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Justin M. Swartz

27 years of experience
Employment Law
Illinois, New York

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Biography

JUSTIN M. SWARTZ, a partner at Outten & Golden LLP in New York and Co-Chair of its Class Action Practice Group, represents employees in class action wage/hour and discrimination cases, as well as individual discrimination cases and other employment matters. He is also Co-Chair of the firm’s Public Interest Committee.

Mr. Swartz is currently litigating cases challenging the practice of classifying workers as independent contractors and failing to pay overtime compensation. He and Outten & Golden LLP's Public Interest Committee have represented hundreds of low-wage workers in minimum wage and unpaid overtime cases, including construction workers, farm workers, and low-wage cleaning workers in their claims that large contractors failed to pay them overtime compensation for their work cleaning buildings around Ground Zero in 2001.

Mr. Swartz has also represented workers in employment discrimination claims against companies that have refused to hire minorities with criminal records, systemic gender discrimination claims against a major utility company; and several individual race, gender identity, sexual orientation, and national origin discrimination cases. He has represented hundreds of female and African American stock brokers in nationwide discrimination class action lawsuits against the country’s leading brokerage firms, including Merrill Lynch, Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, and Smith Barney.

Mr. Swartz frequently works with non-profit organizations on public interest matters including successfully representing a formerly incarcerated security guard in a licensing hearing in conjunction with MFY Legal Services and representing three low-wage immigrant women in sexual harassment, assault and battery, and overtime claims as co-counsel with the ACLU Women's Rights Project. While living in Chicago, he volunteered at First Defense Legal Aid, providing emergency representation for recent arrestees and documenting police misconduct.

Practice Area

Employment Law: Employee Benefits, Employment Contracts, Employment Discrimination, ERISA, Overtime & Unpaid Wages, Sexual Harassment, Whistleblower, Wrongful Termination

Additional Practice Areas

Class Actions
Wage and Hour Law
Employment Discrimination

Jurisdictions Admitted to Practice

Illinois: Supreme Court of Illinois
Since 1998

New York
Since 2002

Languages

English

Education

DePaul College of Law: J.D. (1998) | Law; 1998; Honors: with Honors, Order of the Coif, 1998

Awards

Best Lawyers in America 2016 - 2019: Best Lawyers; 2019

"Lawyer of the Year" for Litigation - Labor and Employment, New York City: Best Lawyers; 2019

Super Lawyer 2013-2018: Super Lawyers; 2018

500 Leading Plaintiff Employment Lawyers: Lawdragon; 2018

Rising Star 2011-2012: Super Lawyers; 2012

Professional Associations

National Employment Lawyers Association: Co-Chair, Wage and Hour Committee; Current

National Employment Lawyers Association/New York Affiliate: Executive Board; Current

American Constitution Society: Member; Current

Americans United for Separation of Church and State: Member; Current

New York State Bar # 4059499: Member; 2002 - Current

Association of the Bar of the City of New York: Member: Civil Rights Committee; 2005 - 2008

American Bar Association: Co-chair, Ethics & Professional Responsibility Committee; 2005 - 2008

Association of the Bar of the City of New York: Member, Labor and Employment Law Committee; 2002 - 2005

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Publications

Articles & Publications

A Puzder-Led Labor Department Would Make Life Much Harder for U.S. Workers: O&G Employment Law Blog; February 8, 2017

Stalled Overtime Rules Will Hurt All U.S. Workers, Including Trump Voters: O&G Employment Law Blog; January 19, 2017

New York Attorney General Says Domino's Pizza Is "Joint Employer" in Wage Theft Scheme: O&G Employment Law Blog; June 3, 2016

FLSA Collective Action Notice Issues: Labor & Employment Law, Section of Labor and Employment Law, American Bar Association; 2013

Overtime Class of Duane Reade Assistant Store Managers Conditionally Certified: O&G Employment Law Blog; January 28, 2012

Speaking Engagements

Speaker, Moderator: "Arbitration Administrators Hear From NELA Lawyers On The Challenges They Face In Arbitration," National Employment Lawyers Association, 2019 Spring Seminar (Denver, CO) 2019

Speaker: "View from the Plaintiffs’ Bar: Adapting Your Defense Strategies to New and Innovative Techniques and Tactics," American Conference Institute, 26th National Forum on Wage & Hour Claims and Class Actions (Miami, FL) 2018

Panelist: "Interactive “Ask the Plaintiff’s Bar," American Conference Institute'2 29th National Forum, Wage & Hour Claims and Class Actions (Miami, FL) 2017

