Overview
Attorney Rishi Puri delivers strategic, practical advice and effective representation across a broad range of employment and data privacy matters.
Rishi guides both small and large employers through various aspects of the employment life cycle, including non-compete restrictions, background check determinations, performance management, accommodations, workplace investigations, employee discipline, reductions in force, severance, and post-termination enforcement of restrictive covenant agreements. He is skilled in drafting settlement agreements, severance agreements, restrictive covenant agreements, employee handbooks, and other employment-related policies. He also enjoys embedding with client legal teams and oversees in-house legal functions, such as Bordereau reporting, audit reporting, outside counsel management, and litigation hold management.
Employers call on Rishi to represent them in disputes involving discrimination, retaliation, wrongful discharge, disability accommodation, or wage and hour claims. He also has deep experience with California wage and hour issues, covering everything from compliance and litigation of single-employee claims to complex representative actions under the Private Attorneys General Act.
Alongside his employment law practice, Rishi assists companies in developing solutions that navigate the dynamic privacy law landscape. He offers comprehensive guidance on a wide variety of issues, from establishing top-down corporate policies to managing data breaches and formulating data security policies. With extensive experience in corporate privacy management, policy development, vendor assessment, and data security incident response planning, Rishi is well-equipped to help clients safeguard their data and ensure compliance with privacy laws. He holds both the CIPP/US and CIPP/E certifications, which are globally recognized information privacy credentials for the United States and Europe.
Before joining Epstein Becker Green, Rishi served as a Shareholder at a regional law firm, focusing on employment counseling, employment litigation, and data privacy issues. Prior to that, he worked as an employment litigation attorney at an international law firm.
Focus Areas
Services
- ADA and Public Accommodations
- Employment Compliance Counseling
- Employment Litigation
- Employment, Labor & Workforce Management
- Privacy, Cybersecurity & Data Asset Management
- Trade Secrets & Employee Mobility
- Wage and Hour
- Workforce Restructuring and Other Cost-Saving Mechanisms
- Workplace Investigations
Recognition
- The Best Lawyers in America, Employment Law - Management (2025)
- Oregon Rising Stars: Employment Litigation – Defense (2018 to 2019)
- Southern California Rising Stars: Employment Litigation – Defense (2013 to 2015)
Credentials
Education
- University of California at Los Angeles School of Law (J.D., 2007)
- Comments Editor, UCLA Law Review
- Temple University James E. Beasley School of Law
- Member, Temple Law Review (2004 to 2005)
- University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School of Finance and Commerce (B.S., 2001)
Bar Admissions
- California
- Oregon
Professional & Community Involvement
- American Civil Liberties Union:
- Pro Bono Attorney (2021 to Present)
- Student Rights Training Initiative (2021 to Present)
- Basic Rights Oregon, Board of Directors (2020 to 2022)
- Equality Federation, Diversity & Inclusion Training, Cohort (2021 to 2022)
- Leadership Council on Legal Diversity, Fellow (2018)
Information Security
- International Association of Privacy Professionals, Certified Information Privacy Professional/United States (CIPP/US)
- International Association of Privacy Professionals, Certified Information Privacy Professional/Europe (CIPP/E)
Events
Past Events
- 2024 Labor & Employment Seminar: Your Mission, Should You Choose to Accept It - How to Mitigate Performance Management Risk in a Changing Legal Landscape
- Multnomah Bar Association: Privacy Law
- National Business Institute: Discipline and Discharge—Necessary Documentation
- Washington State Bar Association: Top Privacy Issues for Washington Business Attorneys to Understand
- myLawCLE: California New Restrictions on Severance and Settlement Agreements
Insights
Insights
- Media CoveragePortland Business Journal Counts Epstein Becker Green Among Largest Law Firms in the Region—20252 minute read
- BlogsTime Is Money: A Quick Wage-Hour Tip on … DOL Confirms Managers Are Blocked from Tip Pool Even When Working in ...3 minute read
- Media CoverageRishi Puri Featured in “People on the Move”1 minute read
- PublicationsNext Year's Legal Buzz: What’s Brewing for Oregon and Washington Employers in 202510 minute read
- BlogsIn the Cloud: A Safe Place for Your Personal Data?9 minute read
- Media CoverageCourtney McFate, Rishi Puri, Carlie Bacon Featured in “Lane Powell Employment Trio Joins Epstein Becker Green in ...2 minute read
- Media CoverageCourtney McFate, Rishi Puri, Carlie Bacon Featured in “Epstein Becker Green Expands in Portland with Lane Powell Trio” ...2 minute read
- Firm AnnouncementsEpstein Becker Green Continues Expansion in Portland, Strengthens West Coast Foothold with New Employment Law-Focused ...4 minute read
- Publications
Workers on Demand: A Tailored Approach to Worker Classification in the Gig Economy, Oregon Business Magazine