Every person, from workers to executives, has the right to a workplace that is free from discrimination and harassment and to be paid properly. An employee’s good-faith complaints must be investigated thoroughly and evenhandedly. All too often, employers retaliate against and punish those who stand up for their rights or the rights of others.
We have represented hundreds of women, men, and gender non-conforming individuals who were subjected to unlawful discrimination, harassment, and/or retaliation on the basis of gender, race, national origin, age, religion, sexual orientation, and gender identity. We also regularly represent workers in overtime, minimum wage, and whistleblower cases.
Commisso v. Cuomo
Representing Brittany Commisso in pursuing her individual claims against Andrew Cuomo for sexual harassment and retaliation while she worked for him in the Executive Chamber. Cuomo was found to have violated the law based on Ms. Commisso’s and many other women’s reports and forced to resign as Governor.
In re Utility Company
Represented seven women over the course of almost ten years who worked in non-traditional jobs and who were subjected to workplace harassment and continually denied the equal opportunity to advance. Obtained successful findings for them before the EEOC, and then fought to obtain significant money damages for individual plaintiffs as well as broad injunctive relief that required the Company to change its policies.
John Does 1-4 v. National Bank
Successfully represented four Black and Caribbean men who were harassed and mistreated by their all-white supervisors and then punished for complaining.
K.D. v. BGC Financial, L.P.
Secured $500,000 judgment for client in sexual harassment and retaliation lawsuit against financial services company.
We have represented hundreds of sexual assault victims, including children, adults, and adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse, asserting claims against individual perpetrators as well as the institutions that enabled them, including Fortune 500 companies, financial institutions, schools and universities, hospitals, foster care agencies, and prisons.
We have worked with survivors and advocates to eliminate statutes of limitations and press for look-back windows, reviving previously expired claims and pursuing them through the courts.
When traditional assault claims are not viable, we seek justice for our clients in creative ways. We have made new law on behalf of survivors of sexual abuse through defamation law, winning a landmark case in New York’s highest court and leveraging that victory in later litigation against Donald Trump, successfully fending off his multiple attempts to dismiss or stay one woman’s efforts to hold him accountable for his lies about his sexual assaults of her.
We have obtained more than $150 million in settlements and judgments for sexual abuse survivors over the years. But we also recognize that justice is not always about money. We have strategized with clients in defending them against threats or attacks for telling the truth. And our current case against the NYPD is aimed at stopping its discriminatory pattern and practice of engaging in sorely inadequate sexual assault investigations, which mistreats and debases women and girls who have bravely reported being sexually assaulted.
Jeffrey Epstein Survivors
We represented more than 20 survivors of Jeffrey Epstein’s horrific sexual abuse, including women who were raped, women who were abused when they were children, and women who were trafficked to other perpetrators. We obtained many millions of dollars in total compensation and supported each of our clients as they assisted criminal prosecutions, filed federal cases, and/or participated in fund procedures.
Rockefeller University Hospital
Successfully represented more than 250 survivors of childhood sexual abuse by Dr. Reginald Archibald, a pediatric endocrinologist at Rockefeller University Hospital who used his position to abuse children horrifically for more than four decades.
Miriam Haley v. Harvey Weinstein
Represent rape victim whose testimony at Harvey Weinstein’s criminal trial led to his 20-year prison sentence in civil litigation against him pending in federal court.
Rodriguez v. City of New York
Obtained a $1.4 million settlement on behalf of a transgender woman who was sexually assaulted twice in five days after being housed unlawfully in a male facility on Rikers Island. This is among the largest settlements of any claim brought by an individual in New York State for sexual assault while in custody. The firm also obtained a settlement of nearly $600,000 on behalf of a second transgender woman who was sexually assaulted in New York City Department of Correction custody in Love v. City of New York.
