Deena R. Merlen | New York Employment Lawyer

Deena R. Merlen is a Partner at the firm. She serves clients at both our New York and Stamford offices and heads the Connecticut practice. Her practice areas include intellectual property, employment and labor law, media and entertainment, general business law, commercial transactions and dispute resolution.

In her employment practice, Ms. Merlen is a trusted “go to” problem solver and counsel to individuals, established name brand companies and startups alike. She has extensive experience representing clients in matters including general counseling, discrimination actions, mediations and dispute resolution, investigations by federal or state agencies, as well as wage and hour claims and other labor law matters. She also advises on and regularly negotiates employment and separation agreements, independent contractor arrangements and other services-related arrangements. Ms. Merlen also counsels clients on employment and business matters in response to a crisis or other unexpected business impact, such as the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting business closures, including continuity plans, employee furloughs, reductions in force and other critical measures.

In her intellectual property practice, Ms. Merlen helps her clients with the development, acquisition and protection of their valuable brands and other vital intellectual property assets. She manages and grows trademark portfolios in the U.S. and internationally; negotiates licensing, assignment, distribution and branding agreements; prosecutes trademark and copyright registrations; enforces intellectual property rights; and provides strategic counsel to safeguard brand platforms and expand the value of her clients’ intellectual property assets.

Ms. Merlen’s media practice encompasses the development and protection of creative works in the fields of music, film, television, theatre, publishing, literary arts, performing arts, design and technology. She ran her own business in the entertainment industry for over a decade and brings that business experience and acumen to her legal practice.

In addition, Ms. Merlen provides general business counsel and represents clients in company and transactional matters such as partnerships, joint ventures, licensing arrangements, the purchase or sale of businesses, and a wide range of other corporate matters, including company formation, capitalization and governance, compliance and contracts. Representative clients include technology companies, schools and other academic institutions, personal care and beauty companies, fashion and design companies, media, arts and entertainment companies, wholesalers, retailers and more.

Prior to her work with RPJ, Ms. Merlen served as Law Clerk to The Honorable Roger J. Miner of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, after which she joined Debevoise & Plimpton, where she practiced for over five years in the areas of corporate law and intellectual property.

Ms. Merlen is admitted to practice in Connecticut and New York.

Position	Organization	Location	Duration
Partner	Reavis Page Jump LLP	New York, NY	Present

School	Degree	Major	Graduation
New York Law School	J.D.	Law School	1996
Oberlin College	Bachelors		1984

State / Court	Date
Connecticut	1996
New York	1997

• Fairfield County Bar Association, Entertainment, Media and Intellectual Property Law Committee | Co-chair | 2014 - Present
  Fairfield County Bar Association, Employment Law Committee | Co-chair | 2014 - Present
  Friendship Ambassadors Foundation | Board of Directors | 2014 - 2015
  Fairfield County Bar Association, Entertainment Law Committee | Founding Member | 2013 - 2014
  Friendship Ambassadors Foundation | Chairman of the Board of Directors | 2013 - 2014

• Ms. Merlen serves on Friendship Ambassadors Foundation Inc.’s Board of Directors, which she chaired until 2014 and on which she has served since 2011. Friendship Ambassadors Foundation is a 501(c)(3) NGO formally associated with the UN Department of Public Information and in Consultative Status with ECOSOC and UNESCO.
  
  Ms. Merlen also chairs the Connecticut chapter of the Licensing Executives Society (USA & Canada), an independent, professional organization that facilitates global IP commerce through education, networking, standards development, and certification. Founded over 50 years ago, LES is a member society of the Licensing Executives Society International, Inc., which has a worldwide membership of licensing and intellectual property professionals across 32 national societies located in more than 90 countries.
  
  Ms. Merlen also is a member of the Fairfield County Bar Association’s Entertainment, Media and Intellectual Property Law Committee, which she co-chaired from 2011-2019, and a member of the Employment Law Committee, which she co-chaired from 2015-2018.

• Ms. Merlen is a frequent guest speaker and moderator for employment law, intellectual property and entertainment industry panels on a variety of topics.
  
