Sara E. DeStefano defends and counsels employers in various labor and employment matters, focusing on single-plaintiff discrimination, wage and hour litigation, counseling, and issues relating to accommodations and leaves. She represents employers and management in disputes such as those involving disability discrimination claims, including cases relating to COVID-19 vaccine mandates, alleged failures to accommodate, issues related to leaves of absence, and compliance with federal, state, and local labor and employment statues. Sara has litigated cases in state and federal courts, arbitration, and state/local agencies. Sara is fluent in Spanish.
Sara frequently advises clients on a wide variety of employment matters arising under numerous federal and local laws such as the Fair Labor Standards Act, Family and Medical Leave Act, Americans with Disabilities Act, New York Labor Law, New York State Human Rights Law, and New York City Human Rights Law. She represents employers in the retail, financial services, life sciences, and transportation industries.
While in law school, Sara served as an editor on the Virginia Law Review and as an articles editor on the Virginia Journal of Criminal Law. She co-directed the Immigration Law Program and Migrant Farmworker Pro Bono Project. Sara continues to work on matters relating to immigration as part of her pro bono practice.
Sara interned for Judge Sidney I. Schenkier in the Northern District of Illinois in the summer of 2017.
Before law school, Sara taught English on a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant grant in Lima, Peru.