Find Lawyers in Connecticut, United States for Litigation - Labor and Employment
Practice Area Overview
Often, these employment disputes culminate in a lawsuit, which can be costly, time-consuming, and damaging to employee relations. The number of employment-related litigation filings has been steadily increasing over the last decade, ranging from large-scale class actions to individual complaints. Employers are facing greater challenges and financial exposure from both current and former employees than ever before.
Employment litigation covers many types of claims, including discrimination; harassment; wage-hour pay, classification, and overtime violations; wrongful discharge; entitlement to employee benefits; misappropriation of trade secrets and confidential information; unfair competition; enforcement or avoidance of restrictive covenants; labor union disputes; workplace safety violations; defamation and other employment-related torts. These claims often involve the many laws governing employee relations, which are often referred to as “employment law alphabet soup.” These include Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII), the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), whistleblower claims under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) or Dodd-Frank Act, the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA), the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) and the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA).
Resolving employment litigation requires knowledge of these laws and regulations, the applicable case law, and a careful case analysis and strategy. More so than in other less personal litigation, a perceptive understanding of the people involved is essential for success. Often, suits will be settled among parties or ended before trial through summary judgment based on the facts of the case. When early resolution is not achieved, however, the case will go to trial in court or before an agency tribunal. Verdicts in employment-related cases can be enormous, especially in wage-hour and other class actions, creating a high-stakes situation for employers.
Tanya A. Bovée is a principal in the Hartford, Connecticut, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. and a member of the firm’s Board of Directors. Tanya represents employers in a wide range of issues related to employment law, bringing a practical approach that is focused on achieving clients’ goals and based on almost 20 years of employment law experience. Tanya advises employers in a wide range of industries, including life sciences, retail, automotive, manufacturing, and hospitalit...
Richard J. Buturla is a senior partner and chair of the firm’s Litigation Practice Group. He focuses his practice in the areas of municipal law, litigation, civil rights defense, transactions involving state and federal agencies, and defending government officials in a variety of contexts. Mr. Buturla’s wide-ranging municipal and governmental law practice encompasses the full range of issues presented to a public institution. He has particular experience dealing with the freedom o...
Holly L. Cini is a principal in the Hartford, Connecticut, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. Holly regularly defends clients in employment-related litigation, including whistleblower claims, general retaliation matters, employment discrimination and harassment claims and ADA and FMLA litigation in all forums ranging from trial courts to administrative agencies to the state and federal appellate courts. Holly has extensive experience in every phase of litigation, from discovery to trial to appeal. ...
Mr. Cohen's areas of concentration include civil and criminal litigation, particularly personal injury, civil rights, employment law, and immigration and naturalization. He is a graduate of Harvard College (A.B., magna cum laude, 1970), where he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa, and Yale Law School (J.D. 1973). Before joining the firm in 1975, Mr. Cohen served as law clerk to the Honorable Caleb M. Wright of the United States District Court for the District of Delaware. He currently serves as a ...
Allison P. Dearington is a principal in the Hartford, Connecticut, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. Her practice is focused on employment litigation, including class and collective action defense, and preventive counseling. Allison represents employers in state and federal courts, before the Connecticut Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and in arbitration. She defends a variety of employment claims including discrimination, harassment, ret...
Amanda DeMatteis represents individuals in litigation, particularly employment, personal injury, and workers’ compensation. She represents employees in both state and federal courts in a wide variety of employment matters, including wrongful termination, discrimination (on the basis of pregnancy, sex, race, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, religion or national origin), sexual harassment, defamation, retaliation, and hostile work environment. Amand...
Victoria de Toledo primarily handles employment cases. She represents individuals who have been terminated, as well as employees who need assistance or protection in their employment such as employees who have been sexually harassed or are being discriminated against while still employed. She assists individuals in the drafting and review of their employment contracts, severance agreements and non-competition agreements. She also handles benefit claims and personal injur claims. Victoria de T...
Craig Dickinson helps his management clients pinpoint and avoid potential legal risks in their workplaces, and works with them to efficiently and cost effectively resolve issues when they do arise. Craig represents organizations in a range of business sectors, including hospital and healthcare, financial services, retail, restaurant and hospitality, distribution and logistics, and manufacturing and technology. He has in-depth experience handling harassment, discrimination, and retaliation cla...
Ms. Dixon defends employers in federal and state courts and before administrative agencies against a variety of employment law claims, including workplace discrimination, contract, and tort claims. She also counsels employers on a wide range of employment issues, such as employee discipline, family and medical leave matters, and compliance with various state and federal employment laws and regulations. Ms. Dixon regularly presents seminars on employment-related issues, including sexual harass...
