Kenneth P. Carlson, Jr.

Ken Carlson is a partner with Constangy in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, one of the nation’s oldest labor and employment defense firms with offices in 23 states across the country. He is a senior litigator, mediator and arbitrator whose legal practice is concentrated in virtually every aspect of employment law. Most of his practice now consists of serving as a certified mediator, especially in the areas of employment law, covenant not to compete/trade secret matters, FLSA and wage & hour (including collective and class actions), and ERISA issues. Ken also regularly consults with companies in how to avoid legal problems before they occur, and frequently conducts training on appropriate management and employee practices in the workplace.

Ken is consistently named to Business North Carolina magazine’s annual “Legal Elite”, to the list of North Carolina Super Lawyers, and to Best Lawyers in America for labor & employment law and/or alternative dispute resolution. He has repeatedly received Best Lawyers’ “Lawyer of the Year” recognition in alternative dispute resolution for North Carolina or the Winston-Salem/Greensboro metropolitan area, and is a former chair of the Dispute Resolution Section of the North Carolina Bar Association.

Ken is also a Fellow with the American Bar Foundation, and an adjunct professor at the Wake Forest University School of Law where he teaches courses in negotiation and trade secrets/unfair competition law, and for many years also taught trial practice and advanced trial practice. He has been a frequent speaker through the years at continuing legal education seminars and has published numerous articles and CLE materials on various employment law topics – including trade secret/unfair competition law and such ADR topics as mediating in a manner to help avoid impasse, “best practices” for a successful mediation, legal ethics in mediation, and the pros and cons of employment law arbitration. Ken received his J.D. degree from the Wake Forest University School of Law, is a 1976 graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and also holds a Master of Divinity from Yale University.

• Named to North Carolina Lawyers Weekly's Power List in Employment (2023-2024)
• American Bar Foundation, Fellow (2015 - present)
• Recognized in The Best Lawyers in America^® for Arbitration, Employment Law - Management, Litigation - Labor and Employment, Mediation, and Trade Secrets Law (2007-2025)
• Recognized as The Best Lawyers in America^® "Lawyer of the Year" for:
  • Mediation, Triad (2023)
  • Litigation - Labor and Employment, Triad (2022, 2024)
  • Trade Secrets Law, Triad (2021, 2024)
  • Arbitration, Triad (2020)
  • Litigation - Labor and Employment, Greensboro (2015, 2017)
  • Arbitration, Greensboro (2013, 2016, 2018)
• Chambers USA Guide (2007-2024)
• Legal Elite, Employment Law, Business North Carolina (2013, 2018, 2023-2025)
• Martindale-Hubbell AV Preeminent® Peer Rated for Highest Level of Professional Excellence
• North Carolina Super Lawyers (2006-2025)
• Top 100: North Carolina Super Lawyers (2013, 2019-2021)
• Top Lawyer for Trial/Litigation, Triad Business Leader Magazine (2008)

• American Bar Foundation
• American Bar Association
• Wake Forest University School of Law, Adjunct Professor
• North Carolina Bar Association, Alternative Dispute Resolution Section, Former Council Member
• Winston-Salem Society for Human Resources Management
• Habitat for Humanity of Forsyth County, Inc., Former Chairman
• Timothy's Episcopal Church
• Winston-Salem Chamber of Commerce, Government Affairs Committee, Member and Former Chairman

Ken is married to Melanie Carlson, and has three daughters, two sons-in-law and a growing number of grandchildren. He enjoys travel, reading, most sports, and especially likes to hike and camp where smart phones don't work.