Anelga Doumanian feels fortunate to have been raised in a nurturing and loving home which fostered her curiosity, encouraged her dreams, and respected her decisions. That foundational experience drives her law practice today. She believes every child is entitled to a healthy and happy childhood, and that it is a grave injustice to be deprived of one. She almost exclusively represents survivors of childhood sexual abuse and is devoted to finding legal pathways to address the wrongs committed against them. Her work holds the responsible institutions and individuals accountable—attempting to ensure that not only do her clients receive the justice they deserve, but that what happened to them never happens to anyone else.
Anelga has been helping survivors of childhood sexual abuse since 2013 in cases against state institutions and Catholic Archdioceses and Dioceses in Missouri, Washington, Illinois, and New York, including working to secure one of the largest settlements against the Archdiocese of Seattle. Her practical experience and legal knowledge allow her to effectively handle each client’s case from start to finish.
In all representations, unusual challenges or tough opponents do not deter Anelga from obtaining her clients’ best outcomes. Instead, she will “roll up her sleeves” and take on any difficult tasks that give her clients a chance for closure and healing. While she recognizes that all incidents of childhood sexual abuse are traumatic, she understands that each survivor’s human story is unique and is, therefore, unquestionably committed to helping her clients reach their individual goals.
When interacting with her clients, Anelga is especially sensitive to the personal nature of the topics discussed. She is a careful and empathetic listener. She validates their individual experience, and in turn, a sense of trust develops. She is genuinely diligent, thoughtful, and thorough. She values transparency and strives to ensure that her clients understand the intricacies of their legal case, including the legal strategy and next steps of their case. Her diplomatic, but direct, approach results in practical, unwavering advocacy for sexual abuse survivors.
Anelga admits that the subject matter she handles in her practice is not easy, but she has a genuine understanding and compassion for the work. Prior to joining PCVA, Anelga worked for one of the few Missouri law firms dedicated to representing survivors of childhood sexual abuse. One of her first mentors at that firm instilled in her the notion that attorneys who represent vulnerable individuals must be compassionate and generous. He called this being “a lawyer with a heart.”
Luckily, Anelga has found a collaborative team standing with her—and behind her—at PCVA. The firm not only has profound institutional knowledge as a national leader on childhood sexual abuse issues, but is also full of “lawyers with hearts.” Each devotes countless hours to the cases the firm takes on. That combination enables her to do everything she can for her clients to succeed.
Honors
Everett J. Hullverson Academic Excellence Award, 2015
Representative Cases
• $7 million in settlement for men abused by six priests as boys
• $1.95 million sexual abuse settlement for a man abused at a local Seattle Catholic High School as a child
• $1.55 million sexual abuse settlement for a man who was abused by his parish priest at a local Seattle-Tacoma parish
• $600,000 settlement against DSHS for the sexual abuse of a woman by a Child Study and Treatment Center counselor
Professional Associations
• American Bar Association
• King County Bar Association
• National Crime Victim Bar Association
• New York State Bar Association
• Washington State Association for Justice