Zervos v. Trump
Represented former Apprentice contestant Summer Zervos in her claim that Donald Trump defamed her by asserting falsely that she lied about being sexually assaulted by him. Successfully resisted numerous attempts by Trump to dismiss or stay the case in the trial and appellate courts on constitutional and defamation law grounds, including by building on new law we had made in an earlier case in New York’s highest court.
We regularly represent individuals and groups of plaintiffs who have been falsely arrested, wrongfully convicted, assaulted, or denied medical treatment by police officers and prison officials. No case is too small or too big. We have represented individuals who were briefly detained in violation of their constitutional rights, as well as those who have been killed by the police or prison guards and those who have spent decades in prison for crimes they did not commit.
Alkebulan v. Galante
Obtained a $1.8 million settlement for the Estate of Antwoine Fort, who committed suicide while in New York state prison, in a case claiming that the New York State Office of Mental Health and the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Services both failed to take basic steps to keep him safe from a known and apparent serious suicide risk. This is believed to be the largest prison suicide settlement ever paid by the State of New York. The firm also obtained what is believed to be the second largest prison suicide settlement paid by the State of New York, $1.6 million, in McAllister v. Waldron.
Newton v. City of New York
Represented Alan Newton, who spent over two decades in prison for a rape he did not commit because the City could not find the DNA evidence that eventually exonerated him, in his appeal from the district court’s decision to throw out an $18 million jury verdict on his claim that the City’s inadequate evidence management system violated his right to due process. The appellate court reinstated the verdict.
Simmons v. Suffolk County
Obtained a $1.85 million settlement on behalf of the Estate of Dainell Simmons, a developmentally disabled man who was asphyxiated by Suffolk County police officers who improperly held him face down as they attempted to place leg restraints on him.
Estate of Kurt Doerbecker v. County of Nassau
Obtained a $1 million settlement on behalf of the estate and family of a 23-year old man who was fatally shot by a Nassau County police officer in a federal civil rights and wrongful death suit.
Rodriguez v. City of New York
Obtained a $1.4 million settlement on behalf of a transgender woman who was sexually assaulted twice in five days after being housed unlawfully in a male facility on Rikers Island. This is among the largest settlements of any claim brought by an individual in New York State for sexual assault while in custody.
Too many individuals and groups continue to be blocked from renting or purchasing the homes they deserve because of their race, disability, sexual orientation, family status, or source of income. Landlords continue to lie to African Americans about whether there are vacancies in buildings or quote them higher rents in many predominantly white neighborhoods. Women of modest means continue to be sexually harassed by landlords and supers on a widespread basis. We frequently sue unscrupulous developers, landlords, real estate agents, architects, and banks that have discriminated against our clients, and routinely obtain significant monetary awards and extensive injunctive relief to ensure that defendants change their practices.
FHJC v. Fairstead
Representing the Fair Housing Justice Center in a lawsuit alleging that the owners of the Savoy Park housing complex in Harlem and various real estate agencies routinely engage in unlawful source of income discrimination by disfavoring prospective tenants with government housing subsidies.
FHJC v. Niayzov
Representing coalition of Plaintiffs alleging that various real estate agents and property owners in Brooklyn and Staten Island discriminated against prospective tenants because of their race.
Fair Housing Justice Center v.
JDS Development LLC
Representing the Fair Housing Justice Center, a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting fair housing in New York City and surrounding counties, in a federal disability discrimination lawsuit against, among others, the developer of the American Copper Buildings in Manhattan, which has hundreds of documented violations of the accessibility requirements of the Fair Housing Act. Obtained landmark settlement requiring extensive retrofitting of widespread barriers to access, a $2.9 million monetary payment, and other injunctive relief. The firm then brought a successful enforcement action before U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres, who retained jurisdiction over the settlement, and secured an additional $800,000 in damages for defendants’ failure to adhere to the remediation schedule.
We have asserted claims against elementary schools, middle schools, high schools, and colleges/universities for a range of unlawful conduct, including the failure to prevent or adequately investigate sexual assaults on campus, unlawful discrimination, and bullying, performing unlawful strip searches, and the failure to accommodate the needs of students with disabilities.
