Mr. Torchia is a managing member of Semanoff Ormsby Greenberg & Torchia, LLC, and chairs the firm’s employment law and commercial litigation section. In addition to counseling his corporate clients on employment law topics, Mr. Torchia acts as Pennsylvania employment counsel for several large national corporations. He has successfully established a workplace investigations practice and is routinely hired by other law firms to serve as an independent third-party investigator of a variety of employment-related claims and as an expert witness in the area of workplace investigations. He lectures extensively on various employment law topics and continues to serve as course planner and moderator for many PBI seminars, including the annual Employment Law Institute (at which he has, and will again, present the annual “Year in Review” initial session). Mr. Torchia successfully defended Spierling v. First American Home Health Services, Inc., which has proved to be an important decision in Pennsylvania defining the public policy exception of at-will employment, and Socko v. Mid-Atlantic Systems of CPA, Inc., in which he argued in the Pennsylvania Supreme Court regarding the issue of consideration for noncompetition agreements for current employees. He has been named a Leader in the Law by Philadelphia Business Journal in both employment law and litigation and was selected as a Pennsylvania Super Lawyer® by Philadelphia Magazine every year since 2008. Mr. Torchia is the former chair of the Montgomery Bar Association Employment and Labor Law Committee. 

Julie Merritt Pacaro, Esq. is a member of the law firm of Semanoff Ormsby Greenberg & Torchia, LLC.  She is an employment lawyer with more than 30 years’ experience and is admitted to the state bars of Pennsylvania and New Jersey and to the federal bars of the 3rd Circuit; the Eastern, Middle, and Western Districts of Pennsylvania; and the District of New Jersey.  She received her B.A. in Philosophy, cum laude, from Cornell University in 1988 and her J.D., magna cum laude, from Pace University School of Law in 1994. Ms. Pacaro routinely defends employers in litigation pending in federal and state court as well as before the EEOC, PHRC, PCHR, NJDCR, DOL, OSHA, and other government agencies. She also regularly provides business owners, managers, and human resource professionals with legal counsel in all aspects of employment law, including matters relating to workplace harassment, discrimination, and retaliation; wage and hour law, FMLA, OSHA, and I-9 compliance; whistleblower claims; and all other aspects of legal compliance that come into play in the employment life cycle, to help ensure her clients proactively manage their risks, respond to situations, and comply with the law.   Additionally, Ms. Pacaro offers training on harassment, discrimination, and retaliation, and conducts workplace investigations to address claims of unlawful harassment, and OSHA concerns.

Ms. Kindig is a member of Cozen O’Connor in Philadelphia. She represents public and private employers in a broad range of employment-related disputes, including cases involving discrimination, harassment, and retaliation. She regularly represents employers in collective bargaining negotiations and grievance and interest arbitrations; and in proceedings before federal and state agencies, including the National Labor Relations Board, Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board, U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission. She also works closely with clients to ensure they remain in compliance with various employment and labor laws, including the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), the Labor Management Relations Act (LMRA) and Title VII. She advises clients on hiring, firing, and disciplinary practices, as well as restrictive covenant matters; and has experience with collective action litigation under the FLSA and Age Discrimination Employment Act (ADEA)—primarily defending employers in employment litigation, including disputes involving race, sex, and age discrimination, and sexual harassment. An accomplished public speaker who also publishes regularly on a range of Labor & Employment topics, Ms. Kindig’s pro-bono activities includes working with the Philadelphia Homeless Advocacy Project, representing claimants applying for Social Security benefits in administrative proceedings before the Social Security Administration. She also serves as secretary on the board of trustees for the Pennsylvania School for the Deaf and is a trustee of the Boyertown Community Library. Ms. Kindig earned her J.D. at the Villanova University School of Law and her B.A. at Ursinus College. 

