Ada W.Dolph

Partner

Ada revels in crafting innovative, successful legal arguments for her clients’ employment challenges. Your problem is her problem, and she is a relentless advocate, whether for outright dismissal or negotiation of a favorable settlement.


More About Ada

With nearly 20 years of experience as a labor and employment litigator with Seyfarth, Ada is a trusted advisor to clients in the airline, retail, health care, and manufacturing industries. Ada’s practice focuses on advice and counsel, and innovative litigation involving:

  • Complex procedural defenses including: preemption of state law claims under ERISA, Railway Labor Act, Airline Deregulation Act, Federal Aviation Act, and the Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance Act (SGLIA); Article III and statutory standing; statute of limitations; and administrative exhaustion requirements, among others.
  • Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) claims, prevailing as lead counsel in the first BIPA case to be heard by the US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.
  • Illinois Genetic Information Privacy Act (GIPA) claims.
  • Whistleblower claims under state law, AIR21, Dodd-Frank, and Sarbanes-Oxley.
  • Discrimination claims in state and federal jurisdictions across the country, including under Title VII, ADA, Section 1981, and the ADEA, and their state law counterparts, including systemic actions brought by the EEOC.
  • ERISA single- and multiplaintiff and class action matters involving denial of health, disability, life, pension, and 401(k) benefits, including defense of high-profile “stock drop,” retiree medical, and 401(k) fee class actions.

Ada’s class action experience includes unique procedural issues including sustaining removal of cases to federal court on preemption and Class Action Fairness Act (CAFA) grounds, successfully opposing a named plaintiff-intervenor, obtaining Fed. R. Civ. P. 23(f) review of class certification, obtaining appellate CAFA review and reversal of a district court remand order, defeating and narrowing class certification, and negotiating and overseeing settlements in classes of up to 160,000 class members.

Ada also has significant e-discovery experience in both single-plaintiff and class action matters, including the effective and efficient management of preservation, collection, review, and production of electronically stored information (ESI), as well as aggressively navigating disputes regarding the breadth and scope of the production of ESI.

In 2019, Ada’s unique legal strategy in a a commercial airline matter was recognized for innovation by The Financial Times.

Ada also co-chairs the firm's Air and Rail specialty team, and is a member of its ERISA and Employee Benefits Litigation practice group, Whistleblower team, and Health Care and Provider Fraud team.

  • JD, Northwestern Pritzker School of Law

    Cum laude
    Northwestern Law Review, articles editor
    Published in Northwestern Law Review (2004)
    Spring 2004 Trial Advocacy Team

  • BA, University of Wisconsin - Madison
  • Illinois
  • US Supreme Court
  • US Court of Appeals, Third Circuit
  • US Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit
  • US Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit
  • US Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit
  • US District Court, District of Colorado
  • US District Court, Central District of Illinois
  • US District Court, Northern District of Illinois
  • US District Court, Northern District of Indiana
  • US District Court, Southern District of Indiana
  • US District Court, Eastern District of Michigan
  • US District Court, Western District of Michigan
  • US District Court, Western District of Tennessee
  • US District Court, Eastern District of Wisconsin