I am honored to be one of seven solo practitioners in the District of Columbia included on the 2018 Washington, D.C. Super Lawyers list as a “Top Rated Appellate Lawyer.” The Super Lawyer designation is a welcome complement to my decision, after almost 45 years of legal practice with a large law firm, to open […]
The so-called “Calexit” secession initiative not only is nonsensical, but also superfluous. California in many ways already acts as if it were its own sovereign nation, defiant of federal authority and oblivious to the interests of other States. This is federalism on steroids. In early April, Missouri and 10 other States filed an amicus curiae
Who Needs “Calexit”? California Already Pretends It’s A Separate Nation Read More »
I recently had the honor of authoring an amicus brief for the Republic of France relating to federal preemption and France’s product identity and ingredient standards. French law declares that foie gras (specially fattened duck or goose liver) is part of France’s “protected cultural and gastronomic heritage.” To produce foie gras, ducks and geese are
France Urges Supreme Court To Overturn California’s Foie Gras Ban Read More »
Through scholarship, legal expertise, and advocacy, the Center for Law and Public Policy acts as a think tank and public voice for DRI and its 22,000 members on issues of importance to the civil litigation defense bar. As Chair of the DRI Amicus Committee, I am privileged to be part of the Center’s leadership. We met at DRI
DRI Center for Law & Public Policy Focuses on Civil Justice Read More »
On March 14 I had the privilege of moderating a lively and insightful panel on The Economics of Appellate Practice: Surviving, and Hopefully Thriving, as an Appellate Litigator at the DRI Appellate Advocacy Seminar in Las Vegas. The three panelists – Wendy Cole Lascher, Partner at Ferguson Case Orr Patterson LLP, Ventura, California; Richard M. Wolff, Vice President-Complex
The nation’s three leading government contractor organizations—The Coalition for Government Procurement, the National Defense Industrial Association, and the Professional Services Council—are jointly urging the Supreme Court to clarify the “particularity” with which a False Claims Act qui tam relator must allege fraud in order to survive a motion to dismiss. The groups’ amicus curiae brief, authored by Capital
During the past eighteen months, I have discovered the many virtues of solo practice. Don’t get me wrong: Most private-sector attorneys want to be, and should be, part of a multi-lawyer firm or in-house legal department. In fact, I spent 42 years at what began as small Washington, D.C. firm, and through mergers and acquisitions,
Why I Like Practicing Solo Read More »
It’s hard to believe that I began working out three times per week with Greg Raleigh, Fitness Center Manager of the University Club of Washington, D.C., a quarter century ago. Back then, when I was in my mid 40’s, I honestly had no idea what a personal trainer could do for me. Now, I can’t
Greg Raleigh & Me — 3,000 Workouts Read More »
Federal preemption of state and local law is a legal concept that is important to every producer and user of pesticides and other federally regulated products. Larry Ebner has been deeply involved in federal preemption issues for more than 30 years. His article, “Preemption 101,” published by the National Pest Management Association in the January-February
In Ali Jaber v. United States, No. 16-5093 (D.C. Cir. June 30, 2017), recently retired D.C. Circuit Judge Janice Rogers Brown authored a unanimous panel opinion faithfully applying circuit precedent and the political question doctrine to bar a declaratory judgment suit challenging the wisdom of a U.S. drone strike in Yemen that allegedly resulted in
