Press Release

Boston, MA, April 5, 2023 – Burns & Levinson partner Ellen Zucker has been named a 2023 Go To Employment Lawyer by Mass Lawyers Weekly for her impressive accomplishments in employment law.

Zucker is recognized as a powerful and skilled litigator and wise counselor who helps her clients navigate challenging circumstances. Whether securing a meaningful resolution or litigating tenaciously on behalf of her clients, individuals from Alaska and California to Texas and Kentucky have sought seek her counsel. She gives voice to those wronged in the workplace and has been a legal champion of civil rights throughout her career. Most recently, she secured a $4.6 million judgment in favor of Det. Kathleen Donohue against the Town of Watertown. The jury found that the Town had discriminated against Det. Donohue based on her gender and retaliated against her when she dared to complain. The jury awarded her significant compensatory damages and determined that the Town’s conduct warranted the imposition of a $1 million punitive damages award.  

Another trailblazing win was a $13 million settlement for an orthopaedic surgeon, Dennis W. Burke, M.D., who blew the whistle on a practice at the Massachusetts General Hospital of allowing surgeons to book and conduct multiple surgeries at the same time and who – as a result of his standing up for patient safety – had his longtime Medical Staff appointment terminated. The case has had a national impact, including the American College of Surgeons changing its policies and major medical centers revising their practices. In Massachusetts, the Board of Registration in Medicine promulgated regulations that limit the practice of concurrent surgery and set standards for informed consent.

Early in her career, Zucker represented Malvina Monteiro, a Cape Verdean public employee who suffered retaliation after raising concerns about discrimination in the City of Cambridge. She secured a $8.9 million judgment in Monteiro’s favor. Her work on this and other cases has earned her recognition by the local branch of the NAACP, NOW and other professional organizations.

Zucker received her J.D. from Boston College Law School, her M.Sc. in Political Theory from the London School of Economics and Political Science and her B.A. from Wesleyan University. She began her legal career as law clerk to the Honorable Nancy Gertner in the Federal District Court/District of Massachusetts.

Read the Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly article here.