The new Administration in the White House, along with the increase in a Democratic majority in the Senate, opens up the possibility for a dramatic transformation in U.S. labor and employment law. Not since 1993 has the opportunity for modifications, amendments and promulgations of new laws been so ripe to alter the labor and employment landscape. But this oncoming shift in employer rights and obligations could occur at a difficult time as companies across regions and industries struggle to meet the unprecedented challenges of the current economic crisis.

Attorneys William Milani, Jay Krupin, Robert Groban, Jr., and Michael Levine, of Epstein Becker & Green, will explain what to expect and how to proactively adjust to changes in the areas of unionization, reduction in workforce, discrimination claims, wage hours and payment issues, and immigration.

About the Speakers

William J. Milani is a member of Epstein Becker & Green in the labor and employment practice in the New York office, where he heads the firm's international employment law group. Milani is actively engaged in the practice of labor and employment law on behalf of multinational and domestic corporations. He also is an adjunct faculty member of the Cornell University School of Industrial and Labor Relations, where he teaches courses concerning human resources and the law. He has lectured extensively throughout the United States and overseas, and is the author of numerous publications on employment law issues. Milani holds a J.D. from Washington and Lee University School of Law and a B.A. from Colgate University.

Jay P. Krupin is a member of Epstein Becker & Green and the co-chair of thefirm's national labor practice steering committee. He leads the labo rand employment and litigation practices in the firm's Washington, D.C. office. In traditional labor relations matters, Krupin has successfully negotiated more than 350 collective bargaining agreements and represented companies in more than 100 union elections and campaigns. Additionally, he has directed the defense of EEO charges,wage-hour compliance, sexual harassment investigations, ADA claims, DOL audits, OSHA compliance, family and medical leave issues, and wrong fultermination claims. He works with multinational corporations to establish effective procedures for dealing with labor relations and business immigration problems. A frequent speaker and writer on avariety of topics related to his fields of practice, Krupin has been quoted in or has authored articles in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times, USA Today, The National Law Journal, Legal Timesand more than fifty other publications. He has appeared on television and radio programs throughout the nation addressing issues related to labor and employment law. He has also testified before Congress on labor legislation. Krupin holds a LL.M. from Georgetown University inlabor law, a J.D. from St. Louis University and a B.A. from George Washington University.

Robert S. Groban, Jr. is a member of Epstein Becker & Green's labor and employment and litigation practices. He is the national chairperson of the firm's immigration law group and works at the firm's New York office. He regularly counsels multinational companies regarding their legal obligations in the immigration area, counsels them on issues relating to the recruitment, employment and termination of foreign nationals and assists them to develop effective policies and practices to manage their risks in this area. Groban has extensive law firm and government experience at both the trial and appellate levels in immigration and related enforcement litigation. From 1976 to 1982, Groban served as a special assistant United States attorney for the Southern District of New York and received a special achievement award from the executive office of United States Attorneys for sustained superior performance in the trial and subsequent appeals of Bell v. Wolfish, 441 U.S. 520 (1979). Groban has lectured extensively throughout the United States and overseas on immigration-related matters and is the author of numerous publications on these issues. He holds a J.D. from New York University Law School and a B.A. from Williams College.

Michael A. Levine is a member of Epstein Becker & Green's labor and employment and litigation practices and the chair of the firm's corporate social responsibility and sustainability group in the New York office. His practice focuses on corporate compliance with labor, employment, and human rightsstandards, and on commercial and intellectual property litigation formultinational manufacturing, apparel and consumer goods clients. His litigation practice includes such intellectual property issues as trademark and trade dress infringement, unfair competition, anti-counterfeiting, unfair trade practices and false advertising claims, as well as other complex business litigation and white collar criminal investigations and proceedings. Levine has written about various aspects of corporate social responsibility in legal publications as well as in a comprehensive chapter on the subject for International Corporate Practice, a treatise published by the Practising Law Institute. He is vice-chair of the American Bar Association's corporate social responsibility committee, a member of the U.S. Technical Advisory Group on the ISO 26000 Corporate Social Responsibility Guidance Standard for the American Society for Quality, and regularly speaks about related issues at professional organizations and conferences. He has also served as the deputy bureau chief of the Major Narcotics Investigations Bureau of the Kings County District Attorney's office, and as a senior assistant district attorney in the Organized Crime Bureau, where he investigated and prosecuted significant organized crime, narcotics and white collar criminal offenses in Kings County and the Eastern District of New York. Levine holds a J.D. from Emory University School of Law and a B.A. from Columbia College.