Kelly Dermody is the Managing Partner of Lieff Cabraser’s San Francisco office and chair of their employment practice group. She specializes in class and collective actions on behalf of plaintiffs in employment and consumer cases.
Ms. Dermody supervises many of the most significant and challenging employment class action lawsuits in our nation today, including complaints brought by female and minority professionals alleging gender and race discrimination by top Wall Street and Silicon Valley firms, wage suppression claims against technology companies, overtime pay lawsuits against nationally prominent corporations, and ERISA claims that she has tried on behalf of employees and retirees for pension plan abuses.
In addition to spearheading employment lawsuits, she represents consumers in consumer protection cases. In 2006, California Lawyer magazine awarded her its prestigious California Lawyer Attorney of the Year Award for her successful prosecution of several class action lawsuits against California’s main hospital chains for charging the uninsured exorbitant and unconscionable prices for medical care. Under settlements in these cases, uninsured patients received more than $1 billion in refunds or bill adjustments.
Mrs. Dermody is a leader in organizations devoted to serving the public interest, improving access to justice, and ensuring that the rights of historically disenfranchised persons are protected.
Additionally, she is a member of the ABA Labor & Employment Law Section (LELS) Governing Council, and previously served as Co-chair of the ABA LELS Annual Section Conference, Committee on Diversity in the Legal Profession, and Equal Employment Opportunity Committee. She currently serves on the Legal Committee of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Northern California.
In 2012, Ms. Dermody served as President of the Bar Association of San Francisco (“BASF”), and was a member of its Board of Directors from 2005 to 2012. Founded in 1872, BASF serves legal professionals and the community by promoting access to justice and excellence and diversity in the legal profession, and by providing legal and pro bono services to disadvantaged and underserved individuals.