O’Melveny’s Supreme Court and Appellate Litigation practice solves high-stakes problems for clients at all levels of the judiciary, federal and state. O’Melveny lawyers argue almost every Term in the US Supreme Court and have filed merits and amicus briefs in scores of cases before the Court in the last two decades.
The author of a recent study on the Court’s use of language in its opinions pronounced O’Melveny’s briefs the “most influential” in helping the Court shape its analysis. Our work has helped clients achieve success in high-profile, precedent-setting matters such as Skilling v. United States (which dramatically narrowed the federal honest-services fraud statute), Exxon v. Baker (which established key precedent constraining punitive damages awards), and Hertz v. Friend (which significantly broadened corporations’ access to diversity jurisdiction). O’Melveny’s brief in United States v. Jones not only won our client a new trial, but brought search-and-seizure law into the 21st Century along the way, persuading the Court that the Fourth Amendment’s warrant requirement applies to law enforcement’s use of GPS tracking devices.
But appellate litigation at O’Melveny extends far beyond the Supreme Court. Indeed, our appellate work often starts long before any appeal is filed—or even before an answer is filed. We work closely with trial lawyers to identify and craft arguments for dismissal or summary judgment and to draft motions of all kinds before, during, and after trial. We file briefs in state and federal trial and appellate courts, in regulatory agencies, and in arbitral tribunals. An appellate lawyer’s principal task often is to “translate” technical questions to the generalist judges who will review and decide them. Our record of success across a wide variety of subjects in a broad range of venues demonstrates our skill in performing that essential function.
Whatever the venue, issue, or subject matter, the unrivaled skill and experience of our appellate lawyers ensures that we can provide forceful advocacy, nuanced advice, or creative solutions to meet our clients’ needs.
