Who We Are

Peter J. Paukstelis

Peter J. Paukstelis

Pete is a distinguished member of the BartlettJames Higher Education Team. He is particularly experienced in all aspects of collegiate athletics, Title IX, and diversity, equity, and inclusion. He is the author of our proprietary and respected “DEI Analysis” now in service to NCAA-governed athletic departments around the nation. Pete has more than 25 years of diversified experience representing a wide array of corporate, institutional, and individual clients in a host of different litigation and transactional matters.  Pete is based in North Carolina.

Following law school and before entering the world of intercollegiate athletics, Pete was engaged in private practice in both big firms and a solo practice.  While working as an associate at Stinson, Mag & Fizzell (now Stinson LLP) in Kansas City, and later as a senior associate at Latham & Watkins in Los Angeles, Pete represented many large corporations and his litigation practice was diverse and included matters such as employment discrimination, oil and gas explosions, commercial litigation, and theft of trade secrets.  Pete also managed a successful solo practice focused on plaintiff’s employment discrimination and personal injury litigation.  He personally investigated and built hundreds of plaintiff’s cases, including those involving child abuse, sexual assault and harassment, and discrimination based on race, color, sex, age, disability, and pregnancy.  Pete never lost a case on a motion to dismiss, a motion for summary judgment, or at trial as a solo practitioner.

Pete served as Associate General Counsel at Kansas State University, in Manhattan, Kansas, for 11 years.  His practice focused on intercollegiate athletics, Title IX, Title VII, the ADA, and complex transactional work.  He guided hundreds of internal discrimination investigations and regularly provided training for internal investigators.  Pete also successfully defended discrimination claims, including disability and sex discrimination matters.  He has been a repeat guest speaker for an intercollegiate athletics class at Columbia University’s Sports Management program, and he has presented at the National Association of College and University Attorney’s national conference on Title IX matters.  Pete continues to work in intercollegiate athletics.

Pete graduated from the University of Kansas with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy and Biology.  He is a graduate of the University of Michigan Law School.

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