Kayla A. Cook

Operating from the firm's Morgantown, West Virginia office, Kayla Cook is an accomplished and multifaceted attorney, specializing in the areas of education and real estate law. 

Widely recognized for her unparalleled experience in the world of Title IX, Kayla provides invaluable counsel to institutions of higher education, each of the state’s 55 county boards of education, private schools, and the West Virginia Department of Education on Title IX compliance, policy review, investigations, and training.

Her profound understanding of Title IX is reflected in her adept advisory services and thorough, high-profile investigations conducted statewide for colleges, universities, and boards of education. Not only does Kayla offer guidance on compliance and training related to Title IX, but she is also frequently entrusted to serve as the hearing adjudicator for student conduct and academic integrity matters, and as the decision-maker in Title IX investigations.

Kayla is the co-founder and author of a Bowles Rice weekly e-mail publication titled When 1+1=IX: Title IX Tips & TrIX, which provides Title IX related “tips” in an quick and easy-to-digest format. These weekly emails are distributed statewide to Title IX coordinators, general counsel for colleges and universities, and superintendents.

Kayla’s contributions to the education sector are not limited to Title IX, as Kayla offers her education clients comprehensive services that cover a breadth of student and personnel related matters, which include:

• Employee assignment, realignment, and evaluation
• Grievance resolution
• Student and employee discipline
• Student housing
• Greek organizations
• Workplace investigations
• Policy drafting and review
• Contract drafting and review
• Leasing and property acquisitions
• Defending litigation on behalf of school boards and institutions of higher education

With her deep-rooted knowledge of education law, Kayla is often asked by her clients to lead specialized training sessions and presentations tailored for educators, board members, general counsel, and administrative personnel.  She has the ability to turn some of the most complex areas of the law into presentations/trainings that are not only informative and easy-to-understand, but also fun!

In addition to her education law practice, Kayla boasts significant acumen in real estate law.  She routinely represents corporate and individual clients in a diverse range of real estate transactional and litigation matters, including, but not limited to:

• Residential and commercial real estate acquisitions
• Certified title opinions (surface and mineral) and insurance
• Lease preparation and review
• Property disputes
• Evictions and collection
• Lease disputes
• ADA and Fair Housing Act compliance
• Billboard acquisitions and permitting
• Annexation and municipal permitting
• Mechanic’s Liens
• Homeowner’s Association (HOA) formation and representation
• Eminent domain and condemnation
• Tax assessment evaluation

Kayla is able to offer a comprehensive suite of services, ensuring that all of her clients — big or small — are well-represented in all of their real estate-related endeavors.  Kayla’s real estate clients include several nationwide student housing developers and shopping centers, institutes of higher education, county school boards, as well as the first-time homebuyer. Kayla was also an instrumental figure in the formation and representation of an organization opposed to forced annexation in the City of Morgantown. Because of her efforts, legislative changes were made to the way in which a West Virginia municipality can annex property. Kayla’s proficiency in real estate law is evident, making her a go-to legal professional for those navigating this multifaceted field.  

Whether it is an education matter or a real estate matter, Kayla prides herself on her ability to connect with her clients on a personal level, becoming someone that they quickly trust and someone that they can comfortably turn to when a situation arises.  She creates an environment that makes even the most challenging situation easier to navigate and her clients know that she will always have their back.   Her ability to forge authentic relationships stands as a testament to her unique blend of legal and interpersonal skills.

In 2020, Kayla was recognized as one of The State Journal's Generation Next: 40 Under 40.  Kayla has been named to The Best Lawyers in America: Ones to Watch in Education Law, Real Estate Law and Oil and Gas Law.  Kayla proudly represented Bowles Rice as the Class of 2018 Pathfinder for the Leadership Council on Legal Diversity (LCLD).

• Leadership Council on Legal Diversity (LCLD) Pathfinder, Class of 2018
• Member, Bowles Rice Recruiting Committee
• Leadership Monongalia, Class of 2017

• Summer Clerk, The Honorable Russell M. Clawges, Jr., Seventeenth Judicial Circuit (2011)

• Intern for the Victim/Witness Assistance Program for the Monongalia County Prosecuting Attorney (2007-2008)

• Recognized by The Best Lawyers in America: Ones to Watch in Education Law; Oil and Gas Law; and Real Estate Law (since 2023)
• The State Journal's 2020 Generation Next: 40 Under 40
• West Virginia University College of Law, Order of Barristers
• West Virginia University College of Law, Associate Chief Justice of Appellate Advocacy, Moot Court Board

• National Association of College & University Attorneys (NACUA)
• National School Boards Association Council of School Attorneys 
• Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM)
• Leadership Council on Legal Diversity (LCLD)
• Young Professional Women in Energy (YPWE)
• Energy & Mineral Law Foundation (EMLF); Young Lawyers Committee
• Gas & Oil Association of WV, Inc.
• Metallurgical Coal Producers Association
• Monongalia County Bar Association

• United Way Emerging Leaders Advisory Committee
• United Way Campaign Coordinator
• WVU Medicine, Children's Gala Committee