





About Janine
Janine Pollack, co-founder of Calcaterra Pollack LLP, has been a class action litigator for 30 years and has prosecuted cases that have secured hundreds of millions of dollars for defrauded investors and consumers over the course of those nearly three decades. Her focus is on representing clients who seek redress from companies that employ deception in selling their products or services, including through false advertising. Janine is routinely appointed by courts as lead counsel and to other leadership positions, including in data breach litigation. As lead trial counsel, she has prosecuted jury and bench trials, and won a jury verdict against R.J. Reynolds for wrongful death in a tobacco case.
Janine is the Firm’s Chief Wellness Officer (CWO). As CWO, she provides opportunities and resources on behalf of the Firm for its personnel to enhance their overall well-being and improve their physical and emotional health. The Firm is committed to supporting the wellness of its personnel both inside and outside of the law firm environment, including through work-life balance, positive reinforcement, personal growth, exercise, and nutrition. Janine engages in frequent public speaking on various issues, including time and stress management and wellness.
Janine is currently admitted to practice in the States of New York and New Jersey and in the U.S. District Courts for the Southern, Northern, and Eastern Districts of New York, the Northern District of Illinois, and the District of New Jersey, in addition to the U.S. Courts of Appeal for the First, Ninth, and Tenth Circuits.
Calcaterra Pollack LLP is a New York State Certified Women-Owned Business Enterprise and a WBENC-Certified Women’s Business Enterprise.
Representative Matters
- Lead litigator in four Child Victims Act (CVA) cases in New York representing survivors of childhood sexual assault.
- One of the lead litigators in consumer class actions against makers of macaroni and cheese for failure to disclose dangerous phthalates.
- Working with co-counsel in a consumer class action against maker of infant formula for failure to disclose presence or risk of heavy metals and failure to disclose lack of quality control in manufacture of products.
- Working with co-counsel in consumer class actions against manufacturers of certain herbs and spices for failure to disclose the risk or presence of heavy metals.
- Working with co-counsel in consumer class actions against manufacturers of certain baby foods for failure to disclose the risk or presence of heavy metals.
- One of the lead litigators in a consumer class action against a lender for misrepresentations in financing documents to pay for energy-saving home improvements, resulting in a significant settlement for the class.
- Lead litigator in a consumer class action against a major bank for failure to pay interest on mortgage escrow monies, resulting in a significant settlement for the class.
- Interim Co-Lead Counsel in a data breach class action against a large clothing retailer for failing to exercise reasonable care in safeguarding the personal information of its customers, resulting in a significant settlement for the class.
- Represented consumers across the country in class action litigation against Skechers, Reebok, and others for false claims regarding the efficacy of “toning shoes” which were advertised as being more effective than regular sneakers in providing body-toning benefits to wearers. Working with the Federal Trade Commission, Janine and her co-counsel were able to secure consumer settlements of approximately $45 million against Skechers and $25 million against Reebok.
Education
University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School (J.D., 1989, elected to Journal of International Business Law)
Rutgers University (B.A., High Honors, English and French, 1986)
New York University in France Semester Abroad, Paris (1985) (fluent in French)
Professional Affiliations and Activities
Janine currently serves as Co-President of the National Association of Shareholder & Consumer Attorneys (NASCAT), an organization of firms and attorneys which represents consumer and investor rights and supports the opportunity for consumers and investors to bring class action suits. As Co-President, she develops and advocates for national and state policies impacting the class action bar, securities litigation plaintiffs’ bar and consumer protection plaintiffs’ bar. Janine is also the Chair of the Women’s Initiative at NASCAT, which assists in advancing women as lead litigators and fosters relationships and networking opportunities for its female attorneys.
Janine served as a team leader to develop standards and best practices for increasing diversity in mass tort and class action litigation for the James F. Humphreys Complex Litigation Center at the George Washington Law School titled “Inclusivity and Excellence: Guidelines and Best Practices for Judges Appointing Lawyers to Leadership Positions in MDL and Class Action Litigation” (March 15, 2021).
Janine serves on the Communications Committee for the Institute for Well-Being in Law. She is also a member of the Women in the Legal Profession Committee of the Bar Association of the City of New York, where she was a co-editor of the publication, Street Smarts for Women Lawyers. She is also working on wellness and other projects as part of Committee activities.
Janine serves as an Alumni Interviewer for prospective students who are applying to attend the University of Pennsylvania.
Publications
Child Safety and Product Safety Disclosures: A Look at Section 6(b)
Regina Calcaterra, Janine Pollack and Anjori Mitra
New York Law Journal. December 11, 2020
Smaller Firms Need Employee Wellness Programs, Too
Janine Pollack
Law360 Expert Analysis. June 9, 2021
Honors
In their first year of launching Calcaterra Pollack LLP, Janine and her partner Regina Calcaterra were awarded the National Law Journal’s 2020 Trailblazer Award for an Elite Boutique Firm. Janine has been selected to the Super Lawyers1 list every year since 2012. She was named to the Lawdragon 500 Leading Plaintiff Financial Lawyers list in 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022. She has also been appointed numerous times to Law360 editorial boards and was selected to the 2021 Law360 Consumer Protection Editorial Board. In 2012, Janine was one of the attorneys featured on the front page of The National Law Journal’s Plaintiffs’ Hot List for her work on the toning shoe cases, several of which resulted in record settlements jointly with the Federal Trade Commission against Reebok and Skechers.
Speaking Engagements
- Women Lawyers in Leadership 2020 – Practicing Law Institute – September 16, 2020
- How to Wow Motivation and Wellness: Your Guide to Grit and Fit – University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School – October 21, 2020 – highlighted in Penn Law Journal Summer 2021
- Taking Control of Your Well-Being: How to Leverage Your Legal Organization’s Wellness Program – Practicing Law Institute – December 10, 2020
- HarrisMartin Webinar Series: Baby Food Litigation- April 8, 2021
- Getting a Seat at the Table and What to do Once You’ve Obtained Your Seat: Tips for Women Lawyers – Women Lawyers in Leadership 2021 – Practicing Law Institute – September 23, 2021
- Taking Care of Our Own: Lawyer Well-Being Programs – AON Virtual Law Firm Symposium – October 14, 2021
- Health and Wellness Panel – Class Action Law Forum – University of San Diego School of Law – March 18, 2022
- Getting a Seat at the Table and What to do Once You’ve Obtained Your Seat: Tips for Women Lawyers – Women Lawyers in Leadership 2022 – Practicing Law Institute – September 14, 2022
In the News
- Taking Charge- The Travails and Triumphs of the Women Who Started Law Firms – The Journal of the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School – Lindsay Podraza and Jay Nachman, Fall 2022.
- Women Open Law Firms Amid Pandemic Upheaval – Law360 – Anna Sanders, September 13, 2021.
- Lawyer Limelight: Janine Pollack – Lawdragon – Amy Carroll, April 29, 2021.
- Read about Janine’s enthusiasm for small law firm wellness here: Lawyer Well-Being Champions
- Read about Janine’s commitment to wellness here: Women In the Law-A Lawyer’s Guide to Wellness

1 Super Lawyers, a Thomson Reuters business, is a rating service of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. The annual selections are made using a patented multiphase process that includes a statewide survey of lawyers, an independent research evaluation of candidates and peer reviews by practice area. More information can be found here. No aspect of this advertisement has been approved by the Supreme Court of New Jersey.