Firm News, Part 2

In August 2017, Chris Lenzo and Claudia Reis were selected by their peers in the labor and employment law bar for inclusion in the list of The Best Lawyers In America for 2018 in the field of representing Individuals in Employment Law.* This is the 13th year in a row that Chris has been listed and the second year in a row that Claudia was selected for inclusion. In addition, Claudia was listed as “Lawyer of the Year” in the field of representing Individuals in Employment Law for the Newark metropolitan area.

On June 16, 2017, Chris Lenzo and Claudia Reis spoke at the Hot Tips in Labor and Employment Law Seminar presented by the New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education. Chris discussed political discrimination and retaliation in the workplace. Claudia spoke about how employees can bring successful hostile work environment claims even where the employer has anti-harassment policies and training.

On May 18, 2017, Claudia Reis was the sole plaintiffs’ representative on a four-attorney panel at the New Jersey State Bar Annual Convention that discussed the complexities of mediating employment cases and particularly assigning a monetary value to emotional distress claims.

On April 28, 2017, and April 27, 2017, Claudia Reis participated in an ethics panel discussion and presented an opening statement and direct examination of a plaintiff during a mock trial at the 2017 NJAJ Boardwalk Seminar.

On Friday, April 21, 2017, Claudia Reis appeared on MSNBC’s Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell where she discussed the impact of the Bill O’Reilly and Fox News sexual harassment controversy on workplace culture and treatment of victims of sexual harassment. Claudia’s segment begins at approximately the three-minute mark. The article can be found here.

In March 2017, Chris Lenzo and Claudia Reis were selected for inclusion in the list of New Jersey Super Lawyers in the fields of Employment and Labor Law and Employment Litigation for Plaintiffs through a poll of New Jersey lawyers conducted by New Jersey Monthly Magazine and the legal publisher Thomson Reuters.* For the fourth year in a row, Chris Lenzo was in the list of the Top 100 New Jersey Super Lawyers receiving the most votes from their peers. Claudia Reis was in the list of the Top 100 New Jersey Super Lawyers and the Top 50 Women New Jersey Super Lawyers for the second year in a row.

On January 31, 2017, Claudia Reis was a panelist during a presentation to attorneys concerning the law surrounding a hostile work environment at the New Jersey Law Center.

On November 17, 2016, Claudia Reis served as a co-chair for the all-day employment seminar at NJAJ’s Meadowlands conference. She was also a member of a panel that discussed punitive damages.

On November 2, 2016, Chris Lenzo spoke at a seminar titled “Human Resource Law from Start to Finish” presented by the National Business Institute. Chris discussed employee privacy issues.

On November 1, 2016, U.S. News & World Report selected Lenzo & Reis, LLC, for its list of the Best Law Firms in the country for the third year in a row. The firm was ranked in tier one in the New Jersey metropolitan area for both representation of individuals in employment law matters and labor and employment litigation.*

In its October 2016 edition, the New Jersey Labor and Employment Law Quarterly published Claudia Reis’ article titled The Legislature Meant What it Said and Said What it Meant: All Employees are Entitled to CEPA Protection – 100 Percent, which addresses the Supreme Court’s decision in Lippman v. Ethicon, Inc. making clear that there is no job duties exception to New Jersey’s whistleblower law.

In August 2016, Chris Lenzo and Claudia Reis were selected by their peers in the labor and employment law bar for inclusion in the list of The Best Lawyers In America for 2017 in the field of representing Individuals in Employment Law.* This is the 12th year in a row that Chris has been listed and the first year that Claudia was selected for inclusion.

On June 3, 2016, Chris Lenzo and Claudia Reis spoke at the Hot Tips in Labor and Employment Law Seminar presented by the New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education. Chris discussed surreptitious recording by employees in the workplace. Claudia spoke about employers forcing employees to arbitrate cases instead of bringing cases to court.

On May 29, 2016, the New York Post reported on a class action lawsuit filed by Chris Lenzo on behalf of the Port Authority Police Benevolent Association against the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey accusing the Port Authority of subjecting its police officers to unlawful medical examinations. The article can be found here.

On March 9, 2016, Chris Lenzo spoke about ethics and discovery issues in employment law cases at the Labor and Employment Law Forum presented by the New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education.

