Zipporah Wielgus has been a practicing attorney for over twelve years. She is an arbitrator and mediator with experience resolving labor and employment disputes in the private and public sector. Zipporah has extensive experience in grievance and fact-finding arbitrations.

Prior to working as a neutral, Zipporah worked for the New York City Department of Education in multiple labor roles, including Executive Agency Counsel, Labor Support Attorney, and Agency Attorney. In those roles, Zipporah served as a hearing officer for disciplinary and contractual grievance hearings. She advised senior management on sophisticated contract interpretations and complex legal issues, and negotiated with her union counterparts to reach mutually agreeable resolutions. Zipporah represented school administration at arbitration hearings, including prosecuting tenured pedagogues for misconduct in accordance with Education Law § 3020-a. She also represented the New York City Department of Education in cases pending before the New York State Division of Human Rights. During her time at the Department of Education, Zipporah gained extensive experience and a deep understanding of labor and employment law, which aids her in successfully arbitrating and mediating labor and employment cases.

Zipporah began her legal career as an Assistant District Attorney at the Kings County District Attorney’s office, Domestic Violence Bureau where she investigated serious felonies including burglaries, rapes, and homicides. Over the course of her hundreds of investigations, Zipporah learned to effectively, efficiently, and reliably evaluate evidence. As a trial attorney, Zipporah learned to maintain control of a litigation, and balance authority with empathy. Zipporah now brings these skills to her role as a neutral to guarantee a fair and impartial hearing and mediation, where all parties can trust that their voices are being heard.

Zipporah is a graduate of Brooklyn College and Fordham University School of Law, where she was a merit scholarship recipient. Currently, she is a participant at the Scheinman Institute’s Labor Arbitrator Development Program, a division of Cornell University’s Industrial Labor Relations School. She is a member in good standing of the New York State Bar.

She can be reached at zipporah@wielguslaw.com.