The Employment Law & HR Summit: Tri-State Region

Julia Hanft is the general counsel at Wego Chemical Group, a global distributor of ingredients and chemicals, headquartered in Great Neck, New York. Julia has over 30 years of experience in the legal field, having previously worked in the telecom and defense industries. Julia was recently appointed to the Advisory Board for Women in Chemicals, a non-profit organization with a mission to create and identify opportunities to empower women in the chemical industry.

Julia earned a B.S. in Business and Management from Redlands University and J.D. from Georgia State University College of Law. Julia is passionate about mentoring others and paying forward the amazing mentorship she has had throughout her career. In addition to mentoring those she works with, she is currently a mentor with Women in America and the Association of Corporate Counsel and has previously served as a mentor with Women in Chemicals.

Fred Polirer is Vice President, People & Culture at NineDot Energy, a leading battery storage developer building community-scale energy infrastructure in New York City. He leads the company’s People strategy, overseeing talent acquisition, organizational development, performance management, total rewards, and DEIB initiatives. In addition, Fred oversees NineDot’s ESG strategy, Environmental Health & Safety (EH&S), and corporate Compliance & Reporting functions, ensuring alignment across people, operational, and investor priorities.

Fred brings experience across Fortune 500 companies, high-growth organizations, and advisory environments, including roles at Con Edison, Insperity, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, and KPMG. He began his career at Con Edison in Leadership Development and later advised senior leaders across industries through Insperity. He has also held leadership and organizational development roles within large, complex organizations and has consulted with small and mid-sized businesses on HR and business operations strategy. Fred also served as an Adjunct Professor at Nyack College, teaching courses in the college’s school of business.

He holds a BA in Communications from Queens College and an MS in Organizational Leadership from Mercy College. Fred is SPHR-certified through HRCI and has completed additional executive education and certification programs through Cornell, Korn Ferry, and DDI.

Fred lives in upstate New York with his wife and two sons.

Carol Goodman is the co-chair of Herrick’s Litigation Department, chair of the firm’s Employment Practice and a member of the Firm’s Executive Committee.

Carol is a complex commercial litigator with a sub-specialty in employment law. Carol advises public and private companies in all aspects of employment law throughout various industries such as government, sports, multi-media, real estate, finance, hospitality, and the arts.

Carol defends employers and key employees against the full range of federal and state employment claims as well as landlords and property owners against discrimination in housing claims. Carol’s experience includes litigation at the trial and appellate level in state and federal courts, arbitration venues, and before authorities such as the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the New York State Division of Human Rights (NYSDHR), the New York City Commission on Human Rights (NYCCHR), Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOP) and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA).

Tracy Udell is the Chief Equal Employment Opportunity Officer at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. She is responsible for addressing and resolving discrimination, harassment, and retaliation concerns, and educating more than 3,000 employees across four states. As the first person to hold this role, Tracy built the Bank’s EEO program from the ground up – developing trusted processes, streamlining investigations, and creating innovative, engaging methods to connect with employees and foster a culture of respect and accountability. A practicing attorney for 20 years, Tracy previously served as Employment Law Counsel at the Bank for a decade, where she advised on a myriad of complex matters. She is committed to “pulling back the curtain” on EEO policy and procedures through relatable training and candid conversations that encourage employees at all levels to speak up.

RONALD J. PRAGUE is Chief Legal Officer at Origin Wireless, Inc., a technology company located in Maryland. www.originwirelessai.com, where is responsible for a all of the company’s legal affairs. Prior to Origin, Mr. Prague was Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary of Synchronoss Technologies, Inc., a publicly-held software and services company. Prior to Synchronoss, Mr. Prague held several positions with Intel Corporation, lastly as Group Counsel for Intel’s Communication Infrastructure Group. Mr. Prague also practice law with the New York law firms of Haythe & Curley (now Torys LLP) and Richards & O’Neil (now Bingham McCutchen) where he focused on mergers & acquisition, securities and intellectual property and matters.

