Laura H. Harshbarger

Laura is a labor and employment law attorney whose practice includes all aspects of labor and employment law. She regularly advises colleges and universities with respect to Title IX (policy development, sexual harassment and sexual misconduct investigations and hearings), as well as accommodating students with disabilities. Laura is chair of the firm's labor and employment practice.

Laura has spoken at numerous conferences and seminars on such topics as Title IX compliance, sexual harassment/misconduct investigations and dealing with emotionally distressed and suicidal students.

Laura represents clients in Office for Civil Rights (OCR) investigations and represents higher education clients in federal and New York state court litigation. She regularly represents clients involved in litigation in the state and federal courts, as well as before the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the New York State Division of Human Rights. Laura also represents clients in arbitrations and mediations, negotiates collective bargaining agreements and advises clients with respect to labor relations issues.

For five years, Laura served as Governor Andrew Cuomo’s appointee as Chair of the Fourth Department Judicial Screening Committee and a member of the Governor's State Judicial Screening Committee. These Committees evaluate the qualifications of judicial candidates and make recommendations to the Governor with respect to which candidates are highly qualified to hold judicial positions.