Ralph was selected by his peers for inclusion in the 2008 edition of Best Lawyers in America® in the specialties of labor and employment law. Inclusion in Best Lawyers® is regarded, by both the legal profession and the public, as the highest form of professional accolade.
Also, in 2008, for the fourth consecutive year of the survey, New Jersey Monthly, selected Ralph as a New Jersey Super Lawyer® in the field of Employment Litigation.
From 2000 to 2006, Ralph was a commentator for Court TV analyzing criminal trials for Open Court and Both Sides in the New York City studio and on trial site. His articles on legal topics have been published in New Jersey Lawyer and Hudson Headnotes.
As a result of his legal proficiency and judgment, Ralph currently holds appointments as Special Counsel for the County of Bergen, the County of Hudson, the City of Newark, the Township of North Bergen, the City of Paterson and the Town of Secaucus. Previously the Corporation counsel for the Town of Kearny for 1997 and 1998, he presently serves as Assistant Counsel for the Passaic Valley Sewerage Commissioners, which includes 48 member and contributing municipalities from four different counties.
In the burgeoning field of employment discrimination, Ralph has provided anti-discrimination training to all supervisors of the City of Jersey City and to the Passaic Valley Sewerage Commissioners. He is a contributing co-author to the book, Academic and Workplace Sexual Harassment, Praeger Publishers, Westport, CT. (2003)
Ralph was a member of the New Jersey Supreme Court Civil Practice Committee from 2004 to 2008, which is a standing committee of the Supreme Court responsible for recommendations regarding civil rules and procedures. He has previously served on the New Jersey Supreme Court Committee on Model Civil Jury Charges and was the chair of the Supreme Court District Fee Arbitration Committee, Hudson County. Since 1999, he has been appointed as a civil arbitrator for the Superior Court of New Jersey and is qualified as a mediator under New Jersey Court Rule 1:40.
Ralph is Corporation Counsel to the North Hudson Regional Fire and Rescue, the largest regional fire department in the State of New Jersey, comprised of five municipalities in Hudson County. In conjunction with other members of the firm, he authored the Joint Meeting Agreement that serves as the blueprint for the regional entity and as a model for the State of New Jersey for regional public entities.
In May 2008, Ralph made history when he became the first Hudson County attorney to become an officer of the New Jersey State Bar Association in 34 years when he was appointed Secretary. He is now on track to assume the office of President of the State Bar Association in 2013. Ralph, a member of the State Bar Association since 1989, chaired the group’s Judicial and Prosecutorial Appointments Committee from 2007-2008.
In June 2003, he was appointed as a trustee of the New Jersey State Bar Foundation, an organization dedicated to promoting law-related education and giving all New Jersey residents a basic understanding of the legal system.
As a lecturer for the New Jersey Institute of Continuing Legal Education on both criminal and civil issues and as a Master of the Hudson Inn of Court, Ralph shares with his brother and sister lawyers a wealth of legal insight garnered from 25 years of practice. He was introduced into trial practice as an Assistant Prosecutor in the Office of the Hudson County Prosecutor, specializing in “career criminal prosecutions.” Thereafter, he joined the Office of the Attorney General for the State of New Jersey, serving as a Deputy Attorney General in the division of Criminal Justice, assigned to white-collar prosecutions. He was a founding partner of the law firm of Olivieri & Lamparello prior to joining Chasan Leyner in 1989.
Education
College of Holy Cross, BA 1974 Phi Beta Kappa
St. John's University School of Law, JD 1977
Admitted
to Practice
New Jersey
New York
United States District Court for the District of New Jersey
United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
United States District Court for the Eastern
District of New York
United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
United States Supreme Court
Certification
Certified as a Civil Trial Attorney by the Supreme Court
of New Jersey, 1993, 2000, 2005
Certified as a Criminal Trial Attorney by the Supreme Court
of New Jersey, 1985, 1992, 1999
Memberships
American Bar Association, Litigation Section
New Jersey State Bar Association, Secretary
The Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers of New Jersey
Association of the Federal Bar of the State of New Jersey
Association of Trial Lawyers of America - New Jersey
Hudson County Bar Association, Past President
New Jersey League of Municipalities, Institute of Municipal Attorneys
New Jersey State Bar Association Foundation, Trustee
New York State Bar Association
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