Partner

I am an employment and education law attorney with over 30 years of experience advocating for the rights of employees, employers, teachers, and students. My strong sense of the labor market, business strategies, and employer relations is invaluable to my practice and my clients’ sensitive and complex legal matters.

In my employment law practice, I represent employees who experience discrimination, sexual harassment, hostile work environments, unlawful termination, workplace accommodations concerns, and Federal and State Medical Leave Act claims and retaliation, including whistleblowing under the Conscientious Employee Protection Act (CEPA).

I also represent employers in complex employment legal matters, present sexual harassment and anti-discrimination training, negotiate or enforce non-compete and non-solicitation provisions, and review employee handbooks.

I am a trained and qualified R.1:40 mediator for the Statewide Mediation Program for Civil, General Equity, and Probate Cases. I mediate private and court-appointed disputes. I regularly appear before the New Jersey Superior Court and Municipal Court in northern New Jersey.

I serve as a Trustee of the Bergen County Bar Association, Vice President of the Women’s Lawyers in Bergen County, and member of the Justice Morris Pashman Inn of Court. I served on the Paramus Board of Education and Bergen County Special Services Board of Education.

Dedicated to Helping Others

I firmly believe in listening carefully to a client’s needs and tenaciously fighting for their rights. I have earned a reputation as a tough, assertive, and tenacious advocate for my clients. In employment and discrimination cases, truth really is stranger than fiction. Clients come to us in egregious circumstances, and with hard work, we have repeatedly proven that we are most effective in representing individuals and small businesses.

I have developed a deep understanding and knowledge of employment law for decades. I am very attentive to each of my clients and their expectations of me, and I have developed and maintained valuable and professional relationships with the courts and adversaries.

“The way I think about it, being terminated from work is like a professional divorce, and, understandably, it can be difficult to overcome. My role is to help clients overcome and come out on the other side in a better way. At the end of the day, it’s all about advocating for people. I never lose sight of that.”

I Enjoy Preparing Future Lawyers

Since 1993, I have served as an adjunct professor at Montclair State University, where I teach graduate and undergraduate courses on introduction to law, legal procedure, conflict resolution, negotiating, mediation and arbitration, civil responsibility, and legal research. I also regularly present legal seminars on employee rights for the Bergen County Bar Association.

Education

• Pace University School of Law
• University of Massachusetts

Certifications

• 1:40 Qualified Mediator, New Jersey Mediation Program, Civil, General Equity, and Probate Law

Bar Admissions

• New Jersey
• New York
• District Court for the Eastern District of New Jersey

Professional Associations

• New Jersey State Bar Association
• Bergen County Bar Association Trustee
• Bergen County Bar Foundation Trustee
• Women’s Lawyers in Bergen Vice President
• Bergen County Special Services Board of Education Trustee (2011-2016)
• Paramus Board of Education Trustee (2005-2014)
• Paramus Rotary

Certifications & Training

• Independent Workplace Investigator, Sexual Harassment, Mediation
• Conflict Resolution Trainer, Association of Workplace Investigators
• Creative Response to Conflict, Inc., Certification
• True Colors Facilitators, Rutgers Cooperative Extension

Speaking Engagements & Appearances

• WABC – Expert on Workplace Harassment
• News 12 – Ask the Expert on New School Bullying Legislation
• News 12 Kane in Your Corner – Discrimination in the Workplace Legal Seminar: Understanding Your Rights in the Workplace
• Legal Seminar: Employee Leaves of Absence Under FMLA & Disability Laws

Publications

• Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) No Longer Preempts the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination Section 12.7 With Regard to Sexual Harassment And Sexual Assault Cases, WLIB Newsletter for the Fall 2022

Honors & Awards

• Bergen’s Top Attorneys, (201) Magazine (2012-2023)
• New Jersey Super Lawyers, 2015 – 2023
• People to Watch, (201) Magazine 2012
• Best NJ Lawyers for Families (2023)

Previous Experience

• Deutsch Atkins, P.C., Partner
• The Honorable Bruce A. Gaeta, J.S.C., Judicial Law Clerk