An Nguyen Ruda joined Bartko in January 2020 as the Co-Chair of the Labor and Employment Department. An was elected to the CEO and Co-Managing Partner position in January 2023. Under her leadership, Bartko expanded from its San Francisco office to Los Angeles, San Diego, and Chicago. An’s focus is on the growth and brand recognition of Bartko as an elite law boutique.
In her legal practice, An is a partner and strategic advisor to businesses, guiding them through any and all issues related to their workforce. An’s clients include businesses of all sizes from mom-and-pop shops to Fortune 500 companies who trust her to provide individualized advice on all employment issues such as individual terminations, wage and hour advice and remediation, company reorganizations, policy decisions, and employee retention maximization. An’s litigation avoidance strategies have saved her clients untold amounts of money and time.
An is one of California’s preeminent labor negotiators. She has served as the Chief Negotiator on several significant labor contracts, including multiple master collective bargaining agreements and initial labor agreements, as well as successor agreements in the healthcare, newspaper, entertainment, manufacturing, and hospitality industries.
An is the go-to employment lawyer for several prominent restructuring companies and bankruptcy lawyers. An frequently provides pre-petition advice to companies relating to the WARN Act, severance, risk exposure, and reorganization. An has also served as Special Labor Counsel in several bankruptcies, including one of the largest healthcare system bankruptcies in the country, where she renegotiated seven collective bargaining agreements in 70 days—including two in one week—to accomplish a transaction closing in a 363 Sale.
In her career, An had many years of experience litigating and trying complex catastrophic and serious-injury tort cases for Amtrak, and other long- and short-haul carriers. An has also represented corporate clients whose employees have been accused of sexual assault and who are potentially facing related tort claims.
In her free time An is an avid collector of designer handbags and enjoys volunteering at her son’s school.
Education
- Santa Clara University, School of Law, J.D., magna cum laude
- University of California, Berkeley, with highest honors, B.A.
Bar Admissions
- State Bar of California
- United States District Court for the Northern District of California
- United States District Court for the Eastern District of California
- United States District Court for the Southern District of California
- United States District Court for the Central District of California
Representative Cases
- An obtained an award against a defense lawyer who kept documents in contravention of a settlement agreement, which resulted in two court of appeal decisions.
- An obtained a defense award in a wrongful termination matter filed by a C-Suite executive of a financial services company.
Publications & Speaking Engagements
- Continuing Education of the Bar Presents: Fundamentals of Employment Law
- Labor & Employment New Year Round-Up: What to Expect in 2020
- Labor & Employment 2018 Legislative Round-Up: What to Expect in 2019
- The California Court of Appeal Further Burdens California Hospitals by Barring Meal Waivers for Employees Working Long Shifts
- Daily Journal: Franchisors Should Beware Standardized Noncompetes
- Aspatore/Thompson Reuters: Inside the Minds: Negotiating and Drafting Employment Agreements, 2014 ed.