Overview
Sara Tomezsko is a partner in the Employment Law practice of Paul Hastings and is based in the firm's New York office. Ms. Tomezsko's practice covers all aspects of employment law, with a focus on litigating both single-plaintiff and class and collective actions through trial and appeals. She also provides litigation avoidance and compliance advice to employers in a variety of industries, including technology, telecommunications, financial services, investment banking, private funds, and entertainment.
Discrimination, Harassment, and Retaliation Litigation: Ms. Tomezsko represents employers defending against claims involving federal, state, and local anti-discrimination, harassment, and whistleblower retaliation laws, in both court and private arbitration.
She has successfully-obtained defense verdicts in cases involving claims asserted under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, Title VII, Section 1981, and New York City and State Human Rights Laws.
Wage and House Class, Collective, and Representative Actions: Recognized by The Legal 500 for her accomplishments in this area, Ms. Tomezsko regularly litigates class, collective, and representative-action lawsuits on behalf of employers. Her successes in this area include dismissal of wage-and-hour claims on Rule 12 motions, limiting certification of a putative nationwide collective to a fraction of the potential scope, and securing employer-favorable resolutions of complex wage-and-hour matters. She also counsels employers and revises employers' policies and to ensure compliance with the Fair Labor Standards Act and the New York Labor Law.
Pay Equity: Ms. Tomezsko has experience litigating pay-equity claims, both on a single-plaintiff and class-wide basis. She also counsels employers through internal pay-equity audits and analyses, and assists multi-state employers in navigating the complex patchwork of state and local pay-equity and pay transparency and disclosure laws.
Arbitration Programs: Ms. Tomezsko routinely-advises employers on maintaining successful and defensible workforce-arbitration programs in light of recent legislative updates to the Federal Arbitration Act. She has secured several dozen orders enforcing employers' arbitration agreements, both at the trial court level and on appeal, including cases involving issues of first impression.
Ms. Tomezsko received her B.A. from Loyola University in Maryland in 2006, and her M.A. in English Literature and Theory from New York University in 2009. Before attending Cornell Law School, Ms. Tomezsko spent several years working in the financial services sector. She received her J.D. from Cornell in 2013.
Recognitions
- The Legal 500 USA, Labor and Employment Disputes Including Collective Actions: Defense (2021-2023)
- Best Lawyers, Ones to Watch, New York Area (2022, 2023)
- Benchmark Litigation's 2023 "40 & Under" List
Education
- Cornell Law School, J.D., 2013
- New York University, M.A., 2009
- Loyola University Maryland, B.A., 2006
Engagement & Publications
- Employment Discrimination Law (Sixth Ed.), Associate Editor
- “Contractually Shortened Statutes of Limitations for Employee Claims,” Thomson Reuters (2014)