Panelist: "FLSA/Wage & Hour Issues in US Sport," Sports Lawyers Association, 2017 Annual Conference (Denver, CO) 2017

Moderator: "Co-Counseling & Cooperating with Other Plantiffs' Lawyers (Or Playing Nice in The Sandbox)," NELA, 2016 Annual Convention (Los Angeles, CA) 2016

Panelist: "Interactive “Ask the Plaintiff ’s Bar” American Conference Institute, 28th National Forum on Wage & Hour Claims and Class Action (San Francisco, CA) 2016

Speaker: "Current Issues in Settlement of FLSA Cases", New York City Bar Association (New York, NY), 2015

Panelist: "Displaying Professionalism When Clients Allege Wrongdoing and Malpractice", ABA Section of Labor & Employment Law, 9th Annual Labor & Employment Law Conference (Philadelphia, PA), 2015

Speaker: "Interns and Volunteers as Employees?," NYU 68th Annual Conference on Labor (New York, NY), 2015

Speaker: "Views From The Plaintiff’s Bar," ACI’s 25th Wage & Hour Conference (San Francisco, CA), 2015

Moderator: "Vulnerable Workers Under the Microscope: Developments and Prospects", National Conference on Equal Employment Opportunity Law, ABA Section of Labor & Employment (Miami Beach), 2015

Faculty: "Wage-Hour Actions", Eighteenth Annual NYU Workshop on Employment Law for Federal Judges, NYU Labor & Employment Law, Institute of Judicial Administration, NYU University School of Law (New York, NY), 2015

Speaker: "View from the Plaintiffs’ Bar: Adapting Your Defense Strategies to New and Innovative Techniques and Tactics", American Conference Institute's 23rd National Forum on Wage & Hour Claims and Class Actions (Miami, FL), 2015

Moderator: "Raising the Level of Ethics and Professionalism in the Labor and Employment Bar", ABA Section of Labor & Employment Law, 8th Annual Labor & Employment Conference (Los Angeles, CA), 2014

Speaker: "View from the Plaintiffs’ Bar: Adapting Your Defense Strategies to New and Innovative Techniques and Tactics", American Conference Institute's 22nd National Forum on Wage & Hour Claims and Class Actions (Los Angeles, CA), 2014

Moderator: "Arbitration and Alternatives", Title VII of the Civil Rights Act After 50 Years, NYU 67th Annual Conference on Labor, New York University (New York, NY), 2014

Speaker: "View from the Plaintiffs’ Bar: Adapting Your Defense Strategies to New and Innovative Techniques and Tactics", American Conference Institute's 21st Wage & Hour Claims and Class Actions Conference (New York, NY), 2014

Speaker: "Keeping the Heat On Employers in FLSA Cases", NELA 2014 Annual Convention: Blazing the Trail, Courage, Challenge, Change (Boston, MA), 2014

Speaker: "Defeating and Dealing with Arbitration Agreements in Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) Cases", American Association for Justice, Employment Rights Section and Wage & Hour Litigation Group (Baltimore, MD), 2014

Panelist: "FLSA Mediation Issues", JAMS Employment Law Practice Group Conference (New York, NY), 2014

Panelist: “Views From The Plaintiffs’ Bar: Adapting Your Defense Strategies to New and Innovative Techniques and Tactics", American Conference Institute's 21st Wage & Hour Claims and Class Actions Conference (New York, NY), 2014

Facilitator: "A Side Bar With the Judges on Rule 30(b)(6): Use, Abuse, and Process.", National Conference on Equal Employment Opportunity Law (Rancho Mirage, CA), 2014

Panelist: “Views From The Plaintiffs’ Bar: Adapting Your Defense Strategies to New and Innovative Techniques and Tactics, 2014

Panelist: "Talk to Me: Communications with Potential Class Members Before and After Complaint Filing", 7th Annual ABA Section of Labor and Employment Law Conference (New Orleans, LA), 2013

Faculty: Wage and Hour Practice Today: Policies and Litigation Strategies after Comcast, Genesis, and Espenschied, American Law Institute CLE audio/webcast, 2013

Panelist: Settling Wage-Hour Litigation (including Rule 68 Offers after Genesis Healthcare v. Symczyk), Litigation and Settlement of FLSA Claims, NYU Labor & Employment Law, NYU 66th Annual Conference on Labor (New York), 2013

Panelist: "Attorney's Fees and Settlement of FLSA and Wage & Hour Actions", FLSA/Wage & Hour 2013 Litigation & Management (New York, NY)

Panelist: "Class and Collective Action Certification and Related Discovery", Managing Wage & Hour Risks 2013, Practising Law Institute (PLI)(New York, NY)