2013 New York Super Lawyers Recognizes Montclair Resident Hanan B. Kolko

Montclair resident, Hanan B. Kolko, a Member of the Labor and Employee Benefits Law practice groups of the law firm of Meyer, Suozzi, English & Klein P.C. located in New York City, N.Y., has again been named to the New York Super Lawyers list as one of the top attorneys in New York for 2013.  No more than five percent of the lawyers in the state are recognized by Super Lawyers for this recognition.

Super Lawyers, a Thomson Reuters business, is a rating service of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. The annual selections are made using a rigorous multi-phased process that includes a statewide survey of lawyers, an independent research evaluation of candidates, and peer reviews by practice area.

As a skilled and experienced litigator, Mr. Kolko has successfully defended no-cost, lifetime post-retirement medical benefits for hundreds of retirees and their dependents, the successful collection of monies due to pension funds under the “control group” theory, successful defense of unions against claimed flaws in their election procedures and contract ratification procedures, the successful defense of unions against claimed violations of state and federal age discrimination claims in connection with collectively bargained retirement incentive programs, and the representation of unions and retirees in high profile bankruptcies including the GM, Chrysler, Hostess, New York Post and New York Daily News Chapter 11 cases. In addition, Mr. Kolko has experience litigating cases relating to living wage laws and prevailing wage laws.

In addition to representing union clients before federal and state courts, the National Labor Relations Board and the New York State Public Employment Relations Board, Mr. Kolko has handled hundreds of arbitration cases. Mr. Kolko has helped union clients navigate Department of Labor investigations and has successfully represented union members unfairly accused of breaching union by-laws, and counsels unions about their rights and obligations on a daily basis.

Mr. Kolko is co-chair of the ABA’s Labor and Employment Section’s Committee on Technology and the Workplace. He has spoken on topics relating to the intersection of technology and the workplace at the ABA Annual Meeting and at the Annual Meeting of the ABA’s Labor and Employment Section. He has also spoken on NLRB-related issues in programs sponsored by the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers and Cornell University. Mr. Kolko has taught as an Adjunct Professor for the Cornell University School of Industrial and Labor Relations, in the areas of labor law, public sector labor law, employment discrimination, the law of workplace privacy, arbitration practice, and building trades labor law. Mr. Kolko was previously recognized by New York Super Lawyers in 2012.

Founded in 1960 by the late John F. English, the firm of Meyer, Suozzi, English & Klein, P.C. includes among its members Joseph A. Suozzi, former Appellate Division Justice; John V. N. Klein, former Suffolk County Executive; Basil A. Paterson, former New York Secretary of State; and Harold Ickes, former White House Deputy Chief of Staff.  Over the course of 50 years, the firm has earned a reputation for integrity, creativity and professionalism and has set a standard of excellence in the practice of law.  With offices in Albany, Garden City, Manhattan and Washington, D.C., the firm provides legal advice in diverse practice areas to individuals, institutions and corporations.