  “NY HERO Act August 5 Deadline – Employers must adopt Airborne Infectious Disease Exposure Prevention Plans,” RPJ, with RPJ Partner Jill Kahn Marshall and RPJ Associate Elizabeth Stork – August 4, 2021
  “Partner Deena R. Merlen Provides Important Updates Regarding Workplace Policies on COVID-19 Vaccinations,” RPJ – May 28, 2021
  “Gradual Return to Workplace Eases Transition for Employees,” by Allen Smith, J.D., Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), featuring Ms. Merlen – May 18, 2021
  “Vaccine Mandates at Work Set for Uptick After Full FDA Approval,” by Robert Iafolla, Bloomberg Law, featuring Ms. Merlen – May 10, 2021
  “The Vaccinated Workplace: Recent Developments and Controversies” – European American Chamber of Commerce New York, co-authored by Ms. Merlen – April 14, 2021
  “Partner Deena R. Merlen Discusses the CROWN Act and Rooting Out Race-Based Hair Discrimination” RPJ – March 16, 2021
  “Important Reminder to New York and Connecticut Employers” RPJ, with RPJ Partner Jill Kahn Marshall – February 16, 2021
  “The Gig is Up: In a Rising Gig Economy, Employer & Employee Perspectives on Worker Classification” – European American Chamber of Commerce New York, co-authored by Ms. Merlen – October 26, 2020
  “How Are Companies Adjusting Salaries for Remote Workers?” The Economist, featuring Ms. Merlen – October 12, 2020
  “RPJ’s Guide on Returning to Work in the COVID-19 Environment,” RPJ, with RPJ Associate Elizabeth Stork – August 24, 2020
  “New Proposed Legislation for Second Round of PPP Loans Prioritizes Small Businesses,” RPJ – June 12, 2020
  “Senate Dems Want 2nd Round of PPP Loans for Small Biz,” by Andrew Kragie, Law360, featuring Ms. Merlen – June 10, 2020
  “Patent Rights and Wrongs in the COVID-19 Pandemic: EU and U.S. Approaches to Compulsory Licensing,” IPWatchdog.com, with RPJ Associate Nafsika Karavida and Counsel Dara Onofrio – May 19, 2020
  “Coronavirus stimulus checks: Advocates worry landlords are checking on renters’ payments,” by Dhara Singh, Yahoo Money, featuring Ms. Merlen – April 23, 2020
  “Considerations for Employers When Contemplating Employee Furloughs or Reductions in Force in the COVID-19 Environment,” RPJ, with RPJ Associate Elizabeth Stork – March 23, 2020
  “Will FedEx Express linking with Ground make union organizing easier for employees?” by Max Garland, The Commercial Appeal, featuring Ms. Merlen – February 17, 2020
  “Important New Requirements for NY Employers in the New Year,” RPJ – January 17, 2020
  “What is companies’ role in ensuring workers get vaccinated?” The Economist, featuring Ms. Merlen – December 2019
  “Only Two More Weeks to Meet Sexual Harassment Prevention Training Deadline in NYS,” RPJ – September 27, 2019
  “New Deadline for Sexual Harassment Prevention Training in California,” RPJ – September 24, 2019

Sun.	Mon.	Tue.	Wed.	Thu.	Fri.	Sat.
	9:00 am - 5:00 pm	9:00 am - 5:00 pm	9:00 am - 5:00 pm	9:00 am - 5:00 pm	9:00 am - 5:00 pm

Deena Rebecca Merlen has been a Premium Member since January 04, 2022.
Lawyers with longer memberships tend to have more experience so we use the Membership date to help prioritize lawyer listings on search pages.

Verified Credentials	Date Verified
(1997) Licensed as Attorney in New York. Verified with New York State Unified Court System.	January 04, 2022
(1996) Licensed as Attorney in Connecticut. Verified with Connecticut Bar Association.	January 04, 2022

---

Above credentials have been verified independently by Lawyer.com.

As a service to our visitors and members, Lawyer.com displays the credentials for Premium Lawyer Profiles which Lawyer.com has independently verified. These are displayed at the at the 'Verified Credentials' table. Lawyer.com independently verifies these credentials when a lawyer signs up for a Premium Lawyer Profile. Each Premium Profile lawyer also certifies that they are licensed to practice as an attorney in their state, that they are in good standing with their applicable bar, and that they will notify Lawyer.com if this changes while they have an active profile.

• LinkedIn
• Facebook
• Avvo | Deena R. Merlen
• Twitter
• Deena R. Merlen