Meet The Attorney
Ritha Pierre, Esq.
Ritha Pierre is a New York, and New Jersey–licensed attorney whose career has taken her from the Brooklyn courtroom to the C‑suite and union negotiating table. She began as an Assistant District Attorney in Kings County, where she tried domestic‑violence and elder‑abuse cases and learned the value of clear facts, fearless advocacy, and community trust. That investigative mindset carried her into labor and employment law at SEIU Local 32BJ, one of the largest service‑sector unions in the country. There, she championed the rights of more than 160,000 members, guiding contract negotiations and disciplinary matters across five states.
Eager to broaden her impact, Ritha moved into hospitality with Highgate Hotels, advising 35 unionized properties on everything from wage‑hour compliance to WARN‑Act layoffs and OSHA safety audits. Her ability to balance legal risk with operational realities soon drew her to the nonprofit world, where she has held multiple senior in‑house roles, including General Counsel, at an $82 million human‑services organization. In that capacity, she built the group’s first enterprise‑wide compliance program, led high‑stakes workplace investigations, and negotiated precedent‑setting collective‑bargaining concessions that saved hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Ritha pairs this depth of legal experience with a lifelong commitment to education and equity. She earned her J.D. from Fordham University School of Law, holds an M.S. in Bioethics from Columbia University, and graduated cum laude from St. John’s University with a B.A. in Government & Politics and a minor in Africana Studies. Ritha has served as President of the Haitian American Lawyers Association of New York and sits on several nonprofit boards dedicated to community empowerment.
Whether investigating a complex discrimination claim, drafting a mission‑critical contract, or guiding an organization through a sensitive workforce transition, Ritha’s goal is always the same: to deliver clear, pragmatic counsel that protects both people and purpose.