Suzanne Kelly Michael
Partner
Overview
Suzanne Kelly Michael is a partner in the firm's Seattle and Portland offices and national co-chair of the firm's Litigation Practice group. She focuses her practice on employment law, employment litigation, civil litigation and workplace safety. Taking pride in her responsiveness to clients, Suzanne is deeply experienced handling sexual harassment, sexual orientation discrimination, age and national origin discrimination, disability discrimination, trade secrets, wage and hour and a host of other claims, including class actions.
Suzanne is frequently called upon to tap her decades of experience in jury trial work and assist in significant and groundbreaking trials across the country. Representing both public and private entities, she is often asked to defend lawyers, law firms, state bar associations, judges, and public employers including cities, counties, and state agencies. Some of her other clients include many businesses in the automotive dealership, technology, and healthcare industries.
Suzanne has been named one of the “Top Ten Female Litigators in Washington State.” She has regularly been named a “Washington Super Lawyer” in employment law and litigation, including for the year 2024, and is consistently rated among the “Top Employment Lawyers” in Seattle magazine. Suzanne was recently selected to become a fellow in the Litigation Counsel of America, a trial lawyer honorary society whose membership is limited to fewer than one-half of one percent of North American lawyers, judges, and legal scholars that have significant trial experience.
Suzanne is a member of the American Bar Association, Washington Women Lawyers and Washington Defense Trial Lawyers and is rated AV by Martindale-Hubbell Lawyer Rating Service, the highest rating available to a lawyer.
She has published articles on trial tactics, frequently presents at seminars and has taught at the National Institute of Trial Advocacy (NITA).