Glenn is a management-side employment and litigation lawyer at Zangari Cohn Cuthbertson Duhl & Grello PC where he is a trial lawyer defending all types of employment related claims. He has extensive experience in providing preventive counseling and advice to businesses in all employment matters including wage and hour and equal employment policies and practices.
For nearly three decades, the emphasis of Mr. Escalera’s practice has been labor and employment law and litigation. Initially, Mr. Escalera served with the Army Judge Advocate General’s Corps for nine years where he engaged in extensive criminal and civil litigation. Mr. Escalera was last stationed at the Pentagon where he acted as lead counsel for the Army Litigation Division defending the Department of the Army in employment discrimination suits brought by civilian employees in ...
Stephen Fitzgerald represents individuals in employment and personal injury matters in Connecticut’s state and federal courts. He also represents railroad workers in courts throughout the country. Steve has won several multi-million dollar jury verdicts for his clients. His peers have ranked him as a Connecticut Super Lawyer since 2011, as the Super Lawyer Employment Lawyer of the Year for 2012, and he has been named Best Lawyer of the Year for Labor & Employment Litigation in the N...
Stephen P. Fogerty is first and foremost a problem solver. For the last 35 years, he has zealously, ethically, and successfully represented hundreds of clients before judges and juries in every court in Connecticut, and successfully argued appeals in the Connecticut Appellate and Supreme Courts and the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. That experience informs his unique, thoughtful, and effective approach to solving his clients’ problems. Whether those problems rela...
David R. Golder is a principal in the Hartford, Connecticut, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. He is co-leader of the Class Actions and Complex Litigation practice group. David has extensive experience handling class and complex litigation, including nationwide, high-stakes wage and hour disputes. David defends employers in class-based, multi-plaintiff, and multi-district wage and hour class and collective actions involving claims for employee misclassification, improper payment of wages, off-the-...
A graduate of Harvard and Yale, and a multiple-time Best Lawyers “Lawyer of the Year” for employment law, Joshua R. Goodbaum represents individuals in litigation and negotiation, with particular emphases in employment, civil rights, and appeals. He has represented clients in every level of our justice system, from local trial courts to the Supreme Court of the United States, in matters ranging from constitutional law to contract disputes. Josh’s experience in Connecticut emp...
Mike focuses his practice on providing legal guidance to public and private sector employers in managing all aspects of the employment relationship. Mike litigates cases in state and federal courts and has argued numerous cases before the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, the Connecticut Appellate Court, and the Connecticut Supreme Court. He also frequently appears before the Connecticut Commission on Human Rights & Opportunities, the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination...
Joshua A. Hawks-Ladds is chair of the firm’s Labor, Employment Law and Employee Benefits Department. His practice includes counseling on and litigating business, construction, labor and employment and civil rights matters and municipal law. Attorney Hawks-Ladds has tried cases in numerous state and federal courts, argued before the Second Circuit Court of Appeals and the Connecticut Supreme and Appellate courts and litigates extensively before administrative tribunals. Attorney Hawks-La...
Christopher M. Hodgson is a Senior Partner in the firm’s Labor and Employment Practice Group. He has practiced labor and employment law in Connecticut since 1985. Chris is rated as AV by his peers in Martindale-Hubbell, its highest designation, and has been included in Best Lawyers in America since 2010, New England Super Lawyers since 2008, and Connecticut Super Lawyers since 2007. He is a graduate of Choate-Rosemary Hall, the University of Vermont, and the University of Richmond Schoo...
Warren L. Holcomb's practice concentrates on labor and employment law and civil rights litigation. His professional experience includes counseling and representation of private and public sector employers in all aspects of labor law. Mr. Holcomb regularly defends employers in employment related litigation, including the defense of federal and state-based claims of discrimination, retaliation, wrongful discharge, workers' compensation retaliation, and virtually all other claims growing out of ...
David R. Jimenez is a principal in the Hartford, Connecticut, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. He is the national co-leader of the firm’s Corporate Governance and Internal Investigations practice group. David advises employers on complex matters and litigation including: Corporate Governance matters for publicly traded and privately held organizations including high stakes internal investigations, Code of Conduct and financial misconduct matters, Sarbanes Oxley Act Whistleblower claims, Fal...