Mr. O’Meara is a shareholder in the Philadelphia office of Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart, P.C. He is a Senior Fellow at the Wharton School, and is Managing Director of the Wharton School Council on Employee Relations. Mr. O’Meara is the author of a series of articles and books, including O’Meara, Employment Arbitration (Matthew Bender/Lexis 2007) and Arbitration of Employment Disputes (University of Pennsylvania 2002). Mr. O’Meara holds an MBA from the Wharton School, a JD from the University of Pennsylvania Law School, and was on the University of Pennsylvania Law Review.

Mr. Cavalier is a member of Jackson Lewis P.C. in Philadelphia. He focuses his practice on ERISA class action and single plaintiff litigation, prosecuting and defending actions involving noncompetition agreements, restrictive covenants and trade secrets, and defending employers from claims of discrimination in state and federal court. Mr. Cavalier also has extensive experience resolving electronic discovery disputes and advising clients on how to best prepare their systems for e-discovery before litigation arises. He has substantial trial experience, including experience as first-chair jury trial counsel, and had significant involvement in several jury and bench trials in state and federal court and in arbitrations, including experience as lead counsel in both settings. Mr. Cavalier earned his B.A. from St. Joseph’s University, an MBA from Temple University’s Fox School of Business and his J.D., cum laude, from Temple University Beasley School of Law, where he was a member of the Moot Court Honor Society, served as a teaching assistant for legal research and writing, and co-founded the business law society.

Mr. Pasek is a member of Cozen O’Connor, working out of the firm’s offices in Philadelphia and New York. He concentrates in representing management in all facets of labor and employment law and also represents senior executives in their employment matters. He graduated from the University of Pennsylvania Law School in 1976 and received his B.A., magna cum laude, in 1973 from the University of Pittsburgh. He is active in the Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry, where he serves as a member of the Executive Committee of the Board of Directors. Mr. Pasek is called upon to lecture frequently to business groups and continuing legal education programs. Since 2009, Mr. Pasek has edited the Pennsylvania and New York editions of the American Chamber of Commerce Resources’ Human Resources Manual. He is the co-author of “An Obama Administration’s Impact on Labor and Employment Issues,” International Review of Employment (Dec.08/Jan.09) (with K. Johnson and A. Rolfes), “Sexual Harassment in American Law,” Journal of China Women’s University © 2008 (with A. Lerner and J. Lu), and numerous other articles. He has contributed as a chapter editor or monitor since 2002 to the Lindemann & Grossman text, Employment Discrimination Law, as part of the American Bar Association Labor and Employment Section Committee on Equal Employment Opportunity Law. Mr. Pasek is admitted to practice in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York, and has tried cases and argued appeals in the federal courts throughout the United States, including before the United States Supreme Court. He is past chair of the Labor and Employment Law practice group at Cozen O’ Connor, which is headquartered in Philadelphia and has offices in 25 cities throughout the United States and in London, Toronto and Vancouver. Mr. Pasek is an elected Fellow of the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers.

Mr. Stief is managing partner of the Philadelphia office and national chair of the restrictive covenant and trade secrets practice of Fisher Phillips, a national management-side employment law firm. Mr. Stief’s practice includes litigating and advising companies on issues relating to covenants not to compete, non-solicitation and non-disclosure agreements, unfair competition, employee raiding and team moves, trade secrets, duty of loyalty, the U.S. Defend Trade Secrets, the U.S. Computer Fraud & Abuse Act, and various state trade secrets and unfair competition statutes. He has a particular focus on advising and providing representation on restrictive covenant issues for companies that have a multistate or multinational workforce, and a consequent need to interpret and account for the varying laws of diverse jurisdictions. There are four main components to Mr. Stief’s practice: (1) he drafts and helps companies implement restrictive covenants and confidentiality programs designed to protect a company’s competitive assets; (2) he engages in strategic planning and risk assessment with companies about prospective recruiting, advising about how to assess and minimize the risks of hiring from competitors; (3) he litigates restrictive covenant, trade secrets and raiding/team move cases, and has done so in more than 45 states, Washington D.C., and Puerto Rico, in addition to handling international and cross-border disputes (including issues arising out of the E.U. Brussels Regulation (Recast) on Jurisdiction, Art. 25); and (4) he frequently intersects with mergers and acquisition activities, whether drafting and interpreting covenants embedded in purchase agreements, or advising and litigating around alleged “raids” of a workforce before or following an acquisition. Mr. Stief is “AV” Peer Review Rated by Martindale-Hubbell and is listed as a PA Notable Practitioner in Chambers USA. He is a past Co-Chair of both the Philadelphia Bar Association and Delaware County Bar Association Labor & Employment Law Committees, and was recently appointed to the Board of Directors of the International Employers Forum, a non-profit organization with chapters in the U.S. and Europe dedicated to providing education and networking opportunities for legal and human resources professionals whose organizations employ workers globally.

