Richard J. Reibstein

Richard J. Reibstein is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Employment Law - Management and Litigation - Labor and Employment.

This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Richard is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

As a leading practitioner of enhancing independent contractor compliance and defending against misclassification claims, Richard represents large and small companies across the U.S., in addition to his labor/employment and non-compete/trade secret practices.

Richard regularly counsels employers on how to comply with the law and avoid lawsuits that could arise under an array of labor and employment laws. He also conducts workplace investigations and defends employers in claims involving employment discrimination (including workplace harassment, hostile work environment, and disability claims), wrongful discharge and workplace torts (including defamation, fraud, invasion of privacy, tortious interference, and negligent hiring and retention), and family and medical leaves and benefit disputes. Richard negotiates collective bargaining agreements with unions on behalf of management, handling matters before the National Labor Relations Board as well as labor arbitrations.

In the area of independent contractor and wage/hour compliance, Richard represents scores of clients in an array of diverse industries, including the gig economy. Richard defends businesses across the country before federal and state administrative agencies in regulatory investigations and proceedings and before the courts in single plaintiff and class action employee misclassification lawsuits as well as litigation seeking overtime, unpaid benefits, and unpaid expenses. He works closely with employment tax lawyers in defending against IRS audits.

Richard is the publisher of the only legal blog dedicated to publishing original content on the subject of independent contractor compliance/misclassification. He has published more than 380 comprehensive blog posts and has been quoted more than 140 times by leading legal, business, and media publications for his insights in this area of law. Since 2010, Richard has written more than 60 articles and videos and has made more than two dozen presentations to businesses and industry associations on the subject.

Richard has extensive experience in the area of non-compete and trade secrets law. He crafts corporate protection plans and negotiates and drafts state-of-the-art noncompete agreements and other types of restrictive covenants. Richard counsels clients on securing compliance with such agreements by departing employees and their new employers and, conversely, how to lift out key employees of competitors who have signed these types of agreements. When necessary, Richard litigates non-competes, non-solicitations, and trade secret matters in state and federal courts.