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Goodbaum, Joshua Ryan

Joshua Ryan Goodbaum - New Haven, CT

Attorney at Garrison, Levin-Epstein, Fitzgerald & Pirrotti, P.C.

Employment Lawyers in New Haven, CT

405 Orange Street New Haven, CT 06511

  • 1 Super Lawyers®
  • 15 Years 
    Experience

New Haven Employment Lawyer

Updated: 03/10/2026

Areas of Practice

  • Employment

Attorney Information

Overview

A graduate of Harvard and Yale, and a multiple-time Best Lawyers "Lawyer of the Year" for employment law, Josh Goodbau, represents Connecticut employees and other civil rights plaintiffs in litigation and negotiation.

Josh's experience as a Connecticut employment lawyer who represents employees runs the gamut, from discrimination (on the basis of race, sex, age, disability, sexual orientation religion, marital status, pregnancy, or national origin) and sexual harassment, to wrongful termination retaliation, retaliation, non-competition agreements and other restrictive covenants, contract disputes, and wage and hour issues, including claims for unpaid overtime and commissions. He has counseled employees and executives of all sizes - from less than $25,000 to more than $25 million. He has represented employees in virtually every sector of the Connecticut economy: accounting, banking, construction, entertainment, finance, government, healthcare, higher education, hospitality, insurance, law, manufacturing, and technology. And he has partnered in litigation with leading civil rights organizations, including the AARP Foundation, GLTBQ Legal Advocates and Defenders (GLAD), and the Time's Up Legal Defense Fund.

Josh's representation of employees has earned him preeminent status in the Connecticut legal community. Josh has been named the "Lawyer of the Year" for both "Employment Law - Individuals" and "Litigation - Labor & Employment" by The Best Lawyers in America, the oldest and most respected peer-reviewed publication in the legal profession. He has been recognized by Connecticut SuperLawyers since 2015, when the Connecticut Law Tribune dubbed him a "New Leader of the Law." Martindale-Hubbell ranks him at its highest level of professional excellence - AV Preeminent -based on ratings from his fellow lawyers and judges. And since 2019, Lawdragon has included him in its annual list of the Nation's 500 Leading Plaintiff Employment Lawyers.

Josh's New Haven-area peers elected frim to serve in the Connecticut Bar Association House of Delegates, the Bar Association's governing body. Josh previously served as Chair of the Bar Association's 650-member Labor & Employment Law Section, and he currently serves on the Executive Committees of the Labor & Employment and Federal Practice Sections. (He is also the Secretary of the Federal Practice Section.) Josh is a member of the Editorial Board of the Connecticut Law Tribune, which is comprised of prominent lawyers and retired judges. And he is an elected member of the Board of Governors and Chair of the Employment Committee of the Connecticut Trial Lawyers Association (CTLA), which seeks to preserve individual rights within the justice system and protect the rights of plaintiffs - including employees - who are injured through no fault of their own.

Josh earned his law degree from Harvard Law School magna cum laude, reflecting a grade point average in the top ten percent of his graduating class. While at Harvard, Josh served as a Supervising Editor of the Harvard Law Review and Co-Chair of the Publis Interest Auction. After Law School, he clerked for Associate Justice Neil M. Gorsuch of the Supreme Court of the United States when Justice Gorsuch was a Judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. Josh went to college at Yale University, graduating magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, with a degree in history. Between college and law school, he worked for an industrial supply company in Chicago.

Josh is a native of the New Haven area and serves on the Board of Directors of the New Haven Legal Assistance Association and the Ronan-Edgehill Neighborhood Association. In his spare time, he enjoys choral singing, playing tennis, and spending time with his spouse, Andrew, and their rescue dog, Mungo.


Awards and Honors

Super Lawyers® Selectees

SuperLawyers

Joshua Ryan Goodbaum included in a Super Lawyers® list

Honors

  • Best Lawyers® "Lawyer of the Year" - Litigation - Labor and Employment, New Haven (2023)
  • Best Lawyers® "Lawyer of the Year" Employment Law - Individuals, New Haven (2022)
  • 2019 LawDragon 500 Leading Plaintiff Employment Lawyer
  • 2015 Connecticut Law Tribune New Leaders of the Law

Other Sources of Feedback About Joshua Ryan Goodbaum

Included on the 2026 Connecticut Super Lawyers list


Past Lists

  • 2025 Connecticut Super Lawyers list
  • 2024 Connecticut Super Lawyers list
  • 2023 Connecticut Super Lawyers list
  • 2022 Connecticut Super Lawyers list
  • 2021 Connecticut Super Lawyers list
  • 2020 Connecticut Super Lawyers list
  • 2019 Connecticut Super Lawyers list
  • 2018 Connecticut Super Lawyers list
  • 2017 Connecticut Super Lawyers list
  • 2016 Connecticut Super Lawyers list
  • 2015 Connecticut Super Lawyers list

Education

  • Legal Education

    • Harvard Law School, Cambridge, Massachusetts, 2009
      J.D.
      Honors: magna cum laude
      Law Review: Harvard Law Review, Supervising Editor
  • Non Legal Education

    • Yale University
      Honors: magna cum laude
      Major: History

Current Employment Position(s)

  • Partner

Past Positions

  • Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders (GLAD), Boston, MA, Intern
  • San Francisco District Attorney's Office, Intern
  • U.S. Department of Justice, Intern

Bar Admissions

  • Connecticut
  • New York
  • District of Columbia

Other Affiliations

  • Connecticut Bar Association House of Delegates (Delegate )
  • Connecticut Bar Association (Executive Committee Member of the Federal Practice Section)
  • Connecticut Bar Association Labor & Employment Law Section (Chair)
  • Connecticut Bar Association Labor & Employment Law Section (Secretary)
  • Connecticut Employment Lawyers Association
  • National Employment Lawyers Association

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Contact

Google Map

New Haven, CT

405 Orange Street
New Haven, CT 06511

Directions

Phone: 203-777-4425

Fax: (203) 776-3965

Email: Send a message

Website: http://www.garrisonlaw.com

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