Floyd J. Dugas

Floyd J. Dugas, Senior Partner with Berchem Moses PC, heads up the firm’s Labor & Employment practice. He represents towns, cities and boards of education throughout Connecticut, often as General Counsel. Floyd is a member of the firm’s Labor & Employment and Education Law departments. He represents both private and public sector employers.

Floyd is a graduate of the University of Connecticut and the Temple University James E. Beasley School of Law. He has been involved in a number of matters of statewide significance. For instance, Floyd was involved in discussions resulting in the New Haven Reform contract, which was achieved as a result of a close working relationship with local and statewide teacher unions. National leaders have heralded the New Haven contract as a model for public school reform. In addition to being duplicated by cities such as Philadelphia, it was recognized by the Obama administration as precisely the type of reform needed to improve student achievement. The new Connecticut State Statute on Education Reform is modeled after what was developed in New Haven. Floyd was also successful on behalf of the City of New Haven in an interest arbitration case that allowed the City to outsource nearly 100 custodial positions and modified the pensions for those who remained, saving the City millions of dollars over the duration of the contract and beyond.

Attorney Dugas is an arbitrator on the State of Connecticut Department of Education Panel of Arbitrators, and is Chair of the Personnel and Benefits Committee of the Easter Seal Rehabilitation Center of Greater Waterbury, Inc. He regularly lectures on labor, employment and education law topics and is a regular presenter at CABE’s annual negotiation seminar. He has presented at the National School Board Association Conference in San Francisco on the topic of School Reform, and in San Diego and San Antonio on the topic of school safety. He is a member and past president of the Connecticut Counsel of School Attorneys and is a member of the National Council of School Board Attorneys. Mr. Dugas is rated as AV Preeminent by his peers in Martindale-Hubbell, its highest designation, and has been recognized by Connecticut and New England Super Lawyers since 2014. Since 2018, he has been recognized by U.S. News & World Report’s Best Lawyers in America, and in 2022 he received the coveted “Lawyer of the Year ” designation for Labor Law – Management. Additionally, Attorney Dugas was the recipient of The Connecticut Law Tribune’s Lifetime Achievement Award in 2022 which recognizes lawyers who have “left a lasting imprint on the legal community of Connecticut.” He was also named a Life Fellow of the American Bar Foundation in 2022. The Fellows comprise a global honorary society of attorneys, judges, law faculty, and legal scholars whose public and private careers have demonstrated outstanding dedication to the highest principles of the legal profession and to the welfare of their communities. Membership in the Fellows is limited to 1% of lawyers licensed to practice in each jurisdiction. Fellows are recommended by their peers and elected by the board of the American Bar Foundation.