Indian American Kalpana Kotagal was sworn in as the Commissioner of the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), which is responsible for enforcing federal laws that make it illegal to discriminate against a job applicant or an employee on the basis of caste, race, gender , religion among others.

The commission presently includes chair Charlotte Burrows, vice chair Jocelyn Samuels, and commissioners Keith E. Sonderling and Andrea R. Lucas. According to an official statement by the EEOC, Kotagal's swearing-in restores the Commission to its full complement.

Kotagal was nominated by President Biden on April 1, 2022, and was confirmed on July 14, 2023, to serve as Commissioner. Speaking of Kotagal's experience, chair Burrows said, “She has dedicated her career to advancing civil rights both in the courtroom and by working collaboratively with employers. Her creative approaches to ensuring equal opportunity, her legal expertise, and her commitment to workers will greatly benefit the Commission.”

Sharing her excitement for the new role, Kotagal said, “It’s an honour to start a new chapter as an EEOC Commissioner and an incredible opportunity to apply the experience from my previous work. I look forward to working toward solutions for the issues facing today’s workforce alongside my colleagues on the Commission and in the agency.”

Kotagal is a highly-acclaimed litigator who has represented women and other marginalized people in employment and civil rights litigation involving issues related to Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, the Equal Pay Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, and the Family and Medical Leave Act, as well as wage and hour issues and the non-discrimination provision of the Affordable Care Act.

Before her appointment to the EEOC, Kotagal was a partner at Cohen Milstein, a member of the firm’s Civil Rights & Employment practice group, and chair of the firm’s Hiring and Diversity Committee. She has served as a law clerk to Betty Binns Fletcher of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

Kotagal attended Stanford University, where she was a Morris K. Udall Scholar and graduated with honours. She earned her J.D., cum laude, from the University of Pennsylvania School of Law, where she was a James Wilson Fellow.