Most of the claims brought by former Kirkland & Ellis associate Zoya Kovalenko against her former firm have survived a motion to dismiss, per a court order earlier this week that set the stage for a legal battle over whether Kirkland fired Kovalenko in retaliation for complaining about sex-based discrimination at the firm.
Kovalenko sued Kirkland in October 2022, alleging that she both experienced and observed sex-based discrimination within the IP litigation group that led to a substantially higher turnover rate for female associates. Kovalenko was terminated in 2021—an act of retaliation, her complaint alleged—and initially represented herself before retaining Tanvir Rahman of Filippatos PLLC.