Kirkland & Ellis offices in Washington, D.C. Photo: Diego M. Radzinschi/ALM Ex-Kirkland Associate Advances Suit Against Firm, as Gender Bias Claims Multiply in Big Law
"We continue to see women not being given opportunities, not being paid properly, and pregnancy accommodations not being provided for at respected and large law firms," one employment lawyer said.
September 13, 2024 at 03:33 PM
4 minute read
The original version of this story was published on The American Lawyer
What You Need to Know
- Former Kirkland & Ellis associate Zoya Kovalenko survived a motion to dismiss in her gender discrimination lawsuit against her former firm.
- At least five other Am Law 200 firms were hit with gender discrimination complaints in the past year.
- Despite the #MeToo movement and rising awareness around gender discrimination, the rate of complaints against large law firms has not abated, employment lawyers said.
Most of the claims brought by former Kirkland & Ellis associate Zoya Kovalenko against her former firm have survived a motion to dismiss, per a court order earlier this week that set the stage for a legal battle over whether Kirkland fired Kovalenko in retaliation for complaining about sex-based discrimination at the firm.
Kovalenko sued Kirkland in October 2022, alleging that she both experienced and observed sex-based discrimination within the IP litigation group that led to a substantially higher turnover rate for female associates. Kovalenko was terminated in 2021—an act of retaliation, her complaint alleged—and initially represented herself before retaining Tanvir Rahman of Filippatos PLLC.
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Who Got The Work
J. Brugh Lower of Gibbons has entered an appearance for industrial equipment supplier Devco Corporation in a pending trademark infringement lawsuit. The suit, accusing the defendant of selling knock-off Graco products, was filed Dec. 18 in New Jersey District Court by Rivkin Radler on behalf of Graco Inc. and Graco Minnesota. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Zahid N. Quraishi, is 3:24-cv-11294, Graco Inc. et al v. Devco Corporation.
Who Got The Work
Rebecca Maller-Stein and Kent A. Yalowitz of Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer have entered their appearances for Hanaco Venture Capital and its executives, Lior Prosor and David Frankel, in a pending securities lawsuit. The action, filed on Dec. 24 in New York Southern District Court by Zell, Aron & Co. on behalf of Goldeneye Advisors, accuses the defendants of negligently and fraudulently managing the plaintiff's $1 million investment. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Vernon S. Broderick, is 1:24-cv-09918, Goldeneye Advisors, LLC v. Hanaco Venture Capital, Ltd. et al.
Who Got The Work
Attorneys from A&O Shearman has stepped in as defense counsel for Toronto-Dominion Bank and other defendants in a pending securities class action. The suit, filed Dec. 11 in New York Southern District Court by Bleichmar Fonti & Auld, accuses the defendants of concealing the bank's 'pervasive' deficiencies in regards to its compliance with the Bank Secrecy Act and the quality of its anti-money laundering controls. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian, is 1:24-cv-09445, Gonzalez v. The Toronto-Dominion Bank et al.
Who Got The Work
Crown Castle International, a Pennsylvania company providing shared communications infrastructure, has turned to Luke D. Wolf of Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani to fend off a pending breach-of-contract lawsuit. The court action, filed Nov. 25 in Michigan Eastern District Court by Hooper Hathaway PC on behalf of The Town Residences LLC, accuses Crown Castle of failing to transfer approximately $30,000 in utility payments from T-Mobile in breach of a roof-top lease and assignment agreement. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Susan K. Declercq, is 2:24-cv-13131, The Town Residences LLC v. T-Mobile US, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Wilfred P. Coronato and Daniel M. Schwartz of McCarter & English have stepped in as defense counsel to Electrolux Home Products Inc. in a pending product liability lawsuit. The court action, filed Nov. 26 in New York Eastern District Court by Poulos Lopiccolo PC and Nagel Rice LLP on behalf of David Stern, alleges that the defendant's refrigerators’ drawers and shelving repeatedly break and fall apart within months after purchase. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Joan M. Azrack, is 2:24-cv-08204, Stern v. Electrolux Home Products, Inc.
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