Qiaojing Ella Zheng

Qiaojing Ella Zheng is a partner and the Asian American Litigation and Finance Practice Group’s chair at the law firm of Sanford Heisler Sharp, LLP. The firm has offices in New York; Washington, D.C.; San Francisco; Baltimore; San Diego; and Nashville. Ms. Zheng is the Managing Partner of the San Francisco and Palo Alto, California offices , assisting clients with:

• Employment disputes
• Financial services litigation
• Discrimination and harassment claims
• Civil litigation
• Class actions
• Whistleblower/qui tam claims

She represents clients in San Francisco as well as in New York City, the Bay Area and the greater New York metro area.

Graduating with her Bachelor of Laws degree from Zhejiang University in China, Ms. Zheng pursued her master’s in taxation law at the Thomas Jefferson School of Law. While in law school, she was a part of the International Law Society and the Student Bar Association. She is licensed to practice in the states of New York (2012) and California (2013). Later, she was admitted to appear before the U.S. Supreme Court, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit and the U.S. District Courts for the Northern and Southern Districts of California.

Bilingual in Mandarin and English, Ms. Zheng represents a diverse range of clients, including those in executive and managerial positions. Her clientele includes people facing issues ranging from wage and hour disputes to retaliation and wrongful termination claims. She also counsels companies and individuals in China and the Silicon Valley on legal matters arising under regulatory and compliance laws in the U.S. Her legal studies and working experience in both the U.S. and China help her better understand international clients and their cultural differences. 

With an “Excellent” rating on Avvo, Ms. Zheng is known to be a professional and knowledgeable attorney. She is the recipient of the President’s Award by the Chinese American Lawyers of the Bay Area and the Asian Leaders Worth Watching Award by the Profiles in Diversity Journal. The YWCA Golden Gate Silicon Valley has honored her with the Tribute to Women Award, and the Minority Bar Coalition (MBC) has presented her with the MBC Unity Award. Moreover, she has made it to The National Trial Lawyers: Top 40 under 40 list for civil plaintiff trial law in California. 

Ms. Zheng takes part in international conferences, writes blogs on employment disputes and plays an active role in her community circle. She functions as the president of the Chinese American Lawyers of the Bay Area and as a board director for the General Association of Zhejiang Entrepreneurs. She also serves as the vice president of the YWCA Golden Gate Silicon Valley.