Randi W.
Kochman

Randi W. Kochman is a co-managing shareholder and chair of the firm’s Employment Law Department.

She is dedicated to helping employers understand and navigate complicated and ever-changing employment laws so they can effectively manage employees, avoid costly mistakes, and focus on their core business.

Experience

Randi brings nearly 30 years of employment law experience and works closely with her clients in all types of employment-related contexts including wrongful discharge, discrimination, retaliation, harassment, wage and hour compliance, contract disputes, restrictive covenant, unfair competition and trade secret matters in state and federal courts and administrative agencies.

Randi routinely provides guidance on all types of policy, procedure, and personnel issues, including preparing employee handbooks, policies and agreements, and conducting harassment and discrimination awareness training. When disputes arise, Randi is tenacious in litigating employment and business tort issues in state and federal courts and administrative agencies. Randi lectures and writes regularly on all aspects of employment law. Randi is also regularly called upon to conduct independent workplace investigations into allegations of harassment, discrimination, retaliation, and related issues.

Representative matters include:

• Successfully represented NY-based home health care agency in securing very favorable collective and class action settlement brought on behalf of thousands of current and former home health care aides, following many years defending against wage and hour claims brought under the New York Labor Law and related claims.
• On behalf of private college, secured favorable settlement of disability discrimination claims alleged by former employee under federal and state law during and after COVID.
• Secured temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction on behalf of insurance broker client barring prior employee and new employer from soliciting company accounts and engaging in other unfair competition. Ultimately secured extremely favorable settlement.
• Successfully resolved wage and hour class action with the U.S. Department of Labor for NJ-based transportation logistics company, saving company hundreds of thousands in fees and costs.
• Obtained complete dismissal of breach of contract, wage payment and related claims brought by former CEO against private equity group that had ownership interest in employer and secured dismissal of all non-contract claims against employer.
• On behalf of New York-based professional services company, secured temporary restraining order prohibiting competition by former employee who violated restrictive covenant and improperly retained confidential and proprietary information when leaving.
• On behalf of manufacturing client, obtained complete pretrial dismissal of independent contractor trucker’s claims brought against the company under the New Jersey Conscientious Employee Protection Act.
• Following trial, secured complete dismissal of former employee’s claims of racial and gender discrimination and retaliation against chauffeured transportation company client.
• Secured summary judgment ruling as to liability of several former employees who breached duty of loyalty and unlawfully competed with elevator contractor employer.
• Successfully obtained the dismissal of a child care service provider’s lawsuit filed in the Superior Court of New Jersey, alleging retaliation under the New Jersey Conscientious Employee Protection Act, wage and hour violations, breach of contract, and violations of the New Jersey Constitution.

Networks & Affiliations

Randi has been significantly involved with the Commerce and Industry Association of New Jersey, as a member of the Steering Committee for its Human Resource Council. She has also been actively involved with the New Jersey Women Lawyers Association (NJWLA), holding various leadership positions, including President, President-Elect, Vice President and Secretary. She currently serves as the NJWLA representative on the Supreme Court Committee on Gender in the Courts. Randi is also a Trustee for Partners, a New Jersey nonprofit organization dedicated to addressing sexual assault and violence by providing legal services to victims.

Randi is a member of the New Jersey State Bar Association and the Bergen County Bar Association. She has also served as a Barrister of the Sidney Reitman Employment Law Inn of Court.

Honors & Awards

Randi is consistently recognized for her high quality legal work and professionalism:

• Chambers USA band ranking for Labor and Employment each year since 2016
• Lawdragon 500 Leading Litigators in America list
• New Jersey Super Lawyers list each year since 2011
• Top 50 Women New Jersey Super Lawyers list in 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2020
• Top 100 New Jersey Super Lawyers list in 2015 and 2016
• Best Lawyers list since 2023
• Partner in Justice Award presented by Partners NJ in 2024
• Innovator Honoree at the New Jersey Legal Awards hosted by New Jersey Law Journal in 2021
• Top 25 Leading Women Entrepreneur list by LWE in 2019
• New Jersey Women Lawyers Association WILL Platinum Award, Private Sector, in 2019
• Leading Women Entrepreneur & Intrapreneur Finalist in 2015
• KSB Presidential Leadership Award presented by the New Jersey Women Lawyers Association in 2015
• Professional Lawyer of the Year Award presented by the New Jersey Commission on Professionalism in the Law
• Top 50 Women in Business list by NJBIZ in 2011
• AV rating from Martindale-Hubbell, the premier directory of legal professionals

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See Award Methodology.