NEW YORK – November 29, 2022 – Tarter Krinsky & Drogin strategically expands and enhances its Labor and Employment Practice with the additions of Nancy B. Schess, Joan Ebert Rothermel, and Jane B. Jacobs as partners, Fred C. Klein as counsel, and Brian Gordon as an associate. This integration emphasizes the Firm’s commitment to exceptional client service and its forward-thinking approach to growth.

The incoming team worked together as Klein Zelman Rothermel Jacobs & Schess LLP (KZRJS) for decades, where they created a reputation for quality client service combined with collaboration and a unique interpersonal synergy. Over the past twenty years, Tarter Krinsky & Drogin and the KZRJS group have consistently worked together on numerous cases, forming a close, respectful professional relationship. It is on this foundation that this blending of businesses is built, allowing Tarter Krinsky & Drogin to further develop its client service resources.

“For years, the driving force behind our firm, KZRJS, has been our culture – we put our relationships first with both clients and team members and we are proud to have created a place where collaboration and respect are paramount. As we explored the next phase of our professional careers, we wanted a firm with the same mindset and approach, as well as the same level of commitment to client service – and Tarter Krinsky & Drogin is that place,” Schess said.

Throughout its twenty-one-year history, Tarter Krinsky & Drogin’s mission has been to create a firm that embraces community, collaboration, and authenticity, and stresses the importance of personal and professional growth. Each phase of the Firm’s development is strategic, enhancing not just its level of client service, but also the essence of the Firm and its overall culture.

“Our Firm’s history has always been rooted in its drive to succeed, and our commitment to continuously evolve – and this move does just that for our culture and level of client service. We’ve always deeply appreciated the group’s professionalism, expertise, and approach, and we are confident that this is a natural fit for our Firm,” said Managing Partner Alan M. Tarter. “We’re thrilled they trust us in the next stage of their careers, and we look forward to growing together.”

With this integration, the Firm’s Labor and Employment Practice now strengthens in its core areas of labor law, employer counseling, and employment law and litigation, while adding new capabilities in all aspects of employee benefits and Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) work.

“Having experienced up close the professionalism, expertise, and culture Nancy, Joan, Jane, and Fred bring to every single case they work on, we’re excited to have the opportunity to combine it all under the same roof,” said Laurent S. Drogin, a founding partner of the Firm and chair of the Labor and Employment Practice. “We share similar approaches to our business, and their combined years of experience will strengthen our labor and employment services. It is a great privilege and honor that, at this juncture, Tarter Krinsky & Drogin has the right platform to integrate our practices.”

“In my practice, I place a lot of emphasis in learning my clients’ businesses and creating well-paced strategies that meet their needs. By leveraging the Firm’s multidisciplinary capabilities and vast litigation department resources, we will have the opportunity to complement the services we now provide to our clients,” Jacobs said.

“I am thrilled to be joining Tarter Krinsky & Drogin and adding ERISA to its roster of service offerings. The employee benefits practice is a nuanced, intricate field that complements our work with employers,” Rothermel said.

“I am looking forward to exploring the depth of experience that the firm offers and bringing that expertise to my contacts,” Klein said.

The Labor and Employment Practice counsels clients on all aspects of employment law, from prevention and compliance to dispute resolution. The team focuses on risk management and compliance on local, state, and federal levels; employment litigation; labor and management relations; employment practices liability insurance; ERISA and employee benefits in general; and wage-and-hour issues.

Schess focuses her practice on a broad range of workplace compliance issues representing management. She helps clients focus on the importance of the human factor in running a business.  She advises them on how to develop and implement compliance processes to meet legal and regulatory requirements in tandem with their own company cultures. She counsels on the full range of workplace issues from discrimination and harassment, leave management, and workplace investigations to wage and hour compliance, employee contracts, severance agreements, and restrictive covenants. Schess is a frequent speaker and trainer, developing customized programs for her clients.

Rothermel has concentrated in the employee benefits area for over 40 years counseling clients on all aspect of benefits compliance, from drafting and review of plan documents, policies, and procedures to DOL and IRS audits and correction procedures.  She advises trustees of multiemployer pension and welfare plans on compliance with the special rules governing those plans, providing a unique understanding of withdrawal liability and other issues specific to multiemployer plans. Rothermel also advises clients on a broad range of labor and employment matters from collective bargaining to plant closings, and parses through employment, retention, severance, and other agreements for deferred compensation tax issues.

Jacobs is a traditional labor lawyer and an employment litigator. In the latter role, she counsels clients throughout the full cycle of litigation, from arbitration and agency proceedings to state and federal court litigation. She focuses on a wide range of employment issues, including ERISA claims, employment discrimination and harassment, wage and hour cases, and employee agreement enforcement. In her traditional labor practice, Jacobs represents employers in all manner of union issues from initial organizing to collective bargaining, grievances and arbitration, and strategic planning.

Klein focused his practice on traditional labor law, representing clients in all industries, from airlines to cemeteries. Along with Schess, he founded the business network Gotham City Networking, which brings together service-oriented professionals in complementary fields to share contacts, ideas, and resources. Klein brings to the Firm a deep connection to the New York business community.

Gordon advises employers in labor and employment issues, including general workplace compliance matters and traditional labor work, as well as ERISA and compliance with employee benefits laws and regulations for both pension and welfare plans.

About Tarter Krinsky & Drogin: Celebrating 21 years of legal service, Tarter Krinsky & Drogin is a New York-based midsize law firm that focuses on effectively and efficiently representing companies of all sizes. With our clients’ business objectives and concerns top of mind, we focus on what matters – understanding what our clients need in order to succeed, partnering with them to achieve their goals, offering holistic and practical legal advice, and devising creative solutions to complex disputes. Purposefully designed to integrate seamlessly with any client’s business team, we are a vibrant, full-service law firm dedicated to smart thinking and strong client relationships. Learn more at https://www.tarterkrinsky.com/.