Houston’s South Asian Bar Association (SABA) has recognized Haynes and Boone, LLP Associate Punam Kaji with the 2016 Outstanding Public Service Award.
Kaji was honored primarily for her work as a board member with Daya, a Houston-based non-profit that promotes healthy family relationships in the South Asian community by providing counseling, referrals, legal advocacy, and financial support to women and children affected by family violence and sexual assault.
Fellow Haynes and Boone Associate Poorav Rohatgi, SABA’s secretary, presented Kaji with the award.
In addition to her work with Daya, Kaji has taken a number of pro bono cases with the Human Rights Initiative of North Texas, achieving legal status for an asylum seeker and children in need of special immigrant juvenile status, and has also served pro bono clients with various other volunteer attorney programs.
At the firm, Kaji is a labor and employment lawyer in the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) and Workplace Disasters Practice Group. She has provided assistance to clients on various employment litigation disputes, including defending against wage and hour claims, defending clients during EEOC and state investigations, handling settlement negotiations for discrimination claims and employment-related torts, assisting in the defense or prosecution of litigation involving non-compete agreements, non-solicitation agreements, and claims of misappropriation of trade secrets, tortious interference, breach of contract, and breach of fiduciary duty. Kaji also assists clients in complying with federal and state occupational safety and health laws and regulations and in responding to site inspections, work-related injuries, illnesses and other catastrophic events.