Biography
Ada K. Wong is the Managing Partner of AKW LAW, P.C., focusing her practice on advocating for employees' rights. She teaches the Employment Discrimination course to upper-level law students at the Seattle University School of Law as an Adjunct Professor.
Ada is also the Dean of the Keenan Trial Institute, where she oversees approximately 6,000 students and 100 faculty members. She is the youngest to be hand-selected into KTI faculty and leadership. She was the 2022 KTI Faculty of the Year award recipient. She also serves as an Arbitrator in Washington state. She is the co-Editor-in-Chief of the Washington State Association of Justice (WSAJ) Employment Law Deskbook, which consists of over 1,300 pages.
She is on the Editorial Board of Trial Guides. She was previously on the Executive Board of the Washington Employment Lawyers Association (WELA), the Editor-in-Chief of the Washington State Association of Justice (WSAJ) Trial News, an Editorial Board Member of the American Inns of Court The Bencher, on the WSAJ Board of Governors, the Executive Board of the William L. Dwyer American Inn of Court, and the President of the Vietnamese American Bar Association of Washington.
During the pandemic in fall 2020, Ada had one of the first fully virtual jury trials held in federal court in Washington. She obtained a $6,850,000 verdict against FedEx Freight, Inc. for a single-plaintiff discrimination and retaliation case. She has secured millions of dollars for workers through verdicts and settlements.
When not working or spending time with her husband, two daughters, and four cats, you can find Ada on the yoga or Taekwondo mat.
Publications
- All-Zoom Jury Trial, December 2020 (WSAJ Trial News)
- Stop Systemic Racism and Police Brutality!, July/August 2020 (WSAJ Trial News);
- Remote Video Depositions - Cringe or Binge?, June 2020 (WSAJ Trial News)
- COVID-19 Related Leave: Intersection of the Family Medical Leave Act and the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, May 2020 (WSAJ Trial News)
- Conflict Checks - Are You in Compliance with the RPCs?, February 2020 (WSAJ Trial News)
- Access to Justice and Mentorship, January 2020 (WSAJ Trial News)
- New Overtime Rule in Effect January 1, 2020, December 2019 (WSAJ Trial News)
- Baby Talk: Pregnancy-Related Leave, November 2019 (WSAJ Trial News)
- WSAJ Motor Vehicle Litigation Desk Book: Discovery in Automobile Cases, September 2018 (WSAJ)
- Victory in the Second Circuit: Civil Rights Law to Include Sexual Orientation Discrimination Claims Under Title VII, April 2018 (WSAJ Trial News)
- Leverage as a Young, Female, Minority Lawyer, December 2017 (WSAJ Trial News)
- SCOTUS Sends a Message to The Lower Courts: Stop Suing Police Officers, May 2017 (WSAJ Trial News)
- Networking, Marketing, and Everything in Between, January 2017 (American Inns of Court The Bencher)
- Employer Liability for Customer or Non-Employee Harassment, September 2016 (WSAJ Trial News)
- Did You Know About WSAJ's Getting Started Series ("GSS")?, September 2016 (WSAJ Trial News)
- Book Review: Case Framing, May 2016 (WSAJ Trial News)
- Police Brutality and the Mentally Ill, March 2016 (WSAJ Trial News)
- Young v. United States Parcel Service, Inc.: A Small Step for Pregnant Employees, July 2015 (WSAJ Trial News)
- The Need for Clarity on Tasers-Excessive Force and Qualified Immunity, March 2015 (WSAJ Trial News)
- Johnston-Forbes v. Matsunaga and Biomechanical Testimony-Where Does That Leave Plaintiffs' Attorneys in Excluding Expert Testimony?, October 2014 (WSAJ Trial News)
- Legal Guide: How to Get Your Employee File in Washington, 2014 (AVVO)
- What Is "Excessive Force"? A Look at Graham v. Connor, 2013 (WSBA NW Sidebar)
- 50 Years After Gideon: Should the Right to Counsel Be Expanded?, 2013 (WSBA NWSidebar)
- Facebook Can Cost You More Than Your Lawsuit: Allied Concrete Co. v. Lester, 2013 (WSBA NWSidebar)
