
The recent explosion of employment-related lawsuits has greatly affected the employee-employer relationship, which is constantly evolving as new employment laws are enacted and new cases make their way through the courts and administrative agencies. The need for the involvement of experienced legal counsel from the outset of an employee complaint is critical to a successful defense. Your best defense may hinge on the management of an employee complaint at the very point in time when it is made.
Hodgson Russ’s employment litigation attorneys generally represent management only, providing experienced counsel on every aspect of the employment relationship. We are here when you need us in a crisis, and we are here to guide you with developing employment programs to help avoid a crisis. Hodgson Russ lawyers are experienced in the defense of employment-related claims and have the resources, determination, and creativity demanded in employment litigation situations. When Hodgson Russ clients become involved in employment disputes, our number one priority is to protect clients’ legal rights and commercial interests.
Our attorneys regularly appear in state and federal courts as well as in alternative dispute resolution forums such as mediation and arbitration. Our litigators have the depth of experience garnered from years of representing clients in contested proceedings, including administrative hearings, trials, motions, and appeals.
Efficient means and effective representation characterize our relationships with our employer clients. In the interest of instituting programs to avoid litigation, Hodgson Russ’s employment litigation attorneys provide counseling and conducts equal employment opportunity compliance programs, seminars, and other educational offerings to assist clients in assessing potential risks and legal exposures before disputes. These services allow clients to evaluate, manage, and head off situations that might result in litigation.
Hodgson Russ represents clients before courts and administrative agencies in disputes with current and former employees. Examples include:
- Employment discrimination litigation in state and federal court pertaining to race, sex, sexual harassment, sexual orientation, religion, national origin, age, color, disability, alienate, and any other legally protected category
- Employment discrimination claims at state and federal administrative agencies
- Misclassification of worker claims
- Non-competition agreement claims
- Theft of trade secret claims
- Equal Pay Act claims
- Family and Medical Leave Act claims
- Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) claims
- State law tort claims (e.g., defamation, intentional infliction of emotional distress, assault and battery)
- Federal and state civil rights laws claims
- Breach of contract claims
- Payment of wage claims
Hodgson Russ has been awarded a prestigious “Best Law Firms” Metropolitan Tier 2 ranking by Best Lawyers/U.S. News & World Report in the Litigation - Labor & Employment category. | ![]() |
- $3 Million Judgment in Municipal Labor Dispute Reversed in Favor of Client on Appeal
- Affirmance by the Second Circuit of Dismissal of Reverse Discrimination Suit Challenging Police Promotion Practices
- Class-Action Lawsuit Alleging Employment Discrimination Ends Favorably for City of Buffalo
- Dismissal of Discrimination and Retaliation Case
- Dismissal of First Amendment Retaliation Lawsuit Related to High-Profile Murder Case
- Dismissal of Race Bias Suit in Favor of Hodgson Russ Client
- Dismissal of Retaliation and Whistleblower Claims Made by Former Assistant DA Against Boss Affirmed
- Dismissal on the Pleadings of a Multimillion-Dollar Collective Action Under the Fair Labor Standards Act
- Employment Discrimination Matters in U.S. District Court
- Favorable Jury Verdict in Construction Accident Labor Law 240 Trial
- Favorable Settlement in Breach of Governing Buy-Sell Agreement Case
- Fourteen-Year Employment Litigation Culminates in Defense Verdict
- High-Stakes Business Torts Suit Ends in Summary Judgment Favoring Hodgson Russ Clients
- Jury Rendered Defense Verdict in Labor Law Trial
- Secured Nominal Settlement for Fortune 1000 Client in a High Exposure Labor Law 240 Case
- Significant Court of Appeals Victory Limits Scope of New York State’s Labor Law § 240(1)
- Summary Judgment for Large Construction Management Company Client in a Labor Law 240 Case
- Summary Judgment for Municipality in Discrimination and Harassment Lawsuit Involving Extensive Email
- Victory for Portville District Benefits Schools Across New York State
- Warded Off Summary Judgment to Plaintiff in a Labor Law 240 Case
In the News
- Buffalo News, February 9, 2019
- Buffalo News, February 18, 2015
- Circuit Upholds Drug Testing of Buffalo FirefightersNew York Law Journal, July 5, 2013
- Buffalo Firefighters Push 2nd Circ. To Reopen Race Bias SuitLaw360, May 20, 2013
- Absence of Local Data Found to Be Not Fatal to Promotional TestsNew York Law Journal, July 31, 2012
- 2nd Circuit Rebuffs Challenge to Buffalo Firefighter TestThomson Reuters News & Insight, July 30, 2012
- Buffalo Law Journal, July 30, 2009
Press Releases
- September 29, 2022
- September 26, 2022
- Hodgson Russ Press Release, March 24, 2020
- Press Release, September 4, 2014
Publications
- New York Law Journal, October 7, 2020
- Hodgson Russ Labor & Employment Alert, June 29, 2020
- Labor & Employment Alert, June 28, 2018
- Labor & Employment and Employment Litigation Alert, February 27, 2018
- Buffalo Law Journal, April 8, 2015
- Employers' Advisor, August 12, 2014
- Saratoga Business Journal, February 6, 2014
- IndustryWeek, September 6, 2012
- The Voice, a publication of the DRI, March 16, 2012
- Employment Litigation Alert, January 28, 2011
Presentations & Events
- March 15, 2023
- May 15, 2020
- Offices of Hodgson Russ LLP, New York, NY, December 12, 2019
- The Century House, Latham, NY, December 5, 2019
- Buffalo Niagara Marriott, Amherst, NY, November 14, 2019
- Buffalo, NY, May 16, 2013
- Amherst, NY, November 4, 2010