Alice E. DeTora

Of Counsel

  • Overview

    Biography

    Alice DeTora is a member of the Labor, Employment, Benefits + Immigration Group and focuses her practice on employer counseling in all areas of employment relations law, including discharge and discrimination issues, personnel policies, immigration, workplace health and safety, and wage and hour issues. She represents a wide array of employers, ranging from Fortune 100 and Global 500 Companies to nonprofit health care organizations and educational institutions to manufacturers, with a focus on compliance and training. Alice regularly counsels boards of directors and senior management with respect to sensitive executive personnel issues, such as sexual harassment, misappropriation of funds, and drug dependency. In addition, she provides counseling on and negotiation of separation agreements for high-risk employee terminations.

    Alice also represents employers in related administrative proceedings before federal and state agencies. She is a frequent speaker before business and law groups on employment law issues. In addition, she provides management training on a wide variety of topics, including sexual harassment, hiring and firing techniques, immigration basics, I-9 compliance, and wage and hour laws. Alice has been listed in The Best Lawyers in America© in the area of Labor Law - Management since 2006. She has also been selected to the Connecticut Super Lawyers list from 2006 to 2018.

    Prior to joining Robinson+Cole, she served as a law clerk on the Connecticut Supreme Court.

  • Experience
    • Experience

      Experience

      • Counseled one of the 30 largest financial institutions and one of the five largest insurance companies in the United States with regard to post-acquisition I-9 compliance issues and provided guidance for self-audit.

      • Assisted multinational software services company in staffing their new U.S. offices by successfully obtaining H-1B and L-1 status for their vice president and a team of computer professionals.

      • Provided immigration training to human resources professionals, recruiters, executives and managers, business owners, and in-house counsel for a variety of clients and business organizations, including Fortune 100 and Global 500 companies and one of the world's largest chemical and pharmaceutical companies.
      • Enabled biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies, educational institutions, and hospitals in the retention of valuable key scientists, researchers, chemists, professors, and physicians by obtaining both temporary and permanent immigration status.

      • Negotiated with the state Department of Labor on behalf of a national jewelry store chain a settlement of a back-pay and civil penalties assessment to less than one half of the amount of the original assessment.
      • Secured the dismissal of a workers’ compensation retaliation claim against a 160-bed acute care hospital based on the hospital’s neutral absence policy.
      • Provided training to over 50 managers and supervisors of a German-based manufacturer of state-of-the-art fabricating machinery on issues relating to hiring, firing, evaluations, and discipline.
      • Obtained the dismissal of a Connecticut Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities/Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (CHRO/EEOC) discrimination charge based on gender, pregnancy, and familial status brought against an international financial services company that terminated the employee because of her inappropriate use of the e-mail system.
      • Counseled a large hospital in employee benefits matters regarding its acquisition of another hospital in an integrated transaction.
      • Served as outside employee benefits counsel to a tax-exempt community hospital, providing advice on its employee benefit plans, including its health and welfare arrangements and retirement programs.
      • Representation as general outside counsel for approximately 20 years to a statewide association of cities and towns. Representation includes matters regarding litigation, contracts, insurance, employment, the secretary of the state’s procurement of voting machines under the Help America Vote Act, and the replacement of lever voting machines throughout Connecticut.
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    • Professional Associations

      Professional Associations

      Connecticut Bar Association
      Labor and Employment Law Section (1990 - present)

      Connecticut Business & Industry Association (1995 - present)

      Connecticut Immigration Lawyers Association (1988 - present)

      American Bar Association
      Section of Labor and Employment Law (1990 - present)

      American Immigration Lawyers Association (1988 - present)
    • Honors + Awards

      Honors + Awards

      Selected to the Top 25 Women Connecticut Super Lawyers list in 2015 and 2016.

      Selected to the Connecticut Super Lawyers list from 2006 to 2018.

      Selected by her peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America© in the areas of Labor Law-Management since 2006 and Employment Law-Management since 2011.

      Connecticut Law Tribune, 2010, recognized in Women in the Law: High Achievers yearbook

      Ranked in Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business in the State of Connecticut in the area of Labor & Employment from 2014 to 2019.

  • NEWS + PRESS
    • Presentations

      Presentations

      "How to Improve Working Relationships between Plaintiff Bars and Defense Bars," panel discussion presented by Connecticut Employment Lawyers Association (3/21/2012)

      "Social Media in the Workplace - What to Consider to Protect Your Company," co-presented with Britt-Marie K. Cole-Johnson and Nicole A. Bernabo, webinar (3/30/2011)

      "Connecticut Recent Developments in Employment 2007," moderator at the Council on Education in Management (5/16 and 5/17/2007)

      "Immigration Issues and Compliance," at Connecticut Business & Industry Association (9/22/2006)

      "Employer Best Practices," at U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission Technical Assistance Program Seminar (9/22/2006)

      "Reviewing HR Policies for Pandemics & Other Emergencies," at Connecticut Business & Industry Association, Manufacturers Advisory Council (9/14/2006)

      "Avian Influenza and Business Continuity Planning," at Connecticut Business & Industry Association (8/16/2006)

