Our appellate team combines deep knowledge of industries and substantive law with a well-earned reputation for excellence in appellate advocacy. We help clients win cases and shape the long-term development of the law in their interest.
We bring to bear extensive experience in:
- Diverse industries, from transportation, energy, and insurance to Internet and telecommunications, manufacturing, and retail
- Evolving areas of the law, such as constitutional jurisprudence, white-collar defense, intellectual property, taxation, ERISA and public pension plans, labor and employment, tribal jurisdiction, international trade, and environmental torts
- Cross-cutting issues, including class actions, punitive damages, administrative process, federal preemption, jurisdiction, and abstention
We appear in every circuit and numerous states, from discrete matters in intermediate appellate courts to high-stakes disputes and precedent-setting US Supreme Court cases.
Our lawyers excel at pitching specialized issues to judges, telling a compelling story, and explaining technically complicated facts in simple language.
We also participate at the trial level, to assure that key legal issues are persuasively presented and fully preserved. We bring a fresh and independent perspective in observing and advising during trial, preparing and arguing pretrial dispositive and procedural motions, motions in limine, trial briefs, jury instructions, and post-trial motions.
We emphasize collaborating with trial counsel, whether at Steptoe or other firms, while offering clear-eyed evaluations of the merits, potential strategies, and client prospects.
Representative Matters
- From 2015 to 2017, in Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Maryland, and Texas appeals, established that the National Labor Relations Act does not preempt state courts from issuing injunctions against trespasses and nuisances by an international union and allied groups in hundreds of a leading national retailer’s stores, parking lots, and sidewalks.
- United States v. Slatten (DC Cir. 2017). Obtained a reversal of a mandatory 30-year sentence for a State Department security contractor convicted of using government-issued automatic weapons in perceived self-defense in a war-zone shooting incident.
- Tesoro Refining & Marketing Co. v. National Union Fire Ins. Co. of Pittsburgh, Pa. (5th Cir. 2016). Successfully defended an insurer under a commercial crime policy against a claim for alleged employee forgery of customer letters of credit.
- Earll v. eBay, Inc. (9th Cir. 2015). Represented The Internet Association as amicus curiae before the Ninth Circuit, establishing that an Internet website was not a “place of public accommodation” for purposes of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
- Hughes v. Talen Energy Marketing (US 2015). Established in the Supreme Court that the Federal Power Act preempted state price subsidy schemes that supplanted FERC-approved prices for electricity generation.
- CCI Europe, Inc. v. Arizona Department of Revenue (Ariz. App. 2015). Represented a licensor of newspaper production software in establishing that the software qualified for the state machinery-and-equipment transaction privilege tax exemption.
- Thomas v. Nugent (US 2014). Obtained certiorari and vacate of Fifth Circuit decision that granted qualified immunity to police officer amid allegations of extreme force.
- Arnold v. Insurance Co. of the State of Pennsylvania (NC App. 2014). On interlocutory appeal, persuaded the North Carolina Court of Appeals to vacate discovery sanctions imposed on an insurer.
- Evans v. Chalmers (4th Cir. 2012). Obtained dismissal of City of Durham in claims brought by former Duke lacrosse players over the investigation of false rape charges.
- Nardelli v. Metropolitan Group Property & Casualty Insurance Co. (2012). Convinced the Arizona Court of Appeals to reduce jury’s punitive damages verdict against an insurer.
News & Publications
Client Alerts
Supreme Court Oral Argument Signals Chevron Deference Is Running on Fumes
January 19, 2024
Press Releases
December 14, 2023
Press Releases
Steptoe Announces Partner and Counsel Promotions for January 1, 2024
November 28, 2023
Press Releases
May 15, 2023
Press Releases
February 22, 2023
Publications
What To Expect From High Court's Key FAA Cases This Term
Law360
March 2, 2022
By: Mark C. Savignac
Media Mentions
Media Cover Steptoe's Success in State-Sponsored Hacking Suit in DC Circuit
September 7, 2021
Media Mentions
Managing IP Quotes John Molenda on Developing Diversity at Federal Circuit
April 6, 2021
Press Releases
Steptoe Continues Expansion of IP Group in New York with Patent Litigator Mike Eisenberg
March 22, 2021
Media Mentions
Law360 Covers Steptoe's Sixth Circuit Win in Retirees' Bankruptcy Deal
February 5, 2021