Ellen Eardley joined the firm in 2007 and is active in the civil rights, whistleblower, and wage and hour aspects of the firm’s practice. Ms. Eardley regularly litigates a variety of complex civil rights matters, including race and gender discrimination, and has negotiated a number of settlement agreements that provide for monetary relief as well as significant changes in the policies and practices of large corporations. Her work also includes legislative and administrative policy, representing non-profit clients, teaching and research.
Prior to joining the firm, Ms. Eardley litigated employment discrimination, sexual harassment, and wage and hour cases on behalf of public sector employees and unions at the law firm of Woodley & McGillivary in Washington, D.C. Previously, Ms. Eardley was the Simpson Thatcher and Bartlett Equal Justice Works Fellow at the National Women’s Law Center. She served on the team of attorneys who represented female victims of sexual assault at the University of Colorado and who represented Coach Roderick Jackson in Jackson v. Birmingham Board of Education, 544 U.S. 167 (2005). She also advocated for heightened enforcement of sex discrimination laws in career and technical education and employment, and co-authored the report “Tools of the Trade: Using the Law to Address Sex Segregation in High School Career and Technical Education.”
Graduating first in her law school class at the University of Cincinnati, Ms. Eardley earned a joint J.D./M.A. in Women’s Studies. She was a member of the University of Cincinnati Law Review and Book Review Editor for the Human Rights Quarterly. She participated in the U.S. Department of Justice Summer Honors Program, interning for the Civil Rights Division, Employment Litigation Section. She also clerked for Laufman & Gerhardstein, a civil rights firm representing victims of racial profiling and employment discrimination.
Ms. Eardley is a Professorial Lecturer at the American University Washington College of Law where she teaches a course about sex-based discrimination. She frequently speaks at national and local events about civil rights and employment issues.
In 2013, Ms. Eardley was selected as a SuperLawyers Rising Star, an honor that recognizes outstanding attorneys under the age of 40 who have attained a high-degree of peer recognition and professional achievement.
Email: eeardley@findjustice.com