Danielle M. Dwyer
Senior Associate
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Phone: +1 215 979 1878
- Duane Morris LLP
30 South 17th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103-4196
USA
Danielle M. Dwyer is a well-versed management-side employment attorney who helps organizations navigate complex workplace challenges with practical, business-focused solutions. She advises clients across a wide range of industries including staffing, technology, healthcare, gaming, non-profits, education, manufacturing, food service, telecommunications, pharmaceuticals, and more on discrimination and harassment prevention, leave and disability management, wage and hour compliance, workforce restructuring, and sensitive internal investigations. Danielle also drafts and implements employment policies, employee handbooks, severance and employment agreements, arbitration agreements, and restrictive covenants, ensuring organizations are legally compliant and strategically sound. She partners closely with leadership and HR teams to address issues before they escalate, providing guidance that balances legal exposure with business objectives.
A skilled litigator, Danielle represents employers in federal and state court and before administrative agencies, handling claims involving discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wrongful termination, disability, medical leave, wage and hour, and breach of contract. She manages all phases of employment litigation, from factual investigations to discovery, motion practice, and trial strategy. Her courtroom experience—including arguing before the Third Circuit and trying multiple federal jury trials resulting in full defense verdicts—strengthens her ability to provide proactive, risk-aware counsel.
Prior to private practice, Danielle clerked for the Honorable George S. Leone of the New Jersey Superior Court, Appellate Division. She is a graduate of Rutgers School of Law, where she served as Executive Editor of the Rutgers Law Review, and earned her Bachelor of Arts, with highest honors, from the Pennsylvania State University.
Areas of Practice
Employment and Labor Law
Admissions
- New Jersey
- Pennsylvania
- U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
- U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey
- U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
Education
- Rutgers Law School, J.D., 2014
- Executive Editor, Rutgers Law Review - The Pennsylvania State University, B.A., 2011
Experience
Duane Morris LLP
- Senior Associate, 2025-present
- Associate, 2018-2024Stevens & Lee PC
- Associate, 2015-2018New Jersey Superior Court, Appellate Division
- Law Clerk to the Hon. George S. Leone, 2014-2015
Honors and Awards
- Named to Best Lawyers "Ones to Watch," 2023-2025
No aspect of these rankings has been approved by the Supreme Court of New Jersey. Further information on methodologies is available via these links.
Professional Activities
- Editorial Board, The Legal Intelligencer Young Lawyer Board
Selected Publications
- Co-author, "Proposed Rules Provide Guidance on New Jersey Pay Transparency Law," Duane Morris Alert, October 24, 2025
- Co-author, "New Jersey Expands Law Restricting Employer Speech on Political and Labor Matters," Duane Morris Alert, September 12, 2025
- Co-author, "Reminder: The New Jersey Pay Transparency Act Compliance Deadline Is Fast Approaching," Duane Morris Alert, May 14, 2025
- Co-author, "How NJ Temp Equal Pay Survived A Constitutional Challenge," Law360, September 4, 2024
- Co-author, "New Jersey Employers Should Expect Increased Government Enforcement of Laws Affecting Workers' Rights," Duane Morris Alert, August 8, 2023
- Co-author, "Get Ready, New Jersey Employers - Changes to Unemployment Compensation Law Take Effect July 31," Duane Morris Alert, July 28, 2023
- Co-author, "Prepare Now To Comply With NJ Temp Worker Law," Law360, April 11, 2023
- Co-author, "New Jersey's Controversial Temporary Laborers' Bill of Rights Becomes Law," Duane Morris Alert, March 13, 2023
- Co-author, "How Marijuana Pardons Affect Employee Background Checks," Law360, February 01, 2023
