Halima Woodhead

About

I'm an international employment lawyer for US companies — employer side only. When a startup makes its first hire abroad, converts a contractor in another country, or promises equity to someone in a jurisdiction no one on the team has thought about, that's my work. My background is unusual for this practice: I spent my government years enforcing international labor treaties, and I've personally interviewed over a thousand workers across countries and sectors. I know how regulators think because I was one. That perspective is rare on the employer side, and useful — I can tell a client which risks a government will actually chase and which ones live only in law-firm memos. What I handle: international hires and terminations, contractor classification abroad, EOR and entity decisions, equity for non-US employees, cross-border policies, and the employment side of international expansion generally. Deep experience in Latin America; my practice is global. I work fractionally — ongoing counsel for companies that need an international employment lawyer some of the time, and project work for the moments in between. I also work on supply chains. Companies increasingly have to answer for the people behind their products — not just their own employees — and I help them build labor practices through the chain that they can stand behind: real grievance mechanisms, prevention and remediation systems, honest answers to procurement questionnaires. For fellow HeyCounsel members: when your client hires someone in another country and asks whether it's fine, the answer is usually not the way they're doing it. I'm the person to send that question to. I speak plain English, not legalese, and your client stays yours.

Practice Areas

Services

• Fractional Global Employment Counsel

  Receive in-house counsel on all of your company’s global, international, and cross-border labor and employment matters. Retainer or hourly.
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• Union Engagement & Negotiations

  Engage productively with employees that have organized or are in the process of forming a union.
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• Incident/Workplace Investigations

  Accidents, terminations, harassment, and other issues require experienced counsel to conduct interviews, review evidence, and guide your company on next steps. Virtual, hybrid, or in-person options.
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Education

• America University Washington College of Law
  J.D.