Mr. La Rocca is a trusted advisor to employers. Employers regularly engage him to represent them in connection with legal issues involving labor unions, including in the context of union organizing, collective bargaining negotiations, the day-to-day administration of collective-bargaining agreements, and corporate transactions and transformations. Additionally, both unionized and non-unionized employers routinely call on Mr. La Rocca to aggressively represent them in arbitrations, investigations by government agencies, and lawsuits, including in matters involving claims of breach of contract, discrimination, harassment, retaliation, unfair competition, unfair labor practices, and wage and hour violations. He also provides employers with day-to-day counseling on an assortment of workplace issues to help prevent litigation in the first instance.
Mr. La Rocca has worked for clients of all sizes across a number of industries. His clients have included Fortune 50 businesses, family businesses, and virtually everything in between, including government entities. His work has spanned the chemical, construction, education, entertainment, financial services, healthcare, hospitality, insurance, legal, maritime, media, pharmaceutical, real estate, sports, telecommunications, and transportation industries.
Mr. La Rocca is a frequent speaker and writer on key developments in the labor and employment field.
Areas of Focus
Traditional Labor Law
Mr. La Rocca handles a wide range of labor matters for employers. For example, he provides strategic legal advice during union organizing drives, negotiates collective bargaining agreements, counsels employers in their day-to-day administration of collective-bargaining agreements, and litigates labor disputes before federal and state courts, government agencies (including the National Labor Relations Board and New Jersey Public Employment Relations Commission), and arbitrators. In addition, he provides advice and counsel to businesses that are looking to buy or sell unionized companies.
Employment Litigation
Employers count on Mr. La Rocca to represent them in an assortment of cases, including cases involving claims of breach of contract, discrimination, harassment, retaliation, unfair competition, and wage and hour violations. He litigates cases before federal and state courts, government agencies (including the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development, New York State Division of Human Rights, United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and United States Department of Labor), and arbitrators.
Employment Counseling
Mr. La Rocca helps employers create corporate cultures that foster business objectives, boost employee morale, and, of course, comply with the law. He does so by working with management to craft workplace policies that drive the bottom line, minimize legal exposure, and treat workers with civility, dignity respect. He also trains workforces on implementing these policies.
Entertainment & Sports Law
Mr. La Rocca’s experience with collective bargaining and labor arbitrations has been a valuable asset to the Gibbons Sports & Entertainment practice. He has represented an Emmy Award winner, a Major League Baseball Cy Young Award winner, and a Tony Award winner.
Credentials
Education
Boston University School of Law (J.D.)
- Executive Editor, Public Interest Law Journal
Cornell University School of Industrial and Labor Relations (B.S.)
Professional Admissions
State of New Jersey
State of New York
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
United States District Court for the District of New Jersey
United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York
United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
Professional Activities
American Bar Association
The Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies
New Jersey State Bar Association
New York State Bar Association
Pennsylvania Bar Association
Sidney Reitman American Employment Law Inn of Court
Society for Human Resource Management
Judicial Clerkship(s)
Legal intern to the Honorable Eugene H. Austin, J.S.C., Superior Court, Hackensack, NJ, 2005
Civic/Charitable Activities
Bergen Catholic High School
Class Chair
Cornell University Alumni Ambassador Network
Legal Employment
Prior to joining Gibbons, Mr. La Rocca practiced labor and employment law with Proskauer Rose LLP, an international law firm headquartered in New York City.