
Samone Ijoma
Associate
Samone Ijoma is an Associate at Sanford Heisler Sharp.
At Sanford Heisler Sharp, Samone’s practice focuses on employment discrimination and criminal/sexual violence matters, 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 & 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, 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
- Corporate Diversity Pledges Fizzle Amid Layoffs, GOP Backlash, Bloomberg Law, March 9, 2023
- More Pay Disclosure Laws Exposing Employers to Bias Suits, Bloomberg Law, September 6, 2022
- Pay Disclosure Laws in Connecticut, Nevada Bolster Equity Effort, Bloomberg Law, September 30, 2021
- R. Kelly has been convicted of sex crimes against Black women. Why did it take nearly 30 years?, The 19th, September 28, 2021
- Texas Sexual Harassment Laws Signal Stronger #MeToo Push, Bloomberg Law, September 02, 2021
Publications
- Sanford Heisler Sharp’s Comment on Proposed Rule § 106.41(b)(2) Regarding Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Sex in Education Programs or Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance: Sex-related Eligibility Criteria for Male and Female Athletic Teams, May 15, 2023. Co-Author.
- A Worker’s Guide To Fighting Discriminatory Layoffs, Law360, March 14, 2023
- False Promises of Protection: Black Women, Trans People & the Struggle for Visibility as Victims of Intimate Partner and Gendered Violence, Journal of Race, Religion, Gender and Class, May 17, 2018. Author.