney, and former AWI President Keith Rohman.

In the conversation, Keith asks Amy what made her choose workplace investigations as a field, the history of her founding AWI and her current passion, theatre and her one woman show. Keith asks Amy about neutrality, one of the central tensions in investigative work:

“No one is neutral. But that does not mean we can’t be impartial. We can learn about biases and override them.”

Amy and Keith also discuss the evolution of the field, the responsibility investigators carry in high-stakes matters, and why credible investigations require far more than procedural box-checking.

It’s a thoughtful conversation between two people who have each spent decades doing and shaping this work at the highest levels. And we hope you will enjoy it.

Read the full interview here: Conversations with Investigators interview with Amy Oppenheimer: https://oiglaw.com/news/amy-oppenheimer-interviewed-by-conversations-with-investigators/

05/05/2026

We’re proud to sponsor the Equal Rights Advocates 2026 Gala Luncheon on June 2 in San Francisco.

For decades, ERA has advanced civil rights through litigation, policy, and advocacy that expand how the law protects workers. That emphasis on accountability and outcomes aligns with our role: providing an independent, credible process to understand what happened so leaders can make informed, fair decisions about what comes next.

As a woman-founded, woman-run firm, this is one of our favorite events of the year. We’re especially glad to be in the mix with this year’s honorees: Michele L. Jawando, Bernice Yeung, Janiece Evans-Page, Erwin Chemerinsky, Anna Brooke, and Catherine Lhamon.

We’ll be there in force, once again; if you’ll be there, we hope to see you.

05/01/2026

Please join us in welcoming Jean Perez to OIG.

Jean joins us as part of our growing East Coast practice, building on the momentum of our work with Beth Gramigna and the expansion of our team in the region. She comes to us from Beth’s team, and we’re especially glad she chose to continue her work with us.

Jean, who is based on the East Coast, brings a thoughtful, steady approach to complex, sensitive matters, and her addition strengthens our ability to support clients across jurisdictions with the care and judgment they expect from OIG.

Welcome, Jean. 🙂

Ps. See our web site for open positions. www.oiglaw.com

05/01/2026

Please join us in welcoming Jean Perez to OIG.

Jean joins us as part of our growing East Coast practice, building on the momentum of our work with Beth Gramigna and the expansion of our team in the region. She comes to us from Beth’s team, and we’re especially glad she chose to continue her work with us.

Jean, who is based on the East Coast, brings a thoughtful, steady approach to complex, sensitive matters, and her addition strengthens our ability to support clients across jurisdictions with the care and judgment they expect from OIG.

Welcome, Jean. :)

Ps. See our web site for open positions.

Oppenheimer Investigations Group LLP

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