P.W. v. Monmouth County School District et al.
Represent a former New Jersey public high school student who claims that school officials failed to protect her from severe and pervasive retaliation by her fellow students after her parents reported a shocking incident of anti-Semitism during a school field trip. Read extensive coverage about the lawsuit in the New York Times.
T.H. v. City of New York
Along with Legal Services of New York, represented a plaintiff challenging the policy and practice of public schools of calling emergency services and sometimes the police in dealing with children with documented emotional disabilities. The federal litigation was successfully resolved with significant changes to the system, including training, in addition to monetary compensation.
Jane Does v. Universities
Represented numerous young women who were raped or sexually assaulted on campus, often in their freshman year of college, against the schools that failed adequately to investigate and address their complaints. Obtained millions of dollars in settlements and judgments and changes to the way the colleges have dealt with the students and handled complaints.
J.S. v. Dalton School, et al.
We are suing the Dalton School and its former Head of School on behalf of J.S. under New York’s Child Victims Act. At age 14, J.S. was offered free tuition and board, living with the Head of School and attending the Dalton School for 9th grade. The unusual arrangement ultimately allowed for multiple opportunities of sexual abuse, which has had profoundly negative consequences on our client’s life. Read about the case in the New York Law Journal, the New York Daily News, and the New York Post.
We have brought numerous cases on behalf of current and former foster children who were abused and/or neglected after being removed from their parents’ homes, including numerous individual damages cases and a class action.
Odeneal v. Quin
Serves as Co-Class Counsel in to a class of Tennessee foster children alleging that Tennessee’s child welfare system is constitutionally deficient.
Jane Doe v. Ohel Children’s Home and Family Services
Represent a woman who alleges that she was sexually assaulted by her foster father during the 1990s while she was under the supervision of Ohel Children’s Home and Family Services. The lawsuit alleges that Ohel’s priority was to place Jewish foster children in Jewish homes, and that once Ohel accomplished that goal, it failed to monitor the foster care placements, leaving vulnerable children at risk.
Estate of Hailey Gonzalez v. City of New York
Represented the estate of a two-year-old girl who was murdered by her mother’s boyfriend while under the supervision of the City’s child welfare agency in a case alleging that the City was grossly negligent in failing to protect her.
We routinely represent plaintiffs in a wide range of class action litigation and group actions on behalf of parties seeking monetary damages or injunctive relief against private and public actors who discriminate, violate the Constitution, or permit children to be abused.
Barco Mercado v. Noem
Representing putative class of immigrants detained at 26 Federal Plaza in Manhattan and a proposed class of thousands of individuals detained there for days without access to counsel, beds to sleep on, adequate meals, the ability to bathe. The lawsuit asserts a constitutional challenge to the horrific and unlawful conditions in which ICE is detaining individuals at the facility.
Miller v. City of New York
Obtained a $53 million settlement on behalf of a class of pre-trial detainees and parolees who claim that the New York City Department of Correction purposefully evaded limitations on the use of solitary confinement by placing inmates in unlawful stealth restrictive housing facilities.
Casey Esparza v. City of New York
Representing cyclists in NYC in class action challenging the NYPD’s systematic illegal ticketing and prosecution of cyclists. The law has been clear in NYC since 2019 that that riders may cycle across intersections with advance pedestrian signals even while a traffic light is red, the NYPD has continued to stop, detain, and ticket cyclists who are following the law.
Seabrook v. City of New York
Representing a class of people claiming that the New York City Department of Correction violated their constitutional rights by continuing to detain them unlawfully in excess of their maximum sentences.
Parker v. City of New York
Obtained more than $5 million in damages for a class of Rikers Island detainees who claimed that their placement in solitary confinement violated their right to due process.
