The McDermott discrimination lawsuits are two federal and state complaints brought by Black female attorneys against McDermott Will & Emery (now McDermott Will & Schulte), alleging race-based discrimination, retaliation, and, in the more recent case, pregnancy discrimination. Ashley Ogedegbe filed the first in July 2025 in Chicago federal court; an anonymous “Jane Doe” filed the second in April 2026 in Los Angeles Superior Court. The firm has denied all allegations in both cases.
The Ogedegbe Lawsuit
Ashley Ogedegbe worked as an associate in McDermott’s digital health practice from October 2022 until her termination in late March 2025. On July 30, 2025, she filed suit (Case No. 1:25-cv-08908) in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, bringing claims under Section 1981 of the Civil Rights Act of 1866. Her complaint states she planned to amend it to add claims under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Florida Civil Rights Act, and the Illinois Human Rights Act once the EEOC issued a right-to-sue letter.1Wigdor LLP. Ogedegbe v. McDermott Will & Emery LLP Complaint The firm and “John Does 1-10” are named as defendants; no individual partners are named.2Law360. Ogedegbe v. McDermott Will & Emery LLP Et Al Dockets
Ogedegbe is represented by Michael J. Willemin of Wigdor LLP in New York. Willemin said in a statement that her experience “is a stark example of what happens when anti-discrimination policies are performative, and when powerful institutions retaliate instead of reflect and remediate.”3Wigdor LLP. Wigdor Files Race Discrimination and Retaliation Complaint Against Top Law Firm McDermott Will & Emery
What the Complaint Alleges
A Hostile Environment From Day One
The complaint says a Black receptionist told Ogedegbe on her first day at the Chicago office that “Black women don’t last at the Firm.”4ABA Journal. Suit by Fired McDermott Associate Alleges Egregious and Open Racism and Systematic Discrimination The centerpiece incident took place at a November 2022 associate retreat. During a diversity and inclusion exercise in which participants answered prompts such as “What do you hide about yourself at work?” on a shared screen, anonymous responses allegedly included “white pride,” “white skin,” “white power,” and “Nazism.”1Wigdor LLP. Ogedegbe v. McDermott Will & Emery LLP Complaint
According to the complaint, a colleague named Marika Miller pushed the firm’s Diversity Committee for a written apology and an investigation into who posted the messages. The committee declined, the complaint alleges, because leadership feared a written statement would be leaked to Above the Law. Committee members were told not to discuss the matter, and Miller was terminated shortly afterward.1Wigdor LLP. Ogedegbe v. McDermott Will & Emery LLP Complaint
Exclusion and Misattribution of Work
Ogedegbe alleges she was denied development opportunities given to her white peers. She says she was excluded from a healthcare “bootcamp” training in June 2023 that a more junior white associate attended, and that partners included her in client pitches to present a diverse team but cut her out of the work once the firm was retained.1Wigdor LLP. Ogedegbe v. McDermott Will & Emery LLP Complaint
The complaint describes work she says was taken or misattributed. A partner reportedly reassigned leadership of a project to a white associate after her initial work had generated the business. In another instance, the firm published an article she had written but credited a different Nigerian associate, which she characterizes as reflecting an attitude that “all Black people are the same.” She also alleges she was told she would have to be the “fall person” for mistakes made by a white income partner and was made to correct poorly done work by white colleagues without credit.4ABA Journal. Suit by Fired McDermott Associate Alleges Egregious and Open Racism and Systematic Discrimination
Retaliation and Termination
After Ogedegbe raised concerns to HR in the summer of 2024 about being removed from a Louisiana hospital deal and about whether Black women faced higher barriers to getting work, she says retaliation escalated. The firm conducted what she calls a “sham investigation,” then stripped her of assignments, gave her fabricated negative performance feedback, and blocked a requested transfer to a different practice group. A witness who might have supported her claims was allegedly threatened with termination.1Wigdor LLP. Ogedegbe v. McDermott Will & Emery LLP Complaint
To argue the termination was pretextual, she points to positive performance communications from partners in January, February, and March 2025, immediately before her firing. The complaint says the people she complained about were promoted or rewarded rather than disciplined.3Wigdor LLP. Wigdor Files Race Discrimination and Retaliation Complaint Against Top Law Firm McDermott Will & Emery