In March 2016, Chris Lenzo and Claudia Reis were selected for inclusion in the list of New Jersey Super Lawyers in the fields of Employment and Labor Law and Employment Litigation for Plaintiffs through a poll of New Jersey lawyers conducted by New Jersey Monthly Magazine and the legal publisher Thomson Reuters.* For the third year in a row, Chris Lenzo was on the list of the Top 100 New Jersey Super Lawyers receiving the most votes from their peers. Claudia Reis was on the list of the Top 100 New Jersey Super Lawyers and the Top 50 Women New Jersey Super Lawyers.

On February 16, 2016, Claudia Reis was appointed to the Judicial Nominations Committee of NELA (National Employment Lawyers Association) for the Third Circuit.

On December 15, 2015, Chris Lenzo spoke about how to avoid forced arbitration of employment disputes at the Employment Law Roundtable presented by the New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education.

On December 10, 2015, Chris Lenzo spoke at a daylong Labor and Employment Law Workshop sponsored by the management-side employment law firm Ford Harrison. Mr. Lenzo discussed employment law claims made by in-house attorneys.

On December 10, 2015, Chris Lenzo spoke at a seminar titled “For Whom the Whistle Blows: A Look at Recent Developments in CEPA” presented by the Essex County Bar Association.

On November 23, 2015, Claudia Reis was quoted in an NJ.com article titled “Whistle-blowing cop accuses police department of retaliation, files suit,” which may be accessed here.

On November 23, 2015, Chris Lenzo spoke at a seminar titled “Workplace Investigations” presented by the New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education.

On November 23, 2015, Claudia Reis presented on Negotiation with Plaintiffs’ Counsel at the Hot Tips in Preventing Employment Claims Seminar.

On November 19, 2015, Claudia Reis gave a presentation on post-Aguas discovery at NJAJ’s Meadowlands Seminar.

On November 2, 2015, U.S. News & World Report selected Lenzo & Reis, LLC, for its list of the Best Law Firms in the country for the second year in a row.* The firm was ranked in “tier one” in the New Jersey metropolitan area for labor and employment litigation and tier two for representation of individuals in employment law matters.

On Friday, October 30, 2015, Claudia Reis had the honor of presiding over the NELA-NJ Annual Conference as the Master of Ceremonies. She also participated as a speaker on a panel discussing ethical issues in employment cases.

On October 30, 2015, Chris Lenzo spoke at the Annual Conference of the New Jersey affiliate of the National Employment Lawyers Association. His presentation was titled “Snapshots: Year in Review and Trends in Employment Law.”

In October 2015, the New Jersey Labor and Employment Law Quarterly published an article by Chris Lenzo titled “Aguas v. State: The New Jersey Supreme Court’s Abandonment of Hostile Work Environment Victims and a Recipe for Increased Litigation.”

In August 2015, Chris Lenzo was selected by his peers in the labor and employment law bar for inclusion in the list of The Best Lawyers in America for 2016 in the field of representing Individuals in Employment Law and the field of Labor and Employment Law Litigation for the 11th year in a row. This year, Chris was also selected as a Best Lawyers “Lawyer of the Year” in the field of representing Individuals in Employment Law for the Newark metropolitan area for the second time.*

On June 6, 2015, an article co-written by Claudia Reis titled Magna Carta: Still Paving the Long Road to Equality, was published in the New Jersey Lawyer Magazine.

On June 5, 2015, Chris Lenzo and Claudia Reis spoke at a seminar titled “Hot Tips in Labor and Employment Law” presented by the New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education. Chris discussed the legality of employer wellness programs. Claudia spoke about abusive discovery tactics by employers in litigation.

On May 1, 2015, Chris Lenzo presented a seminar titled “Off Duty/Off Premises Conduct – Can It Get You Fired? Is There Redress” for the New Jersey Association for Justice.

On March 24, 2015, Chris Lenzo was quoted in an article on the electronic news wire Law360 regarding a lawsuit he has filed on behalf of two Anheuser-Busch employees who were fired for text messages they sent on their personal phones from their homes on their own time.

On March 24, 2015, Chris Lenzo participated in a panel discussion on cross-examination at the Sidney Reitman Employment Law American Inn of Court.