      "Working Effectively with Your Employees: Identifying and Managing Risks," at Strategic Legal Thinking for Not-for-Profit Executives, sponsored by Pfizer Inc., United Way of Tri-State, and United Way of Southeastern Connecticut (9/20/2005)

      "Preventing Mismanagement and Improper Denial of Intermittent and Reduced Schedule Leave," at "Connecticut FMLA Update 2005," sponsored by the Council on Education in Management (5/24/2005)

      "E-Discovery, Litigation Holds and Best Practices," at "Tour of the Electronic Workplace, Business Environment and Litigation Protocols," an executive roundtable (5/11/2005)

      "Sexual Harassment Prevention: Manager Training," at Connecticut Business & Industry Association (1/2001)

      "The Non-Violent Workplace: State-of-the-Art Screen of Potentially Dangerous People," at Personnel Law Update 1996, sponsored by the Council on Education in Management (5/1996)

      "Minimizing the Risk of Employee Lawsuits," at Independent Connecticut Petroleum Association (5/1996)

      "The Hostile Environment ‹ Sexual Harassment and Gender-Based Discrimination," at Employment Regulation in Connecticut Seminar, sponsored by the Institute of Business Law (3/1996)

      "Sexual Harassment Blackmail," at Personnel Law Update 1995, sponsored by the Council on Education in Management (11/1995)

      "Substance Abuse in the Workplace," at Mid-Fairfield Substance Abuse Seminar (11/1995)

      "Employment Regulations in Connecticut," at Institute of Business Law, co-conference chair (4/1995)

      "Limits to Language in the Workplace: Free Speech, Harassment, English-Only Rules, and More," at Personnel Law Update 1994, sponsored by the Council on Education in Management (10/1994)

      "Wage and Hour Issues," at Checkmates, Inc. seminar (9/1994)

      "AIDS and HIV-Related Records," at Confidentiality of Medical Records Seminar sponsored by Medical Educational Services (1/1993)

    • News

      R+C in the News

      • October 18, 2018

        51 Robinson+Cole Lawyers Recognized by Super Lawyers®

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      • August 20, 2018

        52 Robinson+Cole Lawyers Listed in The Best Lawyers in America© 2019

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      • May 8, 2018

        Chambers USA Recognizes Robinson+Cole Lawyers and Practice Groups

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      • May 11, 2016

        Robinson+Cole Women Lawyers Listed in Best Lawyers Spring Business Edition

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      • April 11, 2012

        Employment Law Partner on Connecticut Employment Lawyers Association Panel Discussion

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      • April 11, 2011

        Labor and Employment Attorneys Address Social Media in the Workplace

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      • September 10, 2010

        Women in the Law and in the News

      • August 26, 2010

        Reflecting on Workplace Safety Procedures

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      R+C News Releases

      • August 18, 2022

        74 Robinson+Cole Lawyers Listed in The Best Lawyers in America 2023

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      • August 19, 2021

        65 Robinson+Cole Lawyers Listed in The Best Lawyers in America© 2022

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      • August 20, 2020

        61 Robinson+Cole Lawyers Listed in The Best Lawyers in America© 2021

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      • August 15, 2019

        57 Robinson+Cole Lawyers Listed in The Best Lawyers in America© 2020

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      • October 17, 2017

        Robinson+Cole Lawyers Recognized by Super Lawyers®

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      • August 15, 2017

        Fifty-Nine Robinson+Cole Lawyers Listed in The Best Lawyers in America© 2018

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      • May 26, 2017

        Chambers USA Recognizes Robinson+Cole Lawyers and Practice Groups

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      • October 18, 2016

        Robinson+Cole Lawyers Recognized by Super Lawyers®

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      • August 15, 2016

        Robinson+Cole Receives Top Listing in Connecticut Lawyer Count in The Best Lawyers in America® 2017

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      • May 27, 2016

        Chambers USA Recognizes Robinson+Cole Lawyers and Practice Groups

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      • October 19, 2015

        Robinson+Cole Lawyers Recognized by Super Lawyers®

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      • August 18, 2015

        Robinson+Cole Receives Top Listing in Connecticut Lawyer Count in The Best Lawyers in America® 2016

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      • May 19, 2015

        Robinson+Cole Earns Six Practice Area Rankings in Chambers USA 2015

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      • October 17, 2014

        Robinson+Cole Lawyers Recognized by Super Lawyers

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      • August 19, 2014

        Robinson+Cole Receives Top Listing in Connecticut Lawyer Count in Best Lawyers National Peer Review Survey

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      • May 29, 2014

        Robinson+Cole Earns Rankings in Chambers USA 2014 in all Connecticut Practice Areas

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      • August 16, 2013

        Robinson & Cole Receives Top Listing in Connecticut Attorney Count in Best Lawyers National Peer Review Survey

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      • October 22, 2012

        Super Lawyers® Names 49 Robinson & Cole Attorneys to 2012 List and Recognizes 26 as Rising Stars

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      • August 28, 2012

        Robinson & Cole Receives Top Listing in Connecticut Attorney Count in Best Lawyers National Peer Review Survey

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      • September 12, 2011

        Robinson & Cole Receives Top Listing in Connecticut Attorney Count in Best Lawyers National Peer Review Survey

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