Zachary N. Adorno
Counsel
zadorno@kaiserlaw.com | P (202) 869-1300
Zach Adorno is an experienced attorney who advises clients facing high-stakes personal and professional challenges. His practice focuses on counseling individuals and organizations through critical decisions, including whether to pursue defamation claims and how to respond to inquiries from government agencies. He brings a practical, strategic perspective shaped by deep experience in litigation and government service.
Before joining Kaiser PLLC, Zach served as Associate General Counsel at the Central Intelligence Agency, where he supported complex civil and criminal litigation involving sensitive information and advised internal clients on a wide range of operational and administrative matters. He previously practiced at law firms in the Washington, D.C. area, advising clients on civil litigation, defamation, crisis management, and financial restructuring, and clerked for the Honorable Michael F. Urbanski of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia.
Zach is admitted to practice in the District of Columbia and the Commonwealth of Virginia and holds an active Top Secret / SCI security clearance.
Prior to law school, Zach was a fifth-grade teacher in Dallas, Texas, through the Teach for America program.
Education
- J.D., University of Michigan Law School
- B.S., New York University Stern School of Business
Government Service
- Associate General Counsel, Central Intelligence Agency
- Clerkship, U.S. District Judge Michael F. Urbanski, United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia
Zachary N. Adorno
Counsel
zadorno@kaiserlaw.com | P (202) 869-1300
Law 360 – “Handling Corporate Congressional Probes In The Trump Era” co-authored by Bill Pittard
January 17, 2019Matt Kaiser in The Washington Post: The Education Department wants to make campus sexual misconduct hearings fairer. It should go further.
September 6, 2018Law360 – “The Latest On Sexual Harassment Reform On The Hill” by Bill Pittard
February 23, 2018Matt Kaiser Publishes Op-Ed for The Washington Post: Lawyers: DeVos is bringing due process to campus sexual assault cases
September 11, 2017Law 360 – “When Russia Investigations Collide” by Bill Pittard
June 7, 2017Matt Kaiser Publishes Op-Ed: Minnesota’s Failed Football Boycott Was a Blow to Fairness in Campus Sexual Assault Hearings
December 20, 2016Matt Kaiser Co-Authors Op-Ed in Los Angeles Times: Absurdity Reigns in Campus Sexual Assault Trials.
April 21, 2016Matt Kaiser Guest Blogs on Washington Legal Foundation The Legal Pulse: Overcriminalization Timeline: Mens Rea, Public Welfare Offenses and Responsible Corporate Officer Doctrine
November 16, 2015Matt Kaiser Co-Authors Editorial in the Los Angeles Times: How to Punish Campus Sexual Assault
November 14, 2015Matt Kaiser Publishes an Editorial in The Washington Times: Being an Executive is not a Crime
November 11, 2015Matt Kaiser Publishes Editorial in LA Times: Why It’s Unfair for Colleges to Use Outside Investigators in Rape Cases.
September 16, 2015Matt Kaiser Co-Authors Op-Ed in the National Law Journal: The DOJ’s Crackdown on White-Collar Crime Creates ‘Cruel Alternative’
September 14, 2015Matt Kaiser Publishes Op-ed in The Weekly Standard: The Campus Sex Scene: How Congress Can Make It Worse
August 6, 2015Matt Kaiser Co-Authors Op-ed in The Washington Post: We’ve defended lots of campus sexual assault cases, so we know just how unfair they are
July 24, 2015Matt Kaiser Publishes Editorial in Baltimore Sun: A Minimum of Reform
November 14, 2014Matt Kaiser Co-Authors Op-Ed in San Diego Union-Tribune: California Bill Won’t Solve Sexual Assault Problem on Campus
September 3, 2014Matt Kaiser Publishes Op-Ed in Boston Herald: College Courts Flunks Fairness Test
August 16, 2014Matt Kaiser Publishes an Article for Time Magazine: Some Rules about Consent are “Unfair” to Male Students”
May 15, 2014Matt Kaiser Publishes an Editorial in the Wall Street Journal: The White House Flunks a Test on Sexual Assault
May 5, 2014Matt Kaiser Co-Authors Opinion for The Wall Street Journal: The White House Flunks a Test on Sexual Assault
May 5, 2014Matt Kaiser Co-Authors a Letter to the Editor in the New York Times: The Rights of the Accused
April 28, 2014Zachary N. Adorno
Counsel
zadorno@kaiserlaw.com | P (202) 869-1300
Zachary N. Adorno
Counsel
zadorno@kaiserlaw.com | P (202) 869-1300
