Jason focuses his practice on handling all aspects of labor and employment law for the firm's public and private-sector clients. He has handled and assisted with the resolution of numerous single-plaintiff discrimination claims, both in litigation and at the administrative level. Jason has represented clients in connection with collective bargaining negotiations. He has also handled whistleblower claims and workplace safety issues before OSHA. In addition, he recently assisted with a client's defense in a FINRA arbitration proceeding, in class/collective action matters brought under the Fair Labor Standards Act, and in the resolution of unfair labor practice complaints and representation petitions under the National Labor Relations Act. Jason also regularly provides employment advice to the firm's clients to help them avoid employment litigation altogether.
Jason earned his law degree, magna cum laude, from Rutgers University School of Law, where he was also a Governor's Executive Fellow at the Eagleton Institute. While in law school, Jason was a teaching assistant for federal evidence and represented Rutgers Law in the American Association of Justice Student Trial Advocacy Competition. Jason also served as Administrative Editor of the Rutgers Law Journal. Upon graduation from law school, Jason received the Student Advocacy Award from the International Academy of Trial Lawyers. Jason earned his bachelor's degree in political science and international affairs from The George Washington University in Washington, D.C.
During law school, Jason served as an intern for the Honorable Ann Marie Donio, U.S. Magistrate Judge for the District of New Jersey.
News
November 04, 2014
Sixteen Cozen O'Connor attorneys have been named to the First Judicial District of Pennsylvania's 2014 Pro Bono Roll of Honor. Each year, the pro bono committee of the First Judicial Court recognizes attorneys who have provided pro bono services to litigants in the Philadephia Courts. In order to be named to the Roll of Honor, an attorney must practice in Philadelphia County, must have provided services to a client in a case before the FJD, must not be employed by an organization whose primary purpose is the provision of free legal services to the underprivileged, and must have provided legal services with no expectation of receiving a fee.
Publications
January 06, 2016
The 2015/2016 Labor and Employment Observer looks back at significant developments in labor and employment law over the past year and forward to what employers can expect in 2016.
March 26, 2015
In a move that should remind all employers (whether unionized or non-unionized) to regularly review their employee handbooks, Richard F. Griffin, the General Counsel of the National Labor Relations Board (Board or NLRB), recently issued a memorandum addressing the kind of handbook language that could run afoul of the National Labor Relations Act.
February 02, 2015
In an article titled ''Complaints from Transgender Employees by the EEOC: How Can a Company Prepare & Respond?'' Jason Cabrera, an associate in Cozen O’Connor’s Labor & Employment Department, discusses how companies should prepare for and learn how to respond to Title VII claims from transgender employees given the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s recent enforcement actions in fall 2014.
December 31, 2014
The 2014/2015 Labor and Employment Observer looks back at significant developments in labor and employment law over the past year and forward to what employers can expect in 2015.
July 23, 2014
Continuing to use executive authority to act in the absence of Congressional action, President Obama signed an Executive Order on July 21, 2014 that gave new protections against discrimination to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) employees of federal contractors and subcontractors, and the federal government. (For the federal government, discrimination was already prohibited on the basis of sexual orientation and is now also prohibited on the basis of gender identity.) The new rules relating to federal contractors won’t be effective until additional regulations are issued in the next three to nine months, but the rules relating to employment by the federal government are effective immediately.
July 16, 2014
Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett gave final approval to two bills that drastically expand the scope and enforcement provisions of the Pennsylvania Whistleblower Law. Under the amendments, which take effect on August 31, 2014, employees of any business or nonprofit organization that receives public contracts or funding from the commonwealth or its subdivisions will now receive whistleblower protection.
July 02, 2014
The U.S. Supreme Court this week issued its long-awaited decision in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc., regarding the ability of for-profit corporations to refuse to abide by regulations that require them to provide cost-free contraception to their female employees. The Court ruled in favor of Hobby Lobby, holding that the regulations imposing the contraception mandate of the Affordable Care Act violated another federal law, the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA). Although the Court seemed to emphasize the limited nature of its holding, this case has broad implications for all corporations and all types of government regulations.
May 06, 2014
Michael Schmidt, vice chair of Cozen O’Connor’s Labor and Employment Department, and Jason A. Cabrera, associate in the Labor and Employment Department, co-authored an article for The Legal Intelligencer titled, “Restricted Covenants in the Internet Age.” The article discusses the impact of social media on restrictive convents.
March 17, 2014
In a White House ceremony on Thursday, March 13, 2014, President Barack Obama signed a memorandum ordering the Secretary of Labor to “propose revisions to modernize and streamline the existing overtime regulations” governing the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Although the president did not direct specific changes, he clearly stated that the goal of any regulatory changes would be to make more workers eligible for overtime pay under federal law. The president’s directive is
expected to lead to proposed rules that would require employers to pay overtime to millions of workers who are currently classified as exempt employees.
January 28, 2014
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie signed into law last week a bill that specifically adds pregnancy to the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (NJ LAD) and requires employers to offer reasonable accommodations to pregnant employees who request accommodation. The new law, which was passed unanimously by the state Senate and with just one dissenting vote in the state Assembly, makes several major changes to existing law. Employers should be mindful of this new law because it strengthens the already tough NJ LAD and goes farther than the federal Pregnancy Discrimination Act.
January 01, 2014
We are pleased to provide you with our 2013/2014 Observer, which looks back at the developments in labor and employment law over the past year and forward to what employers can expect in 2014.
September 12, 2013
New Jersey has joined a growing list of states enacting changes to their unemployment insurance laws to comply with an upcoming federal deadline. Starting October 22, 2013, New Jersey will refuse to relieve an employer’s account of charges for erroneous benefit payments if (1) the payments were made because the employer failed to timely respond to requests for information from the New Jersey Division of Labor and Workforce Development, and (2) the employer has a pattern of failing to respond to such requests.