- Co-author, "New Jersey Bill Seeks to Ax Non-Disparagement Provisions in Employment Agreements," Duane Morris Alert, October 11, 2022
- Co-author, "Lifting the Haze: New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission Issues Interim Guidance on Drug Testing," Duane Morris Alert, September 21, 2022
- Co-author, "Pennsylvania Supreme Court Holds That Employers Must Pay Employees Whenever They Are Required to Be on Premises," Duane Morris Alert, July 28, 2021
- Co-author, "New Jersey Employers Must Implement Mandatory COVID-19 Safety Protocols by November 5, 2020," Duane Morris Alert, October 30, 2020
- Co-author, "Philadelphia to Expand Emergency Sick Leave Benefits to More Workers," Duane Morris Alert, September 17, 2020
- Co-author, "New Jersey Governor Authorizes State Police to Commandeer Supplies, Property and Services from Private Entities," Duane Morris Alerts, April 6, 2020
- Co-author, "New Jersey Orders Citizens to Stay at Home Amid COVID-19 Pandemic," Duane Morris Alert, March 24, 2020
- Co-author, "New Jersey Expands Reach of Law Against Discrimination and Enforcement Powers," Duane Morris Alert, March 10, 2020
- Co-author, "Coronavirus and the Workplace: A Quick Reference Guide for Employers," Duane Morris Alert, March 5, 2020
- Co-author, "New Jersey Wage and Hour Resolutions for 2020 – Added Incentives for Compliance," Duane Morris Alert, January 16, 2020
Co-author, "New Jersey Introduces Employment Protections for Medical Marijuana Users," Duane Morris Alert, July 22, 2019
Co-author, "EEOC Announces Employers Must Report 2017 and 2018 EEO-1 Pay Data by September 30," Duane Morris Alert, May 6, 2019
Co-author, "New Jersey Appellate Division Finds Employee Stated Viable Claim Against Employer for Failure to Accommodate Off-Duty Use of Medicinal Marijuana," Duane Morris Alert, May 1, 2019
Co-author, "United States Supreme Court Rules That Class Arbitration Must Be Expressly Authorized," Duane Morris Alert, April 29, 2019
Co-author, "Federal Court Reinstates EEO-1 Pay Data Reporting Requirement," Duane Morris Alert, March 12, 2019
Selected Speaking Engagements
- Speaker, "Misclassification Nation: Understanding Independent Contractor Classifications in 2025," Duane Morris Institute (DMi), Webinar, October 23, 2025
- Speaker, "Lifting the Haze for New Jersey Employers Based on the Cannabis Regulatory Commission’s Guidance on Drug Testing Employees," Duane Morris Institute (DMi), Webinar, December 13, 2022
- Speaker, "State Law Updates, Including COVID-19 Workplace Laws and Regulations," The New Reality of Workplace Law and Practice in the COVID-19 Era, Duane Morris LLP, Webinar, November 12, 2020
Co-presenter, "You've Been Served – What Now? Strategies for Analyzing and Responding to Employment Discrimination Complaints," Celesq AttorneysEd Center, September 19, 2019
Speaker, "Nipping Retaliation Claims in the Bud," Duane Morris' Developments in Workplace Law and Practice, Philadelphia, May 7, 2019
Media Hits
- Quoted, "NJ Equal Pay Law For Temps Caught In the Crosshairs," Law360, July 15, 2025
- Quoted, “Proposal Would Allow Cannabis Users to Attain Federal Jobs, Security Clearance,” SHRM, August 14, 2023
Representative Matters
Represented WellSpan Health in its acquisition of Evangelical Community Hospital, expanding WellSpan’s network of care across 12 counties in Central Pennsylvania and Northern Maryland.
Represented Adare Pharmaceuticals, a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company, in its acquisition of pharmaceutical technology company Orbis Biosciences.
Performed international trade-related due diligence pertaining to the successful sale of a U.S. aerospace and defense subcontractor.
Motion to dismiss granted for manufacturer in disability discrimination lawsuit (U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Ga.).
Represented provider of industrial services and engineered products in "bet the company" litigation asserting that a former executive competed with the company before and after his departure and founding of a new competitor, thereby breaching agreements and his fiduciary duty/duty of loyalty, misappropriating trade secrets, infringing trade dress and copyright, and engaging in unfair competition.