The Firm

OUTTEN & GOLDEN LLP is one of the preeminent law firms representing employees -- “Advocates for Workplace Fairness.” The firm’s credo is “Excellence and Integrity Above All Else.”

O&G focuses on advising and representing individuals in employment, partnership, and related matters. The firm advises individuals on employment and severance agreements; it also handles compensation and benefits issues, including bonuses, commissions, stock and option awards, and family/medical leaves. The firm represents employees with a wide variety of claims, including claims of discrimination and harassment based on sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, race, disability, national origin, religion, and age, as well as retaliation, whistleblower, and contract claims. The firm also handles class and collective wage-and-hour and discrimination cases.

O&G represents clients in administrative proceedings (such as EEOC and Department of Labor), arbitrations (e.g., NYSE, NASD, and American Arbitration Association), and cases in federal and state trial and appellate courts. Before beginning proceedings, the firm often negotiates with employer representatives; it also helps clients help themselves by developing and implementing negotiation tactics and strategies. O&G has substantial experience mediating employment disputes.

The firm’s eight Practice Groups are Executives & Professionals, Securities & Financial Services Industry, Sexual Harassment, Family Responsibilities and Disability Discrimination, LGBT Workplace Rights, Discrimination & Retaliation, Class Actions and WARN.

Wayne N. Outten, O&G’s managing partner, has represented thousands of employees since 1979. He was named one of the top lawyers in New York by SuperLawyers, one of the “500 Leading Plaintiffs’ Lawyers in America” and the “500 Leading Lawyers in America” by Lawdragon, one of “The Best Lawyers in New York” by New York Magazine, one of the “Nation’s Best Litigators in Employment Law” by the National Law Journal, and one of the world’s Leading Labor & Employment Lawyers by Euromoney Publications, and has been listed in The Best Lawyers in America since 1993. He co-authored The Rights of Employees and Union Members and has written dozens of articles and chapters and given hundreds of presentations on employment law. He was a founding director of the National Employment Lawyers Association, founder and president of its New York affiliate (16 years), and co-founder of Workplace Fairness. He served on the founding Board of the College of Labor & Employment Lawyers, serves on the Council of the ABA Labor & Employment Law Section, and has held many other bar positions.

Anne Golden has practiced law since 1979 and has represented employees in trials, appeals, mediations, arbitrations, and negotiations since 1985 in every aspect of employment law. She has appeared as a speaker or panelist on many employment law programs, prepares a periodic digest of employment cases, and co-hosts a monthly seminar for NELA/NY members. Several of her cases have established important principles in the field of employment law. She is a member of the Executive Board and an officer of the National Employment Lawyers Association/New York. She has been listed in "The Best Lawyers in New York" by New York Magazine and The Best Lawyers in America, and has been named in SuperLawyers.

Adam T. Klein has represented employees in a full range of employment cases since 1991. A noted authority on class action litigation, he has written numerous articles and is a frequent speaker on class-based wage and hour claims. He is a past officer of the National Employment Lawyers Association/New York and co-chairs several committees of the American Bar Association’s Labor & Employment Law Section.

Laurence S. Moy has been practicing law since 1985 and is Co-Chair of the firm’s Securities and Financial Services Industry practice group. He has extensive experience in arbitration before the NASD and NYSE, as well as trials and other litigation before federal and state courts concerning employment and commercial disputes. He is the author of numerous publications, including "Preparing for Arbitration: A Plaintiff Lawyer’s View" in the book How ADR Works. He has been listed in The Best Lawyers in America and has been named in SuperLawyers.

Gary Phelan, head of O&G’s Connecticut office, practices in Connecticut and New York. He has represented employees since 1989 in all aspects of employment law, including discrimination, wage and hour, and health benefits. He was named one of The Best Lawyers in America as well as a SuperLawyer and co-authored a leading treatise, Disability Discrimination in the Workplace. He has written and lectured on many employment-related topics and has been an adjunct professor at the Quinnipiac University School of Law. He is on the Executive Board of the National Employment Lawyers Association, served as co-chair of its disability rights committee, and served as President of the Connecticut Employment Lawyers Association.

Kathleen Peratis has practiced employment, civil rights, and labor law, representing individuals and classes, since 1969. She has written many books and articles on employment issues. She has served as head of the women’s rights divisions of the American Civil Liberties Union and of Human Rights Watch and as president of the New York Civil Liberties Union.

Justin M. Swartz received his J.D. with honors from DePaul University in 1998. He has litigated class, multi-plaintiff, and individual cases against public and private employers and has represented employees in alternative dispute resolution procedures. He joined O&G in December 2003.

Jack A. Raisner has practiced employment law since 1985. He authored the Pregnancy Discrimination and Parental Leave Handbook (2000), as well as many chapters, articles, and columns on employment topics. He is a tenured Professor of Law at the Tobin College of Business, St. John’s University.

Wendi S. Lazar has been practicing law since 1993 in many areas of employment law, with a focus on executive employment agreements, non-competition and severance agreements, and multinational employment issues. She also advises clients and attorneys concerning employment-related immigration law. Ms. Lazar's clients are predominantly in the financial services, advertising, entertainment, and new media industries. She has written numerous articles on employment and immigration law and appears frequently on panels in her areas of expertise.

