Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight Logo
Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight Logo
U

Contact Us

Samone Ijoma, Associate

Samone Ijoma

Associate

Phone: 202-499-5232
Email: [email protected]
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/samoneijoma

Samone Ijoma is an Associate at Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight.

At Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight, Samone’s practice focuses on employment discrimination and sexual violence, title IX, and victims’ rights, representing both individuals and classes.

Samone received her law degree cum laude from the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law and her undergraduate degree cum laude from the George Washington University. While at Maryland Carey Law, Samone served as the Executive Notes and Comments Editor for the Journal of Race, Religion, Gender and Class, a Teaching Fellow for the Academic Achievement Program, Vice President of the Black Law Students Association, a Research Assistant for Professor Paula A. Monopoli, and a Rose Zetzer Fellow in the Women, Leadership, and Equality Program.

During law school, Samone also worked in the Civil Litigation Division at the Maryland Office of the Attorney General, as a Summer Associate at a regional law firm in Baltimore, Maryland, and as a Judicial Extern with the Honorable Michael W. Reed on the Court of Special Appeals of Maryland.

A member of the Maryland Bar, Samone authored a comment which appears in Volume 18, Issue 1 of the Journal of Race, Religion, Gender and Class. She has been quoted in publications such as Bloomberg Law and The 19th, speaking about harassment law reforms post-#MeToo going viral and new state salary transparency laws.

Before joining Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight, Samone completed a clerkship with the Honorable Michele D. Hotten of the Supreme Court of Maryland. After her clerkship, Samone was a Workplace Justice Legal Fellow at the National Women’s Law Center, a renowned gender justice legal advocacy organization, where she gained substantial experience in employment discrimination law.

When Samone is not lawyering, she enjoys traveling.

Education

  • J.D., University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law
  • B.A., George Washington University

Clinics

  • Gender Violence Clinic

Clerkships

  • Honorable Michele D. Hotten, the Supreme Court of Maryland

Bar Admissions*

  • Maryland

*Practicing under the supervision of Schwanda Rountree in the District of Columbia

Memberships

  • Member, The Alliance of Black Women Attorneys
  • Member, Maryland State Bar Association
  • Member, Women’s Bar Association

Twitter Severance Plan Class Action

On July 12, 2023, Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight filed a class action lawsuit against Twitter and Elon Musk for failing to provide promised severance benefits owed to terminated employees, and for failing to communicate accurately and truthfully with employees about the severance plan benefits, in violation of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA).

UM School of Medicine Race and Gender Discrimination Lawsuit

The lawsuit, filed on behalf of Dr. Omaida Velazquez, a world-renowned leader in vascular surgery, alleges gender, race, and national origin discrimination, unlawful retaliation, and breach of contract against the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine.

Glen Mar Early Learning Center Litigation

Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight, along with co-counsel Cohen Milstein, represented the parents of five children who were allegedly subjected to sexual abuse and exploitation by a predator over a two-year period while attending the Glen Mar Early Learning Center in Maryland. The parties agreed to a confidential settlement on September 25, 2023.

Publications

Blog

Commentary

Presentations

  • March 15, 2024, Panelist: The University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law’s Journal of Race, Religion, Gender and Class, Equal Pay Symposium: Confronting Structural Barriers to Unequal Pay Through Federal and State Legislation