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Kiffi Y. Ford
Member
Employment

kford@dykema.com
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Lansing, Michigan
517-374-9177

Education
Trinity College, B.A.
Wayne State University, J.D.

Admitted to Practice
Michigan  1996

Ms. Ford's practice focuses on the defense and trial of complex employment cases in federal and state courts, and advising, training, and counseling companies on state and federal employment matters.

She represents a broad range of state, national, and international clients in the full spectrum of employment and discrimination related matters, including noncompete claims, EEOC and other agency charges, lawsuits involving race, national origin, sex, same-sex, age, marital status, religious, pregnancy, and disability discrimination, ADA Title III or comparable state law accessibility issues, Whistleblower claims, Fair Labor Standards Act claims, equal pay claims, unemployment compensation, and wrongful termination.  Ms. Ford also drafts employment manuals and policies, trains executives and employees, and negotiates employment contracts and settlements.
 
Additionally, she regularly counsels employers with respect to pre-litigation investigations, strategy and negotiation, workplace violence and human resource investigations, and reduction-in-force issues. She also represents employers throughout their arbitration processes.  She has also conducted sensitive, high-level harassment investigations. 

Ms. Ford has provided advice on ADA Title III accessibility laws, defended accessibility cases, provided consulting work and negotiated favorable settlements in accessibility matters.

In 2005, the Michigan Supreme Court appointed Ms. Ford to the State Bar of Michigan Board of Commissioners, where she currently serves on the Board's Executive Committee.  She is a member of the Board of Directors for the Metropolitan Lansing YMCA.  Additionally, in 2006, Ms. Ford was awarded a fellowship from the Michigan Political Leadership Program at Michigan State University.  She is also a Fellow of the Michigan State Bar Foundation.
 
Ms. Ford is a member of the National Bar Association, ABA, Wolverine Bar Association, and the Defense Research Institute.

Seminars and Speeches

  • 4/2010  When the HR Manager is a Key Witness-An Interactive, Stop Action Video, 2010 Institute of Continuing Legal Education Labor and Employment Law Institute
  • 4/2006  Investigating Harassment Claims - Best Practices, 2006 Institute of Continuing Legal Education Labor and Employment Law Institute
  • 4/2005  Settlement Agreements in the Employment Context - A to Z, 2005 Institute of Continuing Legal Education Labor and Employment Law Institute
  • 10/2004  Sarbanes Oxley and Whistleblowers Claims, University of Chicago Gleacher Center
  • 9/2004  Demonstrative Daubert Hearing - How to Qualify An Expert, 2004 Labor and Employment Law Section of the State Bar Annual Meeting

Publications

  • "Discrimination Issues After Hire," Employment Law in Michigan: An Employer's Guide 2006 Update
  • "Discrimination Issues After Hire," Employment Law in Michigan: An Employer's Guide 2005