Nancy J. Puleo

Partner and Labor, Employment & OSHA Practice Leader

Nancy serves as advisor, litigator, and labor & employment law compliance expert to her clients focused on the health care, manufacturing, technology, transportation & logistics and private equity/venture capitalist industries.

Nancy Puleo Portrait

Nancy is active in firm management. She previously served as Boston office vice-chair of the firm’s Pro Bono Committee and currently serves on the firm’s Compensation Committee, Reproductive Health Task Force, and as the practice group leader of the firm’s national Labor, Employment & OSHA Practice Group. 

Nancy advises executives, human resource professionals, and in-house counsel across a wide variety of industries, including health care, manufacturing, technology, transportation & logistics, and private equity/venture capitalists, on matters involving labor and employment law. For over twenty years, she has served as a trusted advisor to her clients, providing advice on employment issues tracking the life cycle of employees, including hiring & onboarding, performance management, investigations, wage and hour compliance, navigating leaves of absence and the reasonable accommodation process, and exit strategies. She partners with her clients to understand their risk tolerance and priorities and provides practical, business-minded advice.  

Nancy has in-depth knowledge of worker classification, discrimination, harassment and retaliation, pay equity and transparency, and restrictive covenants, including noncompetition, nondisclosure, and non-solicitation agreements. She has also conducted internal investigations of allegations of harassment, discrimination, and retaliation and other workplace misconduct, including those involving C-suite executives. Her practice includes representing management in traditional labor matters such as unionization campaigns and labor relations. When litigation cannot be avoided, Nancy litigates employment and labor disputes in arbitration, before administrative agencies, and in state and federal courts, again using a practical and results-oriented approach based on her deep understanding of her clients’ goals.

Client Work

  • Represented national employers in union organizing campaigns and collective bargaining agreement negotiations.
  • Successfully moved to dismiss federal court litigation alleging violations of the Family and Medical Leave Act.
  • Represented employers in wage & hour audits and investigations by the Massachusetts Office of the Attorney General, Fair Labor Division and U.S. Department of Labor.
  • Represented a national employer in “John Doe” litigation against a former employee who anonymously posted defamatory comments and disclosed confidential information on Twitter, including successfully identifying the former employee through discovery.
  • Defended employers in class action and collective action lawsuits arising out of the Massachusetts Wage Act and federal Fair Labor Standards Act.
  • Obtained numerous “lack of probable cause” findings in discrimination and retaliation claims pending before the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination, Connecticut Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities, New Hampshire Commission for Human Rights, and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
  • Successfully negotiated employment and severance agreements for executives at some of the country’s leading companies.
  • Represented employees and employers in restrictive covenant litigation.

Awards & Recognition

  • “Go To Lawyer: Employment Law,” Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, 2025 
  • Massachusetts Super Lawyer, 2017 – 2018
  • “Top Female Attorney in Massachusetts,” Super Lawyers, 2016
  • “Top Woman of Law,” Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, 2015
  • “Rising Star,” Massachusetts Super Lawyer, 2009 – 2015

Memberships

  • Boston Bar Association, Section on Labor and Employment
  • Read to a Child, Boston Regional Board of Directors, Member

In The News

Life Beyond the Law

Nancy is a foodie, animal lover (especially bulldogs), enjoys shoe shopping, true crime documentaries, and beaches near and far.

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