Kathleen Peratis

Kathleen Peratis

  • Employment Law
  • New York
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Biography

KATHLEEN PERATIS is a partner at Outten & Golden LLP in New York. She has practiced employment law for over 25 years including employment contracts and separation agreements. At Outten & Golden, she chairs the Public Interest Committee and Sexual Harassment Practice Group and is a member of the Executives and Professionals Practice Group. At the ACLU from 1975 to 1979 as the director of the Women's Rights Project working with, (now) Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, she brought lawsuits successfully challenging as unconstitutional laws that discriminated against women on account of gender, including on account of pregnancy.

In one of those cases, the U.S. Supreme Court declared that pregnant women could not, on account of pregnancy alone, be deprived of unemployment compensation. In another, Ms. Peratis successfully represented a female midshipman who was being expelled for being in bed with a male colleague—while the male midshipman faced no punishment.

In private practice for the last thirty years, Ms. Peratis has continued to represent women and men who are entering or leaving executive or professional employment or are survivors of workplace discrimination and abuse. Her clients include people who are rising on the corporate and professional ladders as well as those who have lost promotions or jobs because of their race, religion, color, or LGBTQ status. Under Ms. Peratis’s leadership the Public Interest Committee at Outten & Golden has taken on the representation of people with workplace claims too small to be economically viable for most lawyers but too important to ignore.

Ms. Peratis authored a text book called Woman and the Law and is a contributor to Workplace Harassment, ed. Lindemann Kadue, BNA (2012); she has spoken and written on a wide range of issues or employment law. She was a regular columnist for The Jewish Daily Forward, with a column called "Only Human," from 2004 to 2010, writing about women's rights and human rights.

Practice Area
    Employment Law
    Employee Benefits, Employment Contracts, Employment Discrimination, ERISA, Overtime & Unpaid Wages, Sexual Harassment, Whistleblower, Wrongful Termination
Jurisdictions Admitted to Practice
New York
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Languages
  • English
Education
University of Southern California
J.D. (1969) | Law
University of Southern California Logo
Awards
500 Leading Plaintiff Employment Lawyers
Lawdragon
Super Lawyer 2008-2018
Super Lawyers
New York Metro Super Lawyers Top Women
Super Lawyers
New York Women Leaders in the Law (2013-2015)
New York Magazine
Tzedek v'Shalom (Justice and Peace)
J Street
New York Area's Best Lawyers
New York Magazine
A Woman of Valor
Jewish Fund for Justice
Distinguished Service
Human Rights Watch
Partner In Justice Award
MFY Legal Services
Medal of Honor
Veteran Feminists of America
Professional Associations
J Street
Co-founder
Current
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The Jewish Daily Forward
Member, Board of Directors
Current
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Human Rights Watch
Co-chair of the Middle East North Africa division
Current
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Human Rights Watch
Emerita member, Board of Directors
Current
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Human Rights Watch
Founding chair, Women's Right division
Current
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State Bar of California  # 45747
Member
Current
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New York City Bar Association
Member, Civil Rights and Federal Legislation Committee
Current
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New Israel Fund
Board Member
- Current
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New York State Bar  # 1105642
Member
- Current
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New Israel Fund
Vice President in North America
-
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New York Civil Liberties Union
President
-
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Publications
Articles & Publications
Trump to Sexual Harassment Victim, "You're Fired!"
O&G Employment Law Blog
Why So Many Victims Of Sexual Harassment Stay Silent, Still
The Atlantic
Sexual Harassment Claims and the Tension of Maintaining Confidentiality While Seeking Support
O&G Employment Law Blog
After Anita Hill: What Has Changed About Sexual Harassment
O&G Employment Law Blog
Get Used To More Davids Becoming Dianes
The Forward
Our Kids And The Workplace
The Forward
No Ifs, Ands Or Butts
The Forward
Websites & Blogs
Website
Contact & Map
685 Third Avenue
25th Floor
New York, NY 10017
Telephone: (212) 245-1000
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