Overview

Patricia is a seasoned litigator with more than 30 years of experience representing employers in high-stakes matters involving discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wage and hour disputes, and workplace investigations. She has successfully defended clients across a wide range of industries—including healthcare, manufacturing, technology, retail, higher education, and entertainment—in state and federal courts, arbitrations, and before administrative agencies. Patricia’s depth of experience, including numerous jury and bench trials, administrative hearings and arbitrations, makes her a trusted advocate in complex employment disputes.

In addition to her litigation practice, Patricia is a go-to advisor for clients seeking practical, business-minded guidance on employment law compliance and workplace strategy. She regularly counsels companies on risk management, employee discipline, executive agreements, accommodations, leaves of absence, classification audits, and reductions in force, including WARN Act compliance. Her experience spans both private and public sectors, and she brings a well-rounded perspective drawn from her background as a former prosecutor, firm founder, and in-house advisor during mergers and acquisitions.

Patricia is widely recognized as a thought leader on workplace issues, frequently presenting on topics such as sexual harassment and discrimination prevention, effective investigations, wage hour and independent contractor compliance, litigation prevention and high-profile litigation strategy. Her longstanding commitment to community engagement and public service includes leadership roles with the Federal Bar Association, Japanese American Bar Association, and multiple nonprofit organizations supporting underserved communities. Her insights and impact have been honored with numerous awards, including Woman of the Year by California’s 28th Congressional District and a Peter Haas Public Service Award from UC Berkeley.

Honors & Recognitions

  • Elaine R. “Boots” Fisher Public Service Award, Federal Bar Association, FBA Annual National Convention
  • Peter Haas Public Service Award, University of California, Berkeley
  • 28th Congressional District Woman of the Year, Congressman Adam Schiff
  • NOW Legal Defense and Education Fund Public Service Award
  • Public Service Award, Asian Americans Advancing Justice
  • Mayor’s Asian Pacific Heritage Month Award, City of Los Angeles
  • Emmy nomination for “About Love” docu-drama on domestic violence.

Professional & Civic Associations

  • Federal Bar Association, Los Angeles, appointed member, Board of Directors
  • Appointed former member:
    • President’s Committee on Employment of People with Disabilities
    • American Bar Association Commission on Disability Rights
    • California State Bar Committee on Women
    • Public Sector Subcommittee, California State Bar Committee on Labor and Employment
  • Japanese American Bar Association, Advisory Council and Past President
  • National Asian and Pacific Islander American Bar Association (NAPABA), Member, California Host Steering Committee
  • Asians and Pacific Islanders with Disabilities of California, Chair/Co-Founder
  • Asian Americans Advancing Justice, Southern California, Advisory Council
  • Asian Pacific Women’s Center domestic violence shelter, Co-Founder/Former Chair
  • Asian Pacific American Dispute Resolution Center for mediation services, Co-Founder/Former Chair

About Me

Award-winning documentary filmmaker. Additional interests: ballet and chorale performances.  

Representative Matters

Representative Matters

  • Represented large employers on sexual harassment, disability discrimination, and retaliation cases: Verdict for defense in jury trials.
  • Represented large employer on appeal in race case: Appeal granted in favor of employer.
  • Assisted publicly traded national companies on corporate reorganizations.
  • Conducted sexual harassment, race, gender identity, whistleblower, theft, sexual battery, and policy violation workplace investigations on behalf of employers in the public sector, retail, technology, higher education, financial services, and legal industries, including matters in which the subject of the investigation is an executive level employee.
  • Conducted training on wage-hour policies, workplace investigations, annual labor and employment updates
  • Assisted employers involved in high-profile matters, including union actions
  • Drafted and reviewed executive hiring and separation agreements
  • Conducted wage-hour and independent contractor audits

News & Analysis

Speaking Engagements & Industry Publications

  • Analysis of U.S. Supreme Court Cases on the Executive Privilege, lecturer for the Ninth Circuit Civics forum
  • Pro Bono Lecturer: sexual harassment, reproductive freedom, domestic violence, disability discrimination, and Supreme Court cases on the Japanese American internment during WWII
  • Sarbanes-Oxley and Whistleblowers, Employee Relations Law Journal
  • The State of Diversity and Inclusion in the Legal Profession, Institute for Inclusion in the Legal Profession

Practice Emphasis

  • Litigation Prevention Strategies
  • Complex Risk Analyses, From Pre-Litigation Demand Through Litigation
  • Mediation Compliance Audits
  • Complex and High Liability Workplace Investigations
  • Navigation Through Rapidly Evolving Regulatory and Statutory Landscapes

Education

Georgetown University Law Center

  • J.D.

University of California, Berkeley

  • M.A., City and Regional Planning

University of California, Los Angeles

  • B.A., Anthropology

Bar & Court Admissions

  • California
  • U.S. Supreme Court
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
  • U.S. District Court for the Central District of California
  • U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California
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