Rebecca Pontikes - Boston Employment Lawyer Reviews & Ratings

Rebecca G. Pontikes represents employees in all phases of employmentlitigation, including trials, administrative proceedings, mediation,and appeals. Ms. Pontikes concentrates her litigation practice ondiscrimination, particularly gender and family responsibilitydiscrimination, violations of the Family and Medical Leave Act, publicaccommodation, sexual harassment, non-competition agreements, andunpaid wages and overtime.. Over her ten years ofpractice, Ms. Pontikes has developed a reputation for aggressivelyrepresenting her clients and obtaining demonstrable results. Pastclients include vice presidents of large corporations, attorneys,police officers, teachers, college professors, and physicians. Herclients also include a deaf customer at a Wendy's restaurant whoattempted to use the drive thru and a student who was sexuallyassaulted while on a study abroad program. She filed lawsuits infederal court against the Wendy's restaurant chain for failing toaccommodate the deaf and hard of hearing at its drive thru, and againstthe non-profit study abroad organization for violations of Title IX. She obtained a favorable settlement for both clients.. Beforeresorting to litigation, Ms. Pontikes seeks creative solutions to herclients' problems by advising her clients on the formation ofemployment contracts, review of severance agreements, and review ofnon-competition agreements. For employers seeking to prevent futurelitigation, Ms. Pontikes offers advising services and counseling.. A graduate of the University of Michigan Law School in 1997 and of Tufts University, magna cum laude,in 1994. Ms. Pontikes was admitted to the Massachusetts bar inDecember, 1997 and to the Federal District of Massachusetts in March,1999. She was selected by her peers as a Rising Star for inclusion in the Super Lawyer by Boston Magazine in 2007 and as a Super Lawyer in 2004.. Ms. Pontikes is a frequent presenter at continuing legal education programs for area bar associations, including the Massachusetts Bar Association, the Boston Bar Association,the Women's Bar Association, the American Bar Association, the MCLE,and other employment law related committees. She co-wrote amicus briefs in Trustees of Health and Hospitals of the City of Boston v. Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination, 449 Mass. 675, (2007) and in Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority v. Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination, 450 Mass. 327 (2008).. Sheis also active in several area bar associations, particularly theWomen's Bar Association where she currently sits on the Board ofDirectors and co-chairs the Solo and Small Firm committee. She has alsoactively lobbied the state legislature through the WBA, particularlyfor employment related issues such as the extension of the statute oflimitations from 180 to 300 days and for the extension of unemploymentbenefits for women taking maternity leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act.. Sheis an active member of the Massachusetts Chapter of the NationalEmployment Lawyer's Association and in the past has sat on the Boardsof Directors of Deana's Fund, an organization devoted to educatingagainst dating violence through educational theater and the GreaterBoston Chapter of the National Organization for Women.. Shelives in Cambridge with her husband, an astrophysicist for theSmithsonian Institution. In her free time, she is a political activist,particularly for feminist causes, reads, watches movies, and writesletters to the editor. She and her husband enjoy traveling andexploring new places together. They have recently traveled to Greece,Crete, France, Italy, and Peru.