Carmelyn P. Malalis joined O&G in February 2004 after clerking in the Southern District of New York and working at Sullivan & Cromwell LLP. She received her B.A. from Yale University in 1996 and her J.D. from Northeastern University School of Law in 2001.

Tammy Marzigliano joined O&G in April 2004 after practicing employment law with Gary Phelan, LLC in West Hartford, Connecticut. Tammy received her B.A. from Hofstra University and her J.D. magna cum laude from Quinnipiac University School of Law in 2001. She is admitted to practice in Connecticut and New York.

René S. Roupinian has practiced employment law since 1995. She represents employees in class and multi-plaintiff suits under the federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act. She received her B.A. from the University of Michigan and her J.D. from Michigan State University College of Law.

Allegra L. Fishel has represented plaintiffs in civil rights and employment matters since 1986. She has been active in professional organizations related to employee rights, serving as an officer of the National Employment Lawyers Association/New York and as co-chair of the Individual Rights and Responsibilities Committee of the NYSBA’s Labor and Employment Law Section. Ms. Fishel lectures frequently on employment law topics.

Lewis M. Steel has practiced since 1963, primarily in the fields of employment, civil rights, labor and criminal law. He has tried and argued cases nationally, including in the U.S. Supreme Court. His successful employment discrimination class actions have established important legal rights for employees. He has been listed in The Best Lawyers in America since 1991.

Nantiya Ruan has practiced employment law since completing a federal judicial clerkship in 1999-2000. She also has experience as a social worker with a Masters in social work, reflecting her commitment to social justice issues.

Julia Murphy has practiced since 1989, primarily in the field of employment law. In addition to her experience representing plaintiffs, she has significant experience handling employment law and human resources issues in the financial service industry. Her practice is focused on professional and executive counseling and employment agreements, including non-competition and severance agreements. She earned her B.A. magna cum laude from Mount Holyoke College and her J.D. from NYU Law School. She is admitted in Connecticut.

Samuel Miller joined O&G in July 2009, following his position as Legal Director at the Center for Constitutional Rights. He has been on the faculty of Columbia Law School as a Research Scholar, and was a permanent law clerk to Hon. Thelton E. Henderson in San Francisco. Sam received his J.D. in 1988 from Boalt Hall School of Law at the University of California, Berkeley, and is admitted to practice in California and New York.

Delyanne D. Barros joined O&G in June 2007 as a summer law clerk and later as an associate in September 2008. She received her B.S., magna cum laude, from Barry University in 2005, and her J.D., cum laude, from Pace University School of Law in 2008.

Rachel Bien came to O&G in October 2006 after a clerkship on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. She earned her B.A. from Brown University in 2000 and her J.D. cum laude from Brooklyn Law School in 2005, where she also received an Edward V. Sparer Public Interest Law Fellowship.

Katherine Blostein is an associate at Outten & Golden LLP, where she represents employees in negotiation of severance, employment, noncompetition, expatriate, and international assignment agreements. She is a member of Outten & Golden's Executives & Professionals and LGBT Practice Groups.

Molly A. Brooks joined O&G in April 2008 after practicing labor and employee benefits law at Cohen, Weiss and Simon LLP. She received her B.A. from Grinnell College in 1998 and her J.D. from Northeastern University School of Law in 2004.

Cara E. Greene joined O&G in August 2005. She received her B.A. from Gordon College in 2000 and her J.D. from Fordham University School of Law in 2005.

Seth M. Marnin joined the Connecticut office of O&G in 2006. He earned his B.A. in 1992 and his M.A. in 1994 from the University at Albany, SUNY and his J.D. from the University of Connecticut School of Law in 2006.

Ossai Miazad joined O&G in July 2007. She received her B.A. from Vassar College in 1998. Since receiving her J.D. with honors from the American University Washington College of Law in 2004, she has represented plaintiffs in civil rights and employment matters.

Melissa Pierre-Louis joined O&G in December 2008 after completing a public interest fellowship at Beldock, Levine and Hoffman LLP. She received her B.A. from the State University of New York at Albany in 2004 and her J.D. from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law in 2008.

Lauren E. Schwartzreich joined O&G in March 2008 after practicing labor and employment law at a law firm in Washington, DC. She received her B.A. from Emory University in 2001 and her J.D. from Emory University School of Law in 2004. She is admitted to practice in New York and Washington, D.C.

Juno Turner joined O&G in October 2009 following a clerkship in the Eastern District of New York and a two-year honors program in the Office of the New York State Attorney General, Labor Bureau.  She earned her B.A. from the University of Colorado at Boulder in 2000 and her J.D. from Fordham University School of Law in 2006.

Sonia R. Lin joined O&G in September 2009 as O&G’s first NYU Public Interest Law Fellow after completing a clerkship with Judge Denny Chin of the Southern District of New York. She received her B.A. from Yale University in 2001 and her J.D. cum laude from New York University School of Law in 2008.