James J. McGovern III

Over more than three decades in practice, Mr. McGovern has represented employers in industries including healthcare, construction, transportation, manufacturing, hotels and hospitality, as well as alcohol, food and beverage. He has served as labor counsel to multiple New Jersey hospitals during sales and restructurings, advising on Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act issues, consolidation of bargaining units and facility closures. He also served as labor counsel to the State of New Jersey from 2002 to 2010, negotiating collective bargaining agreements covering more than 50,000 executive-branch employees and later playing a key role on the management team in subsequent statewide contract negotiations.

In the construction and real estate arena, Mr. McGovern has acted as labor counsel to major developers and property owners, negotiating project labor agreements with the building trades that allow large-scale projects to move forward on time and on budget. In the alcohol and regulated products space, he has advised breweries and other beverage companies on New Jersey Alcohol Beverage Control licensing, employment practices and related trademark and business issues.

Mr. McGovern is also known for his public-sector labor and policy work. He frequently appears before state agencies and appellate courts on behalf of management, and he has shared his insights on union finance, public-sector bargaining and political spending as a quoted source in outlets such as Commercial Observer and the Center for Public Integrity, and as a speaker at Public Employment Relations Commission (PERC) labor-management conferences.

Mr. McGovern represented management in all types of labor and employment law. He has extensive experience representing clients in healthcare, hotels, construction, transportation manufacturing and other industries. In his Alcohol, Food & Beverage practice, Mr. McGovern advised multiple breweries in New Jersey on Alcohol and Beverage Control license issues, trademark disputes and employment issues.

Mr. James J. McGovern has moved to Of Counsel as of  2025. 

Specializations

Labor Law, Wage & Hour Compliance & Dispute Resolution, Alcohol & Regulated Products Law, Construction Law & Litigation, Health & Hospital Law,

Industries

Alcohol, Food & Beverage, Hotels & Restaurants, Construction & Engineering

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