In March 2015, Chris Lenzo and Claudia Reis were selected for inclusion in the list of New Jersey Super Lawyers in the fields of Employment and Labor Law and Employment Litigation for Plaintiffs through a poll of New Jersey lawyers conducted by New Jersey Monthly Magazine and the publisher Law & Politics.* For the second year in a row, Chris Lenzo was on the list of the Top 100 New Jersey Super Lawyers receiving the most votes from their peers.

On March 4, 2015, Chris Lenzo participated on a panel that presented a seminar titled “Proving Emotional Distress/Psychological Damages in LAD and CEPA Cases – When to Use Expert Testimony” for the National Employment Lawyers Association of New Jersey.

On December 17, 2014, Chris Lenzo spoke about how to avoid enforcement of restrictive covenants against employees at the Employment Law Roundtable presented by the New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education.

In December 2014, New Jersey Lawyer – The Magazine published an article by Chris Lenzo titled “Why Defendants in Employment Litigation Are Not Entitled to Blanket Discovery of Plaintiffs’ Lifelong Healthcare and Personnel Records.”

On December 11, 2014, Chris Lenzo spoke at a daylong Labor and Employment Law Workshop sponsored by the management-side employment law firm Ford Harrison. Mr. Lenzo discussed the mistakes that employers make.

On November 21, 2014, Claudia Reis was quoted in an article in The Ocean Star, which covers the Borough of Mantoloking, concerning a promotional process for the Chief of Police.

On November 12, 2014, Chris Lenzo and Claudia Reis participated in a panel discussion at the 2014 Meadowlands Seminar presented by the New Jersey Association for Justice titled “Winning Employment Law Cases.”

On November 3, 2014, U.S. News & World Report selected Lenzo & Reis, LLC, for its list of the Best Law Firms in the country. The firm was ranked in tier one in the New Jersey metropolitan area for labor and employment law litigation and tier two in the New Jersey metropolitan area for the representation of individuals in employment law matters. *

On October 2,3 and 6, 2014, Claudia Reis was quoted in various publications, including, www.nj.com, www.morristowngreen.com and www.dailyrecord.com, concerning a recently filed complaint alleging sexual harassment against a former Morristown employee and the Town.

On October 1, 2014, Claudia Reis participated in a panel discussion at a NELA-NJ meeting concerning the preparation of clients for depositions.

On September 26, 2014, Chris Lenzo and Claudia Reis were quoted in a blog about age discrimination in the modern workforce.

In August 2014, Chris Lenzo was selected by his peers in the labor and employment law bar for inclusion in the list of The Best Lawyers in America for 2015 in the field of representing Individuals in Employment Law and the field of Labor and Employment Law Litigation for the 10th year in a row (Copyright 2013 by Woodward/White, Inc., of Aiken, SC). Since it was first published in 1983, Best Lawyers has become universally regarded as the definitive guide to legal excellence. Because Best Lawyers is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey in which almost 50,000 leading attorneys cast nearly five million votes on the legal abilities of other lawyers in their practice areas, and because lawyers are not required or allowed to pay a fee to be listed, inclusion in Best Lawyers is considered a singular honor. Corporate Counsel magazine has called Best Lawyers “the most respected referral list of attorneys in practice.”*

On August 10, 2014, Chris Lenzo participated in a panel discussion titled “Roadmap for Effectively Using Social Media in Employment Litigation” at the annual meeting of the American Bar Association in Boston.

On August 1, 2014, Chris Lenzo participated in a panel discussion titled “View From The Plaintiff’s Bar: Adapting Your Strategies to New and Innovative Techniques and Tactics” at the Annual Forum on Defending and Managing Employment Discrimination Litigation of the American Conference Institute in New York City. He discussed the causes of action based on employees’ social networking activities outside of the workplace.

On June 30, 2014, Claudia Reis was quoted in an article in the New Jersey Law Journal titled Employer Cutting of Time Limit for Suits to be Tested in N.J. High Court, which addressed an employer’s ability to shorten the statutory statutes of limitations on employment claims.

On June 27, 2014, Chris Lenzo spoke at the Annual Convention of the National Employment Lawyers Association on a panel titled “Winning Jury Instructions.”

On June 26, 2014, Claudia Reis participated in a panel discussion concerning oppressive discovery tactics of employment defendants at the Annual Conference of the National Employment Lawyers Association in Boston.

