Richard Amador

Richard S. Amador has over 30 years of experience defending employers in

state and federal court and representing entities victimized by fraud or unfair

competition. A California judge before whom he successfully tried a 2005 case

called Richard “one of the finest trial lawyers in the legal profession.” He added that “his

reputation for honesty and integrity is impeccable.”

 

GC California magazine featured Richard as a “Hidden Gem” among the top

employment lawyers in California, based on a statewide survey of in-house counsel

and mediators. He is AV® Peer-Review Rated by Martindale-Hubbell, the highest

ranking for ethics and legal ability.

 

Richard serves on the Executive Committee of the board of directors of the

National Employment Law Council (NELC). He previously served on the board of

the National Association of Minority and Women Owned Law Firms (NAMWOLF),

as chairman of the board of the East L.A. YMCA, as president of the Board of

Commissioners for the Los Angeles City Employee Retirement System, and as a

director of the California Minority Counsel Program and the Minority Corporate

Counsel Association. The Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund

honored Richard for exceptional service as pro bono counsel and KCET Public

Television honored him as a “Hero of the Community.” He is also a recipient of the

Wiley W. Manuel Award for Pro Bono Legal Services from the California Bar

Association.

 

Richard is frequently asked to speak on trial advocacy, deposition skills, client

service, and employment law topics, and is a founding faculty member of the NELC

Academy—a selective program for junior minority employment defense lawyers to

receive advanced skills training from leading practitioners. Richard authors a blog

on career success for young lawyers of color: www.ColorOfLaw.us.

 

A 1988 graduate of UC Berkeley School of Law, Richard received his undergraduate

degree from UCLA in 1985. In 2020, he was elected to the College of Labor and

Employment Lawyers. He formed SANCHEZ & AMADOR in 1994, where he serves

as managing partner and co-chairs the firm’s Employment Litigation and

Investigations Group.