Mr. Prague is a frequent speaker and has over 25 years of experience doing global transactions in the telecommunications market. He is a graduate of Northwestern University School of Law and received a B.S., with distinction from Cornell University.

John has over 20 years of investigative and 10 years of HR experience across various sectors and countries. His professional journey includes significant roles in the military, government, and the financial, technology, and pharmaceutical/biotech industries. John‘s expertise lies in complex multifaceted investigations, including EEO investigations, with additional experiences in Employee Relations, Human Resources, and Talent Development. His career has given him the opportunity to work and live in multiple countries, along with supporting numerous global stakeholders.  John’s passion is assisting companies navigate the complex labor space when dealing with global employment populations with cross border management and functional relationships.

Outside of work, John is an avid runner and hiker. He resides in New Jersey with his wife, their three children, and their dog. A fun fact about John and his family is their love for travel; they were fortunate enough to spend 2020 to 2022 living in Taiwan enjoying local cuisine while John developed and led an Employee Relations and Investigations function in the region!

Joe leverages his litigation experience to help employers navigate labor relations and mitigate risk to avoid the courtroom, so they can focus on what they do best.

Lance Gotko heads Friedman Kaplan’s employment practice group, representing financial services firms and executives in high-stakes employment litigation, trade secret disputes, non-compete enforcement, compensation claims, and discrimination matters — through trial, arbitration, and appeal. He has secured wins before FINRA, the Southern District of New York, and the Second Circuit. Prior to Friedman Kaplan, he practiced at Sullivan & Cromwell. He serves as a mediator for the New York Supreme Court Commercial Division and is a longstanding member of the Federal Bar Council’s Employment Litigation Committee. Recognized on the Best Lawyers in America list for Litigation – Labor and Employment and the New York Super Lawyers list since 2012. J.D., magna cum laude, Brooklyn Law School; clerked for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.

Glen Sproviero heads Verizon’s global ethics organization, where he is senior director and associate general counsel.  Prior to his current role, he was a litigator in New York, specializing in white collar criminal defense and investigations.  A former federal law clerk, he received an A.B. in philosophy from Fordham University, an M.Phil. in Intellectual History from the University of St Andrews (Scotland), and a J.D. from Rutgers.

Chad Ayers is an employment attorney and workplace investigator with over a decade of experience in government and the private sector. At The Prinz Law Firm, he uses his diverse and substantive legal background to advocate for individuals and employers alike. A former Associate Inspector General for the City of Chicago, Chad led numerous investigations into sensitive matters of discrimination, sexual harassment and ethics violations. He also provided legal counsel and conducted audits for a variety of city departments. Chad’s nuanced understanding of organizational dynamics guides him in delivering equitable outcomes that serve his clients’ best interests.

Nicole DeMuro concentrates her practice on representing and counseling private and public sector employers in all aspects of labor and employment law. She counsels clients on a broad spectrum of labor and employment matters, including statutory, regulatory, and policy developments; worker classification; wage and hour compliance; labor relations; accommodation requests; disciplinary actions; and terminations. She also drafts employment-related policies, including handbooks, employment agreements, affirmative action programs, arbitration agreements, and restrictive covenants.

Additionally, she conducts investigations on behalf of employers, including those related to allegations of discrimination, harassment, retaliation, conflicts of interest, and other alleged violations of internal rules and procedures. In addition to her counseling work, Ms. DeMuro represents employers before federal and state courts and administrative agencies in employment discrimination, retaliation, wrongful discharge, breach of contract, and wage and hour claims. She also represents employers during and following wage and hour and unemployment audits with the New Jersey Department of Labor.

Ms. DeMuro joined the firm after serving as Senior Counsel to Governor Chris Christie. As Senior Counsel, she advised the Governor on various legal, legislative, and regulatory issues in labor and civil service law, human services, children and families, and information technology.