Mr. Murtagh is a Shareholder at Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney PC in Philadelphia. He understands how the practice of law can serve as an effective tool to advance business objectives. With clients in a variety of fields, including financial services, pharmaceuticals and life sciences and other service industries, his expertise includes commercial litigation and products liability, employment litigation, risk management and protection of trade secrets. He has represented clients in matters involving such issues as employee raiding and recruitment, privacy and theft of trade secrets, wrongful termination, constructive discharge, defamation, fraud, consumer protection and breach of contract. Mr. Murtagh drafts and negotiates employment agreements and handbooks, contracts and other documents. Senior executives also turn to Mr. Murtagh as a trusted advisor to provide counsel regarding departing a company or joining a new one. Mr. Murtagh has extensive experience with cases in arbitration and mediation, including FINRA, JAMS and AAA. He handles cases in state and federal courts and has won an appellate argument before the U.S. Supreme Court. Mr. Murtagh is uniquely positioned to help clients with the challenges posed by California law. After practicing for the last several years in both Philadelphia and San Diego, Mr. Murtagh is able to guide clients through the complexities of California-based laws and regulations that can impact businesses – and their bottom lines – across the United States. Although some of his clients are on the west coast, many of his clients are east coast companies with business interests in California. Mr. Murtagh received his A.B., cum laude, from the University of Georgia and his J.D., magna cum laude, from Cornell Law School.

Louis Cinquanto, ENCE Mr. Cinquanto is a former United States Air Force Captain and now Managing Director, Digital Forensic Examiner at Cornerstone Discovery — a dedicated and full-service litigation support firm with headquarters in Philadelphia. Upon retirement from the Air Force, Mr. Cinquanto cofounded Cornerstone Discovery in 2005. Today, the Company touts itself as a single-source solution for all comprehensive Criminal and Civil matters litigation support needs. Cornerstone Discovery specifically provides leading attorneys, law firms and investigators with access to a team of certified technical experts and experienced trial technicians that offer strategic consulting services, dedicated project management and innovative software solutions in Digital Forensics, E-Discovery, Litigation and Trial Support. Mr. Cinquanto is a Certified Digital Forensic Examiner (EnCE) responsible for the collection, preservation, and examination of electronic discovery in both Civil and Criminal matters both nationally and internationally. Admitted as an expert in United States Federal Courts (PA, NJ, KY) and State Courts (PA, DE), he provides expert witness testimony and e-discovery consultations to Attorneys, Law Firms, Federal/State courts, Federal/State agencies and the private sector, including Fortune 500 companies. He also manages and actively participates in the examination of hundreds of electronic devices including: servers, computers, laptops, mobile phones, tablets, iPads, flash drives, GPS and the IoTs. When he is not testifying in court or performing digital forensic examinations, he actively participates in CLE courses as a presenter on topics such as EDiscovery, Digital Forensics and Trial Technology. Mr. Cinquanto is also an adjunct professor at Temple University Beasley School of Law and lecturer at Widener Law School. His extensive expertise and compelling lecture style have him sought after by various panels and organizations; he has delivered presentations for The American Bar Association, Philadelphia Bar Institute, the University of Pennsylvania Law School and the Pennsylvania Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers.