Elaine L. Fitch is a fierce advocate for civil rights in the workplace. She has spent her career fighting for federal and private sector employees confronted with a variety of issues, including security clearance matters, disability issues, including failure to accommodate, all types of discrimination and harassment, and federal disciplinary matters.
Fitch is part of KCNF’s security clearance practice, representing federal employees and contractors whose clearances have been threatened or suspended, or whose suitability for federal employment has been challenged. She is co-author of the firm’s long-running book, Security Clearance Law and Procedure, currently in its fifth edition (Dewey Publications, 2021).
Lawdragon Honors
| Honor | Year | Practice |
|---|---|---|
| The 2026 Lawdragon 500 Leading Lawyers in America | 2026 | Plaintiff Employment Litigation, Security Clearance |
| The 2025 Lawdragon 500 Leading Civil Rights & Plaintiff Employment Lawyers | 2025 | Employee & Civil Rights, inc. Disability |
| The 2025 Lawdragon 100 Managing Partners You Need to Know | 2025 | Managing Partner |
| The 2024 Lawdragon 500 Leading Civil Rights & Plaintiff Employment Lawyers | 2024 | Employee & Civil Rights, inc. Disability |
Fitch’s commitment to and advocacy on behalf of individuals with disabilities has led to numerous successful outcomes for her clients. For example, Fitch represented an individual who suffered irreparable damage to her health solely because her employing federal agency refused to provide a reasonable accommodation. Following extensive litigation, in the midst of an EEOC hearing, the agency settled her claim for seven figures. In another case, a federal agency proposed an employee for removal. The employee then requested a reasonable accommodation, but the Agency refused to provide what she needed to continue working. Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, of the U.S. District Court for D.C., rejected the Agency’s argument that the employee’s request for accommodation was untimely and held that because she was still an employee at the time she made the request, the agency was still in a position to accommodate her.
Fitch was elected a member of The Fellows of the American Bar Foundation, an honorary organization of attorneys, judges, law faculty, and legal scholars, who have demonstrated outstanding achievements and dedication to the welfare of their communities and to the highest principles of the legal profession. Membership in The Fellows is limited to one third of one percent of lawyers licensed to practice in each jurisdiction.
In 2024, she was elected as a Fellow of the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers. Election as a Fellow is the highest recognition by one’s colleagues of sustained outstanding performance in the profession, exemplifying integrity, dedication, and excellence.
Lawdragon named Fitch to the “100 Managing Partners You Need to Know” guide in 2025 and the “500 Leading Civil Rights and Plaintiff Employment Lawyers” guide in 2024.
Fitch joined KCNF in 2002 and became a partner in January 2006; she has been the firm’s Managing Partner since approximately 2013.
Fitch received her education from the University of California at Berkeley (B.S., 1989) and Hastings College of the Law, University of California (J.D. 1996), where she was Executive Articles Editor for the Hastings Women’s Law Journal, was a Board Member for the Hastings Public Interest Law Foundation, received recognition for Outstanding Service and Achievement from the 1066 Foundation, and was awarded the George R. Moscone Scholarship based on academic standing and public service.