Top Rated Employee Benefits Attorney in Philadelphia, PA

Honors/Awards:

• Best of Philadelpia Award, U.S. Local Business Association
• Martindale-Hubbell rated me as preeminent based on peer reviews., AV preeminent rating, Martindale-Hubbell, 2018
• Who's Who in American Law, Who's Who in America

Special Licenses/Certifications:

• Accredited by the Veterans Administration to present appeals for veterans' benefits, 2014
• Admitted to practice in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit and the Federal Circuit, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and for the District of New Jersey
• American Arbitration Association Roster of Neutrals, 2014

Bar/Professional Activity:

• Member of the Committee on Career Development and Support of the American Guild of Organists.
• Roster of neutrals, American Arbitration Association, American Health Lawyers Association and National Arbitration and Mediation.
• Amicus curiae as federal employee rights advocate before the Merit Systems Protection Board in Latham v. U.S. Postal Service, 2011
• Member of the National Employment Lawyers Association (NELA), president of the Eastern Pennsylvania Chapter of NELA (1992-1998),  chairperson of the bylaws committee (1998-2007), member of the American Constitution Society, co-chairperson of the Sole and Small Practice Management Committee of the Philadelphia Bar Association (2007), co-chairperson of the Women's Rights Committee of the Philadelphia Bar Association (2000), member of the executive committee of the Public Interest Section (2000), former member of the executive committee of the National Association of Women Lawyers, participant on referral panels for the Patient Advocate Foundation, the Cancer Legal Resource Center and the American Association of University Women, arbitrator on employment roster of neutrals for American Arbitration Association and National Arbitration & Mediation; public arbitrator for the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA).

Pro bono/Community Service:

• American Guild of Organists, awarded certificate in service playing
• Member of Board of Directors of The West Philadelphia Mental Health Consortium Jan. 2009- Jan. 2011; member of fact-finding committee, 2010.
• Executive Committee of American Guild of Organists, Philadelphia chapter., 2015
• Voter protection volunteer for the Committee of Seventy, 2008
• Chairperson, Personnel Committee of the Ethical Society of Philadelphia; member Finance Committee, 2011
• Former member of the governing board and of the district advisory council of the Health Systems Agency
• Board of Trustees of the Ethical Society of Philadelphia, 2012-2014.
• Committee on Career Development and Support, American Guild of Organists, 2017

Scholarly Lectures/Writings:

• Presentation to the Women in the Profession committee of the Pennsylvania Bar Association identifying typical gender stereotypes impeding advancement in the legal profession.  , Speaker, Pennsylvania Bar Association Women in the Profession retreat, Gender Stereotyping: Perception and Punishment, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, 2010
• I wrote and presented an overview of significant new developments at the U.S. Supreme Court, Third Circuit Court of Appeals, Pennsylvania appellate courts, the NLRB, Department of Labor, and EEOC., speaker , New Developments in Employment Law, National Business Institute, Attorneys, Human Resources Professionals, 2019
• Analysis of rights of consumers and shareholders and whistleblowers under the Dodd-Frank Act., speaker, Franklin Inn Club, 2011
• Federal and state law governing medical assistance. , Speaker, Medicaid Law, National Business Institute, Accountants, Attorneys, Health Care Providers, 2013
• Analysis of the impact  of the Affordable Care Act on employee benefit plans.  , presenter, Jenkins Law Library, 2013
• "Equality v. Faith" and "What Do Federal State and Local Governments Owe Their LGBT Employees' Spouses, Partners and Children?", presenter, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, 2014
• Fair Labor Standards Act, Wage Payments., speaker, Advanced Employment Law, National Business Institute , HR Professionals, Lawyers, 2016
• The Affordable Care Act's Employer Responsibilities, COBRA, HIPAA., speaker, Laws Governing Employee Health Benefit Plans, Jenkins Law Library, Lawyers, 2016
• Leave Law and Affordable Care Act Requirements, faculty, Troubleshooting HR Nightmares, National Business Institute, Attorneys And Human Resource Professionals, 2017
• "ERISA Litigation" Litigating Employment Discrimination Cases "Mandatory Disclosures Required by ERISA" 1 Employee Rights Quarterly No. 2.
• Presentation at the Pennsylvania Bar Institute's seminar Litigating Employment Discrimination Cases., ERISA Litigation, 2007
• Presentation to the Sole and Small Firm Practice Committee of the Philadelphia Bar Association., Attorney's Fee Awards under the Federal Fee-Shifting Statutes, 2004
• Presentation to the Elder Law Committee of the Philadelphia Bar Association., ERISA Rights and Remedies, 2008
• Presentation to the National Employment Lawyers Association, Eastern Pa. chapter, organizer and co-presenter, Taxation of Awards and Settlements in Employment Cases, 2008
• Presentation about Family and Medical leave for pregnant employees and workplace dating., presenter, Women in the Workforce, Career TV, 2010