Firm-Wide Numbers
The complaint frames these incidents against firm-wide figures. It states that about 3% of the firm’s roughly 700 partners were Black, that none of the 11 members of its leadership team were Black, and that the firm “pushed out its only Black female Capital Partner in 2024.” It references “multiple other Black female lawyers” who allegedly experienced similar treatment and either left or were terminated, and alleges that the firm’s own Diversity Committee acknowledged internally a pattern of disproportionately terminating Black female attorneys.1Wigdor LLP. Ogedegbe v. McDermott Will & Emery LLP Complaint
How McDermott Responded
A firm spokesperson told the ABA Journal that McDermott “vigorously denies the countless false accusations made in the suit.” The spokesperson said the firm had been in contact with Ogedegbe’s attorney for several months before the filing and had “responded directly to her false accusations with facts,” adding: “As to all the accusations made, they are factually incorrect.” The firm also said its chairman, Ira Coleman, had condemned the behavior at the 2022 associate retreat at the time it occurred.4ABA Journal. Suit by Fired McDermott Associate Alleges Egregious and Open Racism and Systematic Discrimination
The 2026 Jane Doe Lawsuit
On April 17, 2026, an anonymous plaintiff identified as “Jane Doe,” a 38-year-old Black female senior associate with 14 years of experience, sued the firm in Los Angeles Superior Court (Case No. 26STCV 12606), alleging race, gender, and pregnancy discrimination.5Bloomberg Law. McDermott Sued Over Black Associate’s Discrimination Claims
Doe joined McDermott’s labor and employment group in Los Angeles in February 2021. Her complaint alleges she was repeatedly passed over for partner despite being, in the suit’s words, “the only known senior associate with her years and level of experience who has been refused a partner position at McDermott.”6ABA Journal. Black Female Associate Files Discrimination Complaint Against McDermott Will & Schulte Over Promotion Snub She says she was also removed from casework after taking medical leave during a life-threatening illness related to her pregnancy.7Law360. Black McDermott Atty Says White Men Favored for Partner
The complaint names labor and employment partner Maria Rodriguez, alleging Rodriguez implied Doe would be promoted and then retaliated after Doe raised concerns about her promotion prospects. Rodriguez allegedly removed Doe from matters and blocked her from taking assignments from other partners, limiting her billable hours and her eligibility for a bonus. Doe was later terminated. She is represented by Carney Shegerian of Shegerian & Associates, and Judge Maurice Leitner is presiding. As of reporting in April 2026, neither the firm nor Rodriguez had responded to requests for comment.5Bloomberg Law. McDermott Sued Over Black Associate’s Discrimination Claims
The Merger and the Firm’s Stated DEI Record
Both suits arrived during a major transition. McDermott Will & Emery completed a merger with Schulte Roth & Zabel on August 1, 2025, forming McDermott Will & Schulte, a combined firm of roughly 1,750 lawyers across more than 20 offices with reported combined 2024 gross revenue of $2.8 billion. Ira Coleman serves as chairman of the merged firm.8PlanAdviser. Law Firms McDermott Will & Emery and Schulte Roth & Zabel Merge
The firm’s website describes a firmwide JDEI (Justice, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) Committee with subcommittees on racial and ethnic diversity, gender diversity, and LGBTQ+ inclusion. It lists external recognition including a place on Fortune’s “2024 Best Workplaces for Women” list and recognition from the Human Rights Campaign Foundation.9McDermott Will & Schulte. Justice, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion The Ogedegbe complaint calls these initiatives “performative” and alleges the firm uses HR to run superficial investigations rather than address discriminatory behavior.4ABA Journal. Suit by Fired McDermott Associate Alleges Egregious and Open Racism and Systematic Discrimination
How Similar Cases Have Fared
Discrimination and retaliation claims against large law firms are hard to win at trial. In Cardwell v. Davis Polk & Wardwell, a former Black associate alleged he was fired in retaliation for reporting racial discrimination. The case went to a federal jury in New York, which returned a verdict for the firm in January 2024 after roughly two to three hours of deliberation. The judge had earlier narrowed the plaintiff’s claims, allowing only the retaliation theory to reach the jury.10ABA Journal. Jurors Rule for Davis Polk in Former Associate’s Retaliation Suit Whether the McDermott cases follow that trajectory or produce different results is still open.