Prior to working in the Office of the Governor, Ms. DeMuro served as a deputy attorney general at the New Jersey Division of Law,
Employment Counseling and Labor section. In that capacity, she acted as primary counsel, representing state agencies and colleges and universities in disputes involving contractual grievances, unfair labor practices, employment compliance, major disciplines, and wage and hour compliance.

With her significant prior experience as a government attorney, Ms. DeMuro helps clients navigate the ever-evolving labor
and employment statutory and regulatory landscape. She works with clients in myriad industries to comply with the current laws
and anticipate changes that could impact their workforce and future operations

Victoria Gorokhovich is Managing Counsel – Labor & Employment at PSEG.  In this role, Ms. Gorokhovich leads a team of in-house attorneys responsible for all aspects of Labor, Employment and Benefits law, across the PSEG enterprise.

Immediately prior to joining PSEG in 2022, Ms. Gorokhovich was Senior Managing Counsel, Employment Law & Litigation, at Cigna Corporation.  She has also been an associate at the law firms of Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP and Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP.

Ms. Gorokhovich graduated from the University of Virginia School of Law, Order of the Coif, in 2004, and is admitted to the New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania State Bars.

John Fullerton is a Senior Counsel and member of the Global Employment Law team at Peloton Interactive, Inc. in New York City. His practice includes advice and counsel, litigation, labor strategy, employee benefits, and talent contracts. Previously, he was a labor and employment law partner at Epstein Becker & Green, and has also practiced at Sullivan & Cromwell and Proskauer Rose. He is a frequent speaker and author on various topics, including workplace investigations and Sarbanes-Oxley / Dodd-Frank whistleblower issues.

John has a bachelor of arts degree in philosophy from Brown University and graduated from New York University School of Law. He has been a Society for Human Resources Management – Senior Certified Professional since July 2024 and an Association of Workplace Investigators Certificate Holder since April 2025.

Lauren Davis is a Principal at Offit Kurman, advising employers, executives, and organizations on complex employment and workplace law matters. She represents clients ranging from startups and nonprofits to multinational companies across industries including financial services, insurance, real estate, luxury goods, and the arts. Her practice spans litigation and counseling, with a focus on restrictive covenants, trade secret disputes, discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wage and hour claims, and whistleblower matters.

In addition to her litigation work, Lauren provides day-to-day strategic guidance on hiring, terminations, compliance, executive agreements, and workplace policies, and regularly leads internal investigations. She practices across New York, New Jersey, and Washington, D.C., and appears before federal and state courts and agencies. A certified New Jersey court-trained mediator, she began her career clerking in the New Jersey Superior Court and remains actively involved in the arts as a founding board member of a nonprofit supporting women in creative fields.

Peggy Finster is Head of Employment Law globally at Evercore, where she advises leadership and Human Resources on workplace risk, investigations, AI governance, global mobility, employee movement, restrictive covenants, and other complex employment matters across global operations.

Before joining Evercore, she built and led Employment Law and Employee Relations functions at independent investment banks during periods of rapid growth and change. Based in New York, Peggy is a graduate of Columbia Law School and began her career at Skadden and Morgan Lewis.

As a partner in the Compensation & Benefits Group, Nick’s practice focuses on executive compensation and benefits matters in public and private companies, including in the context of mergers and acquisitions. Nick advises clients – encompassing company-side and management-side representations – on a broad spectrum of matters, including the design and negotiation of senior executive employment and separation agreements; equity incentive programs; short- and long-term cash-based incentives; and public company disclosure issues related to executive compensation matters. His holistic and solution-oriented approach seeks to provide cutting-edge legal advice in a practical context that is responsive to his clients’ goals.

Nick’s experience also includes advising clients on “prohibited transaction” issues under Title I of ERISA in lending and other financial transactions (including subscription credit facilities; asset-backed loans; and repurchase (“repo”) transactions).

Nick received his LL.M. in Taxation from the New York University School of Law, and his J.D., magna cum laude, from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, where he served as a Senior Articles Editor on the Cardozo Law Review.