Ira G. Rosenstein represents clients in a range of employment matters involving compensation disputes, discrimination, US federal and state wage and hour violations, retaliation/whistleblower claims, and noncompete/restrictive covenant matters. His clients span across industries including airlines and transportation, entertainment, new media and publishing, energy, education, not-for-profits, and financial services. In addition to his broad practice in federal and state courts and administrative agencies, Ira has represented clients in hundreds of matters before the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) and the American Arbitration Association.
Within the financial services industry, Ira has particular experience advising clients and handling disputes involving deferred compensation programs, Form U5 defamation issues, expungement proceedings, and claims for bonus on incentive pay.
As co-chair of the firm’s individual employment litigation and counseling team, Ira’s experience is broad, covering matters arising under Title VII, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), state discrimination laws, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), and the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Many of the matters he handles involve multiple plaintiffs and systemic issues and he has represented clients on several very large multiparty matters at FINRA, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), and the New York State Division on Human Rights. He also counsels on matters that involve classwide issues and has broad experience in class actions involving misclassification, student interns, independent contractors, pay practices, and ERISA/compensation.
Ira maintains a strong counseling relationship with clients, providing advice on hiring, executive compensation, benefit and compensation plan structure, arbitration and alternative dispute resolution practices, wage and hour issues, restrictive covenants and other preventive approaches to avoiding class actions and other litigation. He is a former chair of the New York City Bar Association labor and employment committee and the long-time editor and author of the New York Chapter of Bloomberg BNA’s publication, Wage and Hour Laws. Ira also maintains a very active pro bono practice and has been the recipient of recent service awards from Bronxworks, the Legal Aid Society, and Lawyers Alliance for his efforts on behalf of pro bono clients.
Member, Practice Group of the Year, Employment, Law360 (2017, 2019)
Recommended, Labor and employment - Labor and employment litigation disputes (including collective actions) - defense, The Legal 500 US (2017–2019)
Fellow, College of Labor and Employment Lawyers
Management Chair, Labor and Employment Section, New York County Lawyers Association (2002–2004)
Northeast Regional Editor, State Wage and Hour Law, American Bar Association
Member, Editorial Board, BNA Wage and Hour Laws, New York
Member, Employee Benefits Committee, Labor and Employment Section, American Bar Association
Member, Labor and Employment Committee, New York City Bar Association
Board Member, Lawyers Committee for Human Rights
Board Member, Center for Public Resources