Ward Greenberg’s Administrative and Regulatory Proceedings group represents corporations and not-for-profit organizations in administrative and regulatory matters involving a variety of federal, state, and local agencies. Experienced, confident, responsive, and well-prepared, we have an established record of successful agency negotiations, and highly positive outcomes in administrative hearings, regulatory reviews, audits, and resulting judicial proceedings.

Clients facing governmental red tape and potential loss of business opportunities rely on Ward Greenberg’s result-oriented approach and fluency in these increasingly pervasive environments. We work collaboratively with our client teams and external resources, such as governmental relations groups and communications experts, to develop a plan tailored to our clients’ particular business needs and circumstances. We have a proven history of excellent outcomes: reversal of unreasonable agency positions, negotiated workarounds, or judgments nullifying arbitrary agency actions.  

The “alphabet agencies” with which we most regularly interact include:

• Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS)
• Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)
• New Jersey Attorney General
• New Jersey Division on Civil Rights (DCR)
• New York City Commission of Human Rights
• New York State Office of the Attorney General (OAG)
• New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC)
• New York State Department of Education (NYSED)
• New York State Department of Health (DOH)
• New York State Department of Labor (DOL)
• New York State Department of Taxation and Finance
• New York State Division of Human Rights (DHR)
• New York State Office of Mental Health (OMH)
• New York State Public Service Commission (PSC)
• Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)
• Office of the Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services (OIG)
• Office for Civil Rights of the United States Department of Education (OCR)
• Office of Professional Medical Conduct (OPMC)
• Office of the Professions of the New York State Education Department
• Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General
• Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission (PHRC)
• Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations
• Provider Reimbursement Review Board of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (PRRB)
• United States Department of Education
• United States Department of Justice (DOJ)

Representative Experience

• Secured judgment annulling administrative determination that had refused to process amendment to certificate of incorporation reflecting entity name change. Catholic Health System of Long Island v. New York State Department of Education (Sup. Ct. Albany Cty).
• Obtained dismissal of lawsuit alleging violation of hospital’s obligation to maintain physician provider’s medical staff credentialing materials. Forman v. Mercy Medical Center (Sup. Ct. NY Cty).
• Represented provider of assisted living services in litigation challenging certain regulatory prohibitions, and subsequently assisting provider’s governmental relations team in discussions with agency leading to legislative resolution. Matter of Sunrise Assisted Living Management v. New York State Department of Health (Sup. Ct. Albany Cty).
• Represented nursing home providers during administrative proceedings, and in successful prosecution of subsequent litigation challenging geographic groupings for purposes of calculation of its Medicaid reimbursement rate. Matter of United Home for Aged Hebrews v. Department of Health (Sup. Ct. Westchester Cty.); Matter of Howe Avenue Nursing Home (Sup. Ct. Westchester Cty.).
• Secured writ of prohibition against governmental agency preventing agency from conducting unauthorized administrative hearing. Matter of A. Holly Patterson Home v. New York State Department of Health (Sup. Ct. Nassau Cty.)
• Provided both compliance counseling and litigation defense of claims asserted under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.
• Represented numerous institutions of higher learning in connection with complaints filed with the Office for Civil Rights of the United States Department of Education alleging unlawful discrimination based upon disability, race, ethnicity, religious affiliation, sex, and gender, including sexual violence claims under Title IX and so-called “reverse Title IX claims.”
• Assisted municipality in assessing and responding to dozens of administrative proceedings related to special assessments, and defended subsequent judicial proceedings under Article 7 of the Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law.
• Successfully defended nurse in multiple disciplinary hearings conducted by Department of Education’s Office of Professional Discipline, following death of patient in the Emergency Department, securing dismissal of all charges after hearing.
• Represented County official at hearings held before the Ethics Committee of the United States Senate.
• Represented residential apartment complex owner at administrative hearings following the drowning death of tenant.
• Regularly represent hospitals, nursing homes, and individual physician providers in connection with audits and administrative proceedings conducted by the Office of the Medicaid Inspector General, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, and contractors retained by those agencies.
• Defend manufacturers in various investigations conducted by, and proceedings held before, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration following incidents resulting in serious injury or death in the workplace.
• Regularly represent employers in proceedings before the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the State Division of Human Rights, and its local counterparts, arising from charges of discrimination, harassment, and retaliation.
• Regularly defend physicians and allied healthcare professionals in disciplinary proceedings held before the Office of Professional Medical Conduct and the Office of Professional Discipline.
• Represent hospitals and clinic providers in connection with investigations and related proceedings conducted by the Office for Mental Health.