On June 13, 2014, Claudia Reis gave a presentation to attorneys at the New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education’s Annual Labor and Employment Hot Tips Program concerning employers’ obligations to accommodate religious beliefs and practices.

On May 30, 2014, Chris Lenzo spoke at a seminar titled “Restrictive Covenants and Non-Compete Agreements” presented by the New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education.

On May 7, 2014, the New Jersey Labor and Employment Law Quarterly published an article by Claudia Reis titled ‘But for’ is the Straw That Broke the Camel’s Back, which addresses the changing meaning and implication of the “but for” standard in claims brought pursuant to the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA).

On May 2, 2014, Claudia Reis participated in an ethics panel related to issues faced by employment attorneys at the Annual Convention of the New Jersey Association for Justice (NJAJ).

On May 1, 2014, Claudia Reis solicited the direct examination of the plaintiff during an employment mock trial at the Annual Convention of the New Jersey Association for Justice (NJAJ).

On April 10, 2014, Claudia Reis gave a presentation concerning various facets of employment law to investigators and attorneys employed by the Office of Attorney Ethics.

On March 21, 2014, Chris Lenzo conducted a mock witness examination as part of a program presented by the Trial Advocacy and Technology Subcommittees of the Employment Rights and Responsibilities Committee of the Labor and Employment Law Section of the American Bar Association. The program was titled “Get It In, Keep It Out – Electronically Stored Information in Evidence.”

In March 2014, Chris Lenzo and Claudia Reis were selected for inclusion in the list of New Jersey Super Lawyers in the fields of Employment and Labor Law and Employment Litigation for Plaintiffs through a poll of New Jersey lawyers conducted by New Jersey Monthly Magazine and the publisher Law & Politics.* For the first time, Chris Lenzo was on the list of the Top 100 New Jersey Super Lawyers receiving the most votes from their peers.

On February 19, 2014, Chris Lenzo spoke at a seminar titled “Human Resources Law From Start to Finish” presented by the National Business Institute. Mr. Lenzo discussed employee privacy rights.

On December 17, 2013, Chris Lenzo spoke on a panel at an Employment Law Roundtable Seminar presented by the New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education. Mr. Lenzo discussed jury charges in employment law cases. In particular, he focused on the new model jury charges for reasonable accommodation cases and front pay damage claims.

On December 5, 2013, Chris Lenzo spoke on a panel of plaintiff’s employment lawyers at a daylong Labor and Employment Law Workshop for In-House Counsel and HR Executives sponsored by the management-side employment law firm Ford Harrison. Mr. Lenzo discussed the worst employment law mistakes that employers make.

On November 26, 2013, Claudia Reis was quoted in an article in the New Jersey Law Journal concerning proposed legislation that, if passed, will expand the protections of the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination and Conscientious Employee Protection Act to unpaid interns.

On November 25, 2013, Chris Lenzo spoke at a seminar presented by the New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education titled “Workplace Investigations.” Mr. Lenzo discussed how to attack the quality of an employer’s investigation of an internal complaint of discrimination or harassment.

On November 20, 2013, Claudia Reis was the voice of employees while participating in a panel discussion with esteemed defense attorneys as well as Judge Klein and Judge Moore concerning how to draft, negotiate and litigate restrictive covenant agreements and, specifically, noncompete agreements. The purpose of the panel was to instruct other attorneys in the state of New Jersey on the various issues related to noncompete agreements and was presented in conjunction with the Essex County Bar Association.

On November 14, 2013, Chris Lenzo spoke at a seminar presented by the New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education titled “Labor and Employment Issues for the Corporate and In-House Attorney.” Mr. Lenzo discussed employment law claims arising from employees’ use of social networking websites.

* NO ASPECT OF THIS ADVERTISEMENT HAS BEEN APPROVED BY THE SUPREME COURT OF NEW JERSEY. FOR BEST LAWYERS METHODOLOGY, SEE WWW.BESTLAWYERS.COM. FOR SUPER LAWYERS METHODOLOGY, SEE WWW.SUPERLAWYERS.COM. FOR MARTINDALE-HUBBELL METHODOLOGY, SEE WWW.MARTINDALE.COM. FOR BEST LAW FIRMS METHODOLOGY, SEE WWW.BESTLAWFIRMS.COM.

Go back to Firm News Part 1