Joseph Catuzzi is an experienced litigator and problem solver who represents public and private companies, governmental entities, and others in a full range array of complex commercial disputes, non-competition/non-solicitation matters, workplace investigations, and contentious land use disputes. Joe also has an active employment practice, representing employers in both counseling efforts and litigation. Through his varied practice, he regularly appears in federal and state courts, before private arbitrators and mediators, and before local, state and federal administrative agencies. Joe also serves as a designated liaison to Meritas, an international affiliation of law firms in 200 markets in the United States and worldwide.
While Joe’s experience spans a wide array of commercial and employment matters in a diverse range of industries, in each matter, Joe brings a practical and business-oriented approach to resolving disputes in a cost-effective manner. Joe’s commercial litigation experience includes a broad spectrum of matters, including complex commercial cases, fraud, ERISA, construction liability, professional liability, defamation, product claims, trusts and estates disputes, and bond and indemnity claims.
Joe has an active practice in employee departure matters, litigating non-competition, non-solicitation and confidentiality agreements, along with trade secret issues. He represents clients in both litigated and non-litigated matters involving the movement of employees between competitors, misappropriation of trade secrets, client solicitation, employee solicitation and hiring, and the drafting and negotiation of restrictive covenants. Clients call on Joe when their employees leave to form a competitive business, join a competitor, or solicit business, and also seek Joe’s counsel when hiring a competitor’s employees. When an employee moves to a competitor, Joe regularly advises the former employer on ways to protect its business interests with respect to its clients, employees and information. And when Joe represents the departing employee or the new employer, he provides step-by-step counsel to minimize the risks of litigation and to otherwise meet the clients’ business objectives. Joe’s employee
Joe’s employment practice also includes litigation of executive employment agreements, internal investigations (including employee theft and employee misconduct/harassment), employment discrimination matters and wage payment issues. He also regularly counsels employers on accommodation requests, workplace violence, internal complaints and grievances, employee theft, employee discipline and termination, drug testing, social media policies and trade secrets, and routinely drafts employee handbooks, various workplace policies, and other employment-related documents.
As a land use lawyer, Joe has extensive experience representing developers, owners, lenders, and sureties across a broad spectrum of real estate, zoning, land use, construction and surety matters. He has litigated contentious construction and zoning matters, bond claims, indemnity disputes and construction defect claims. Joe also appears before administrative agencies to obtain zoning relief, land development approvals, reductions in tax assessments, to address historic designation issues, and other issues that may arise during the construction process.
Joe served as a legal intern at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey and worked as a legal intern for the Hon. Eduardo C. Robreno of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. He also served as counsel and an advocate for the Clinic for Asylum Refugee & Emigrant Services.
Joe is proud to have represented clients in various pro bono matters, particularly cases involving civil and human rights.