Labor & Employment Law Section

8:00 a.m.

Continental Breakfast

Regent/Sutton South

8:25 a.m. – 8:30 a.m.

Welcome and Introduction

8:30 a.m. – 8:45 a.m.

Business Meeting

8:45 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.

Plenary One: AI, Ethics, and the Evolving Practice of Employment Law and the Workplace

Second Floor, Regent/Sutton South

This program explores how artificial intelligence is transforming both the practice of law and the modern workplace, with a focus on the ethical, cybersecurity, and privacy implications for attorneys. Under Rule 1.1 of the New York Rules of Professional Conduct, lawyers have a duty of competence that includes staying informed about the benefits and risks of relevant technology. The panel will examine how generative AI tools are being used in legal research, drafting, and analysis; the attendant risks relating to data security, confidentiality, and privilege; and strategies for mitigating those risks. It will also address the use of automated systems in the workplace, including with respect to hiring and performance management, and implications on anti-discrimination laws, transparency obligations, and cybersecurity considerations. Finally, the program will discuss AI’s impact on discovery and evidentiary practice, including issues of privilege waiver and data handling. Participants will gain practical guidance for advising clients on responsible AI adoption, safeguarding sensitive data, and maintaining compliance with both ethical and technological obligations in an evolving legal landscape.

Speaker

Joseph D. Lockinger | Cooley LLP

Jeremiah Iadevaia | Vladeck

Michael Ross Esq. | Law Offices of Michael S. Ross

10:00 a.m. – 10:10 a.m.

Break

10:10 a.m. – 11:25 a.m.

Plenary Two: Navigating Reverse Discrimination Claims and Lawful DEI After Ames and Chislet

Second Floor, Regent/Sutton South

This plenary program will deliver practice-focused guidance on advising employers and employees on discrimination law and workplace inclusion after the Supreme Court’s decision in Ames v. Ohio Dep’t of Youth Servs. (2025) and the Second Circuit’s decision in Chislet v. City Dep’t of Educ. (2025). The session will connect these rulings to Title VII and state and local antidiscrimination laws and to evolving federal enforcement priorities. Participants will leave understanding how Ames and Chislet shape the viability and pleading of reverse discrimination claims by majority group plaintiffs. The panelists will discuss how employers can implement diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies that foster belonging while minimizing their risks in reverse discrimination cases, and how lawyers representing plaintiffs in these cases will be framing the issues. The program is designed to be informative for and provide practical guidance to employee- and employer-side employment counsel who are navigating the intersection of EEO compliance, DEI programming and related litigation.

Speaker

Howard Wexler | Partner, Seyfarth and Shaw

Tanya Blocker | Assistant GC National Grid

Stephen Bergstein | Bergstein & Ullrich

Brian Heller | Partner, Schwartz Perry & Heller LLP

Moderator

Jon Ben-Asher | Ritz Clark Ben-Asher

11:30 a.m. – 12:25 p.m.

Workshop A: Labor Law

Second Floor, Regent

An update on the changes at the NLRB under the Biden Board and current Trump Board and likely impact on labor relations. Will discuss the recent significant Board Decisions and appeals pending in various Circuit Courts including Thryv, Inc.372 NLRB No.(Dec 13, 2022) (expanded make whole remedies overruled by Third, Fifth, Sixth Circuits but upheld by Ninth) Space X v. NLRB (Fifth Circuit declaring NLRB unconstitutional); Cemex v. NLRB, 327 NLRB No. 130 (2023) (change in organizing rules on appeal in Ninth Circuit) current interpretation by General Counsel seeking 10(j) interim injunctive relief since issuance of Supreme Court decision in Starbucks Corp. v. McKinney, 602 U.S. 339, 346 (2024); status of recently amended NYS law under SERA asserting jurisdiction over NLRB cases while NLRB lacks a quorum to decide cases) and latest General Counsel Memos including the rescission of many General Counsel Abruzzo memos which is a possible predictor of the interpretation and approach taken by the Trump Board.

Speaker

Kimberly Lehmann | Levy Ratner

Peter Jones | Bond Schoeneck & King

Moderator

Karen Fernbach | Arbitrator/ Mediator & Retired Regional Director of NLRB

11:30 a.m. – 12:25 p.m.

Workshop B: Public Sector “Hot Topics at PERB”

Second Floor, Sutton South

Discussion of the NLRB Trigger Law, Strikes, and Farm Labor Law Developments (focusing on its card check and impasse arbitration provisions).

Moderator

Timothy Connick, PERB Chair |

11:30 a.m. – 12:25 p.m.

Workshop C: Where Do You Work? Multi-Jurisdictional Employment Law in the Post-Pandemic World

Sutton Center, Second Floor

This Workshop will carefully examine many of the issues that employers face on a daily basis when an employer is in one location and an employee is in a different location. Indeed, the proliferation of remote work has created innumerable issues that must be considered. The Workshop will examine the tests utilized by the courts for determining which anti-discrimination or other laws apply and discuss recent cases applying those tests. Similarly, the Workshop will examine everyday issues faced by employees and employers when applying benefits required by states (such as New York paid sick leave, paid prenatal leave, and the like). The Workshop will also briefly address the ethical issues faced by attorneys in one state when facing the prospect of an employee located in a different state. Providing insights that will be pertinent to attorneys for employees and employers when counseling clients or litigating such issues, the panelists will focus on the legal issues and provide practical guidance and considerations.

Speaker

R. Scott DeLuca, Esq. | Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart, P.C.; Buffalo, New York

Moderator

Danielé D. DeVoe, Esq. | Sahn Ward Braff Coschignano; Uniondale, New York

11:30 a.m. – 12:25 p.m.

Workshop D: Wage and Hour Update

Sutton North, Second Floor

This workshop will be a dialogue about the most recent trends in Wage & Hour law. Changes in overtime claims and settlement taxation resulting from the Big Beautiful Bill; emerging trends in the U.S. Department of Labor; Rule 68 and other settlement issues; and the weekly pay cause of action’s demise and its impact on the plaintiff’s bar are among the topics our panel of experts will examine. Wage & Hour practitioners will leave the workshop with relevant information and strategies that will enhance their practices.

Speaker

Marijana Matura | Co-founder, Kessler Matura P.C.

Aaron Warshaw | Shareholder, Ogletree Deakins

Patricia Wheeler | Vice-President Employment Law and Benefits, Altice USA

12:30 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.

Labor and Employment Law Section Luncheon

Murray Hill West, Second Floor

2:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.

Committee Meetings

Murray Hill East, Second Floor