Current Employment Position(s)

Partner

Lawyer Overview

Patricia Kinaga has specialized in employment litigation for nearly 20 years. Representing private and public employers in high-profile cases, Patricia is well recognized for her extensive jury trial work in state and federal courts. Her range of experience covers discrimination, including sexual harassment, gender, age, and disability issues, Sarbanes-Oxley, discipline, privacy, wrongful discharge, arbitration, and wage-hour disputes. She also has authored and argued appeals in state and federal courts.

In addition to litigation, Patricia provides preventive training and advice to human resource professionals, executives, and government officials on a range of topics, including hiring and firing, leaves of absence, sexual harassment, ADA access, and diversity. She also has served as an invited lecturer to human resource and bar organizations throughout California. She has represented clients in a variety of industries, including health care, hotel, communications, transportation, insurance, and retail food and restaurant in addition to public entities, including the cities of Los Angeles, Oxnard, and Riverside.

Patricia has served on the President's Committee on the Employment of Persons with Disabilities, the State Bar Committee on Women, and the State Bar section on Labor, Public Sector Subcommittee. She is past president of the Japanese American Bar Association and is cofounder of the Asian Pacific American Dispute Resolution Center and the Asian Pacific Women's Center. She is also a recipient of the prestigious public service awards from the Asian Pacific American Legal Center, the NOW Legal Defense and Education Fund, and the Big Sisters of Los Angeles. Patricia was profiled in the 2004 "Super Lawyers" magazine of Los Angeles and was listed in the 2005, 2006, and 2007 "Super Lawyers" magazine as one of the top employment attorneys in Southern California.

Areas of Practice

• Trial Practice
• Labor & Employment
• Privacy & Data Security

Representative Cases

• Aceanyer Brown and Ameer Faquir v. City of Los Angeles, Sup. Ct. Los Angeles
• Albertsons, Inc. v. United Food And Commercial Workers Locals 135, 324, 770, 1036, 1167, 1428 and 1442, Sup. Ct. Orange County
• Arnold Cabrera v. City of Los Angeles (U.S. Dist., C.D. Cal.)
• Diane Bizelle v. City of Los Angeles, Sup. Ct. Los Angeles
• Elizabeth Adams v. City of Los Angeles, Case No. BC 075829, Sup. Ct. Los Angeles
• Godolfo Sanchez v. Junichi Umemoto et al, Case No. SA CV04-1191 CJC (ANx)
• In the Matter of Michael Riedell v. Verizon Communications Inc., Case No. 2005-SOX-00077
• In the Matter of the Arbitration between Luis Hassan and the Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles, ARB 72410001693
• James Davis v. City of San Buenaventura, U.S. Dist., C.D. Cal.
• Jennifer Higa v. City of Hope et al, Case No. BC 318076, Sup. Ct. Los Angeles
• Jesus Alvarez v. Beneto Bulk Transport, Case No. BC 292601, Sup. Ct. Los Angeles
• Karen Daily v. Kaiser Permanente, Sup. Ct. Los Angeles
• Kenneth Simmons v. Petro Chemical Transport, Inc., Case No. CV 05-1397 GPS, MANx
• Lynne Tingerides v. City of Los Angeles, Case No. CV 93-1095 LGB (EEx)
• Marlene Oberfoell v. Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Case No. BC 332075, Cal. Sup. Ct., LA County
• Mary Winic v. Summit Western et al, Case No. CV03-2617 RSWL (McX)
• Matthew Kim v. Los Angeles Unified School District, Case No. BC 277206, Sup. Ct. Los Angeles
• Molina v. City of Oxnard, Case No. CV 00-02291 CAS (SHx)(C.D. Cal.); Case Nos. 01-57096, 04-55173 (9th Cir.)
• Parvis Karim Panahi v. City of Los Angeles et al, Case No. CV 86-1002 WJR (Tx)
• Patrick Green v. City of Los Angeles, Sup. Ct. Los Angeles
• Paul Sanusi v. Los Angeles Unified School District, Case No. BC 356404, Sup. Ct. Los Angeles
• Philip Deteresi v. City of Los Angeles, Case No. BC 062988, Sup. Ct. Los Angeles
• Philip Molina v. City of Oxnard and Edmund Sotelo (3 trials), Case No. CV 00-2291 CAS (SHx)
• Susan Sulpizio v. Levitz Home Furnishings Inc., Case No. 416188, Court of Appeal Case No. A101645
• Tennie Pierce v. City of Los Angeles, Case No. BC 342845, Sup. Ct. Los Angeles
• William J. Lindley v. Petro Chemical Transport, Inc. et al, Case No. BC 326094, Sup. Ct. Los Angeles
• A non profit group, providing homes to needy families in Tijuana
• Case No. BC277206 (Cal. Super. Ct. L.A. County)

West Practice Categories

Bankruptcy Litigation, Class Actions, Collective Bargaining, Complex Litigation, Federal Appellate Practice, Federal Claims Court, Federal Trial Practice, International Trade Litigation, Labor Arbitration, Labor Disputes, Labor Law, Labor Legislation, Labor Relations Boards & Proceedings, Litigation & Appeals, Military & Veterans Appeals, Multidistrict Litigation, Patent Litigation, State Appellate Practice, State Trial Practice, Tax Litigation, Unfair Labor Practices, Unions, US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, US Supreme Court, Wage & Hour Laws, Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act

Bar Admissions

• California

Education

• Georgetown University

Published Works

• Sarbanes-Oxley and Whistleblowers: What Happens When Employees Bring Retaliation Claims?, Employee Relations Law Journal, 2006
• Whistle(Blowing) While You Work, Employment Law Strategist, 2006
• 2005 California Employment Law Legislative Update, 2005
• 2004 California Employment Law Legislative Update, 2004
• Sex Education: A New State Law Prohibiting Gender-Identity Discrimination Will Require Careful Consideration By Employers, coauthor, Los Angeles Daily Journal, 2004

Address

555 South Flower Street
Fiftieth Floor
Los Angeles, CA 90071-2300

Phones

1.213.243.2763 (Business Phone)

Faxes

1.213.243.2539 (Business Fax)

Emails

Contact Us (Business Email)

Websites

http://www.jonesday.com