Verdicts/Settlements:

• Klele v. United States Postal Service - settled appeal filed at the Merit Systems Protection Board for failure to restore partially recovered employee to limited duty., 2011
• Won reinstatement of federal employee removed for unsatisfactory performance.   Settled subsequent removal based on alternate theory., 2019
• Obtained interim order of reinstatement of federal employee and settled petition for review filed by Agency with the Merit Systems Protection Board., 2018
• Won a defense arbitration award in a civil suit for assault and battery in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas, Ingersoll v. Parsons, Oct. term 2014, no. 00428., 2015
• Settled collection case against an unincorporated association after prevailing on a summary judgment motion challenging responsibility of a parent association for debts incurred in the name of a project of the association., 2010
• Won Unum plan appeal resulting in award of long term disability benefits., 2012
• Negotiated reasonable accommodation and monetary award for deaf federal employee., 2012
• Settled MSPB appeal of federal employee charged with breach of computer security., 2013
• Settled ERISA case in U.S. District Court resulting in subsidized early retirement benefit and  penalties for failure to provide plan documents., 2005
• Won a pension plan appeal overturning the denial of benefits based on participation status., 2009
• United States District Court remanded long term disability claim to insurer, which did not consider requirements of the Plaintiff's own occupation,  Doe v. Unum Life Insurance Co., 13-cv-06900 (E.D. Pa.), 2014
• Settled EEO claim of a federal employee denied adequate training to successfully perform job duties, 2009
• Boandl v. Geithner - settled disability discrimination/retaliation claim for constructively discharged employee of the Internal Revenue Service., 2011
• Obtained ruling that a freeze on Medicaid reimbursements violates federal and state regulations.  Thomas Jefferson University Hospital v. Division of Medical Assistance, 6 N.J.A.R. 127., 1981
• settled sex discrimination complaint against a political party caucus of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
• Won reinstatement of service connected disability benefits on an appeal to the Philadelphia Board of Pensions and Retirement, 2012
• negotiated the reinstatement of long term disability benefits for a claimant suffering from fibromyalgia, 2009
• Obtained decision from the N.J. Division of Pensions and Benefits allowing a retiree who returned to work to retain a pension upon a showing of intention to comply with regulations and repayment of income earned during retirement., 2014
• Won breach of fiduciary duty plan appeal where retiree reasonably relied on misrepresentations., 2010
• Won MSPB order reinstating federal employee improperly removed for performance, 2017
• Settled Merit Systems Protection Board appeals resulting in the reinstatement of two federal employees., 2008
• briefed arguments as amicus in Latham v. U.S. Postal Service, Docket DA-0353-10-0408-I-1, establishing that failure to follow policies is arbitrary and capricious, 2012
• Reported decisions of litigated cases include:  DiGiacomo v. Teamsters Pension Fund, 420 F. 3d 220 (3d Cir. 2005); Holton v. Crozer Chester Medical Center, 570 F. 2d 575 (3d Cir. 1977); Keegan v. Steamfitters Local 420 Pension Fund, 211 F. Supp. 2d 632, aff'd 2003 U.S. App. Lexis 13223; Austin v. Neal, 933 F. Supp. 444 (1996); Cupid v. Local 116 of IUE, 142 LRRM 2458 (1993); McKeever v. Atlantic Spring & Mfg. Co., 502 F. Supp. 684 (1980); Berry v. Office of Personnel Management, 50 MSPR 385 (1991), Western Stress, 290 NLRB 671 (1988); Winterle v. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Unemployment Compensation Board of Review, 442 A. 2d 1211 (Pa. Cmwlth., 1982), Roe v. Casey, 623 F. 2d 829 (3d Cir. 1981).
• Settled sexual harassment case at Pa. Human Relations Commission.

Transactions:

• living wills, medical directives, health care powers of attorney, wills, probate
• durable power of attorney for a competent person with a mental disability
• employment agreement for personal care services, 2012
• management services agreements for health care providers, employment agreements, severance agreements

Other Outstanding Achievements:

• spearheaded task force to propose whistleblower protection legislation in Pa., 2009
• Awarded certificate in service playing by the American Guild of Organists, 2012

Videos:

• Interview about pregnancy discrimination and dating in the workplace

Educational Background:

• B.A., Livingston College of Rutgers University, New Brunswick, N.J., 1972
• J.D., Rutgers Law School, Newark, N.J., 1975