Zack Anstett is a litigator and counselor who advises employers across a variety of industries, including education, financial services, energy, retail, hospitality, and technology. He represents clients in litigation, administrative proceedings, arbitrations, internal investigations, and day-to-day employment counseling, helping organizations navigate workforce challenges while minimizing legal risk. His experience spans a range of private and public sector organizations, including publicly traded companies, midsize businesses, startups, educational institutions, and municipalities.
Zack regularly appears before the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the Department of Labor (DOL), and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) at the federal and state level on behalf of educational institutions and other employers. He also defends clients against lawsuits related to Title VII, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the Retaliatory Employment Discrimination Act (REDA), the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), and other federal and state employment laws.
Drawing on his litigation experience, Zack provides practical guidance designed to prevent disputes before they arise. He drafts, reviews, and negotiates employment agreements, including nondisclosure and noncompete clauses, and advises on employment best practices, workplace investigations, employee discipline, and personnel issues. He also counsels employers regarding the use of artificial intelligence in the workplace, including AI-assisted hiring and onboarding tools, accommodation processes, and other emerging technologies that impact workforce management and legal compliance.
Zack is a former trial court law clerk for the North Carolina Administrative Office of the Courts and a former judicial intern for the Honorable Paul Newby, who is now the chief justice of the Supreme Court of North Carolina.
Zack earned his law degree from Campbell University, where he won a variety of awards, including the Howard Memorial Christian Citizenship Award for exemplifying Christian character through citizenship and leadership. He earned his bachelor's degree from the University of Maryland, where he co-founded a campus chapter of an anti-human trafficking organization, founded an organization to prevent sexual assault, and served as the Alpha Sigma Phi fraternity's community service chair.
Zack continues his philanthropic efforts by providing sleeping bags and winter gear to those experiencing homelessness in Wake County each winter. He has also volunteered with different Habitat for Humanity chapters up and down the East Coast. At Parker Poe, he serves on the firm's Recruiting Committee and Technology Committee as well as the firm's Working Families Task Force. In his free time, he enjoys learning Farsi, cooking with his Persian grandmother-in-law, and losing in pickleball to his 5-year-old daughter while his wife, 1-year-old daughter, and 3-year-old son laugh from the sidelines.