Michael P. Kaelin is a Principal in Cummings & Lockwood's Litigation Group, and Family Office and Closely Held Business Group. Mike represents individuals, fiduciaries and businesses in commercial, employment, employee benefits, probate, trusts and estates, conservatorship, guardianship, and investment disputes, including wrongful discharge and discrimination claims, will contests, fiduciary removal proceedings, contested accountings, fee disputes, construction proceedings, undue influenc...
Stuart M. Katz is a principal of Cohen and Wolf and Chair of the firm's Litigation Group. He is also a member of the firm's Employment & Labor and Physicians' Practices Groups. Mr. Katz is highlighted in Chambers USA (2017) for the "superb quality of his counsel and representation." He represents employers of all sizes in defending discrimination and harassment suits and litigating restrictive covenant, breach of contract, business tort and wage claims. Mr. Katz also represents profession...
Mr. McQuade represents and counsels private and public employers with respect to a wide-range of employment, civil rights and business issues. Mr. McQuade has extensive experience in defending employers, municipal entities and government officials in state and federal court and in administrative tribunals, against a variety of employment law claims, including civil rights claims, First and Fourteenth Amendment claims, race discrimination claims, disability discrimination claims, age discrimin...
George E. O'Brien represents and counsels employers on a wide variety of labor matters, including: Collective bargaining Unfair labor practice proceedings Labor representation cases and elections Grievances Injunction proceedings Arbitrations Mediation Union relationships Wrongful discharge Breach of contract Discrimination claims Jury trials He appears in state and federal courts and represents management before the National Labor Relations Board and other administrative agencies, including ...
Jonathan B. Orleans, chair of the Labor & Employment Law practice, has over 30 years of experience as a litigator and counselor in a broad range of matters, particularly relating to the employer-employee relationship. He represents businesses and individuals in disputes arising out of employment contracts, non-competition and non-solicitation agreements, and other commercial agreements. Jon litigates cases arising under federal and state statutes governing employment, advises businesses o...
A repeated recipient of Best Lawyers of America’s “Lawyer of the Year” , a member of the Executive Board of the National Employment Lawyers Association , a past president of the Connecticut Employment Lawyers Association , and a graduate of Yale Law School, Nina represents individuals in employment and civil rights litigation and negotiation. She is well versed in all aspects of employment law, including discrimination (on the basis of race, sex, age, disability, sexual orie...
Stephen M. Sedor focuses his practice in the areas of education law, employment litigation and labor disputes. He defends public and private sector employers in lawsuits involving wrongful discharge, employment discrimination, wage and hour disputes, First Amendment and retaliation claims, unfair labor practice charges, restrictive covenants and other disputes. Stephen provides general counseling and advice to public and private sector employers on a wide range of labor and employment matters...
Mike Spagnola focuses his practice on solving difficult and complicated labor and employment problems for management clients. Mike represents employers exclusively in connection with all aspects of labor and employment law, and in particular, litigation and preventive counsel. He has appeared on behalf of clients in state and federal courts and before administrative agencies, for cases relating to discrimination, retaliation, harassment, whistleblowing, wrongful discharge, wage and hour law, ...
Margaret (Peggy) J. Strange is a Shareholder in the Hartford office of Jackson Lewis P.C. She also manages client relationships including litigation for clients on a national or regional basis. Ms. Strange joined Jackson Lewis in 1996. She has experience in all areas of litigation. Her practice covers the spectrum of employment litigation, including both state and federal claims, and individual and class action suits. Her experience includes both suits by private parties and by the Equal Empl...
Johanna Zelman’s unique background in health and mental care and in school law results in highly competent, in-depth and knowledgeable advice and representation for her clients. While she has represented a wide variety of private and public sector employers from various industries, Johanna has a specific strength and hands-on experience in the health and mental health fields. Prior to her legal career, she worked for Harvard University’s affiliate hospitals, where she had direct c...
Jessica Draper is an associate in the Hartford, Connecticut, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. She focuses her practice on employment litigation. Jessica defends employers against claims of harassment, discrimination, retaliation, and failure to accommodate before federal and state courts and administrative agencies. In addition to handling employment litigation matters, Jessica assists higher education clients with a broad range of student related matters, including Title IX sexual misconduct inv...
Russell N. Jarem is of counsel in the Orange County, California, and the Hartford, Connecticut, offices of Jackson Lewis P.C. His practice focuses on representing employers in workplace law matters, including preventive advice and counseling. Russell regularly advises and represents employers in a broad range of employment law matters, including litigation under state and federal anti-discrimination statutes in a variety of forums, including state and federal courts, the Department of Labor, ...
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