John C. Petrella

John C. Petrella is a principal in the Berkeley Heights, New Jersey, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. and is an experienced labor, employment and commercial litigator at both the trial and appellate level. He concentrates his practice on representing management in all areas of labor and employment-related matters.

John has litigated numerous state and federal high-stakes multi-plaintiff cases involving all categories of discrimination, hostile work environment, restrictive covenants, theft of trade secrets, breach of employment contract, whistleblower, employment related torts, and retaliation claims.

John also represents private and public employers before the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, New Jersey Division on Civil Rights, New York Division of Human Rights and other federal, state and local fair employment practices agencies. He represents leading private employers in a wide range of industries, including technology, healthcare, automotive, construction, banking, insurance and telecommunications.

John also counsels clients on preventative measures to help avoid litigation, such as reductions in force, trade secrets, post-employment restrictive covenants, complex family leave issues as well as drafting employee guidelines, handbooks and best practices to resolve internal complaints of harassment and retaliation.

John frequently writes and lectures on employment law matters and is the co-editor of Business and Legal Resources' (BLR) New Jersey Employment Law Letter which serves as an HR and employment law resource helping employers understand new laws, regulations and court cases.

Honors and Recognitions

• The Best Lawyers in America©, “Employment Law – Management” (2011-present), “Labor Law – Management” (2011-present) and “Litigation – Labor and Employment” (2023-present)
• Chambers USA, “Labor & Employment” (2024)
• New Jersey Super Lawyers®, (2008-present)
• New York Magazine, “Best Lawyers for Labor and Employment Law” (2008-present)