T.F. v. Hennepin County
Represented foster children and pre-custodial children who are the subject of reports of abuse and neglect in an injunctive class action alleging that the child welfare system in Minneapolis, Minnesota is constitutionally deficient.
In re Elite Private Schools
Obtained millions of dollars for more than 50 clients who were adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse at various elite, private elementary and high schools throughout the country, and assisted many of those clients in connection with law enforcement investigations of the abuse.
Wang Hecker LLP has a leading election law practice. We have represented the New York Senate Democrats in a range of matters, and we served as part of a coalition of law firms representing the Democratic State Attorneys General in connection with the 2020 election.
2020 Presidential Election
Served on national team of lawyers advising a coalition of progressive state Attorneys General on federal constitutional and state law issues regarding election administration, ballot canvassing and counting, recounts, certification, and election contests.
Redistricting Litigation
Served as lead counsel in New York’s 2022 redistricting litigation, representing the New York Senate in defense of the Congressional, Senate, and Assembly district lines that were enacted following the release of the results of the 2020 Census.
Hurley/Jastrzemski v. State of New York
Represented the New York Senate and Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart Cousins in a case claiming that it is unconstitutional for the New York State Public Campaign Finance Commission to create laws altering so-called “fusion voting,” which allows candidates to run for office on multiple party lines.
Guzman v. Westchester County
Represented Westchester County and successfully resolved challenge to 2022 redistricting plan for the Westchester County Board of Legislators.
We regularly represent workers in a variety contexts, asserting claims against companies and individuals who fail to pay the minimum wage, required overtime premiums, or violate New York City’s Fair Workweek Law.
Perdomo v. Uber Technologies
Obtained a landmark arbitration award ruling that Uber violated New York City’s food delivery worker Minimum Pay Statute by failing to begin to pay its delivery workers the required minimum hourly wage promptly after the law took effect.
Kimble v. FGNY
Representing a putative class of restaurant workers claiming that various Five Guys restaurant locations in New York City failed to comply with advance scheduling, shift change, and other requirement of New York City’s Fair Workweek Law.
Cui v. Yes Car Service, Inc.
Represented nine former drivers of livery car service in action seeking compensation for unpaid overtime and minimum wages and for other violations of the New York Labor Law.
Carrera v. JG General Welding
Successfully represented group of immigrant construction workers in collective action obtaining unpaid wages and overtime under Fair Labor Standards Act.
We have represented individuals and organizations in a variety of contexts defending First Amendment rights to free speech and expression and to protest peacefully.
Unlawful Conditions at ICE Detention Center at 26 Federal Plaza in Manhattan
Representing putative class of immigrants detained at ICE detention center at 26 Federal Plaza for days without access to counsel, beds, showers, or adequate meals or hygiene products. The lawsuit asserts a First Amendment challenge to the denial of access to counsel, as well as other constitutional challenges to the horrific conditions of confinement.
Curtis v. City of Kingston
Successfully represented bookseller in First Amendment challenge to permit requirements for street vending, resulting in injunctive relief and amendments to the the city’s laws.
Defending the American Association of University Professors Against “SLAPP” Suit Brought to Punish Protected Speech
Together with the American Civil Liberties Union Foundation, we represent the Columbia University chapter of the American Association of University Professors (“Columbia-AAUP”), who are defendants in the lawsuit Doe v. Alwan. During student protests at Columbia in April 2024, Columbia-AAUP made statements supporting the right of students to protest and criticizing the university’s punitive response to the protests. Two months later, five current and former Columbia students sued Columbia-AAUP for making those and similar statements. Wang Hecker LLP and the ACLU filed a motion to dismiss under New York’s “anti-SLAPP” statute, arguing that the case is a “Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation,” or “SLAPP,” that weaponizes our legal system and seeks to punish protected speech by making meritless legal claims.
El Sayad v. City of New York
Successfully represented individual who was assaulted and arrested by the NYPD for participating in a peaceful Gaza solidarity protest in Brooklyn.
