The last word in many cases is an appeal. An appeals court can take away a hard-won victory or remedy a harsh defeat. Skilled appellate advocacy is crucial to achieving desired results.
The lawyers in K&L Gates’ Appellate Practice have broad experience in the nuances of appellate practice, having briefed and argued cases in the United States Supreme Court, in all of the United States Courts of Appeals, and in state appellate courts from New York to California, Washington to Texas, and Massachusetts to Florida. Many of our lawyers are former appellate clerks who bring to their advocacy invaluable insights gained while assisting judges in the decision-making process.
The K&L Gates Appellate Practice has been recognized by the National Law Journal’s Appellate “Hot List,” and a number of its lawyers have been named among the “Best Lawyers in America” in appellate advocacy.
Our appellate lawyers help clients frame winning appeals by focusing on the distinctive rules and standards of review of the appellate courts, reviewing carefully the record and applicable law, and choosing issues that are most likely to lead to a positive result. They draw on the substantive expertise of colleagues throughout K&L Gates’ global practice to provide the highest level of service.
K&L Gates’ appellate lawyers write concise, compelling briefs to persuade judges that the positions our clients advance are not only right on the law but also right as a matter of fairness and policy. At oral argument, our appellate lawyers emphasize the strengths of the client’s positions through skillful use of the record and strategic responses to the questions and concerns that judges raise.
K&L Gates appellate lawyers work with clients to provide a wide array of services:
Our appellate work has covered a wide variety of subject areas, including the following:
For many litigants, the ultimate result comes down to an appeal. An appeals court can take away a hard-won victory or correct a harsh defeat. K&L Gates’ appellate lawyers combine a strong commitment to written composition of the highest quality with impeccable research and compelling oral argument skills. We strive for clarity, conciseness, and cogency on the type of arguments that matter on appeal in both oral and written advocacy to deliver results for our clients. Whether we serve as primary, consulting, or amicus counsel before an appellate court, our role can be a crucial element to achieving appellate success.
We frequently partner with our trial colleagues in high-stakes litigation to ensure that key appellate issues are introduced and appropriately handled in the trial record. Our appellate record of success includes many published opinions dealing with matters of first impression as well as significant interpretations of precedent.
Clients frequently retain K&L Gates to provide representation as special appellate counsel and to draft amicus curiae briefs on behalf of publicly and privately held companies, government entities, nonprofits, and trade associations. Our awareness of amicus opportunities in the appellate courts has been valuable to clients that have needed to influence the development of the law in cases to which they are not parties.
Our appellate work has covered a wide variety of subject areas, turning on both procedural issues such as jurisdiction, choice of forum, and evidentiary matters, as well as deeply complex subject areas including:
Our appellate lawyers have experience at all levels of both federal and state courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court, all 12 U.S. Courts of Appeals, including the Federal Circuit, and state courts from New York to California, Washington to Texas, and Massachusetts to Florida.
K&L Gates lawyers represent both private and public clients in federal and state constitutional law matters including:
Our lawyers know how to create the trial court record necessary to support clients’ cases and then litigate the constitutional issues through state and federal appellate courts. The firm’s constitutional experience includes groundbreaking First Amendment cases and leading defamation cases. Our lawyers have successfully tried constitutional cases in state and federal courts, including trials before three-judge federal courts on statewide constitutional issues.
K&L Gates often represents clients in litigation, actual and threatened, brought by state and federal government agencies. The types of cases run across almost the entire spectrum of government regulation and government contracting. We have also represented clients both in pursuing and in defending monetary claims involving insurance insolvencies, CERCLA cost recovery, and many other areas where government asserts an interest.
K&L Gates represents trade associations and individual clients in rulemakings and adjudications before state and federal administrative agencies and in challenges to agency actions brought in state and federal courts. We strive to ensure that the agencies compile complete and balanced administrative records. When necessary, we obtain judicial review of agency actions on rules, adjudications, licenses, or permits. In many cases, we have had success working in teams consisting of our lawyers and a client’s in-house counsel and specialists with substantive expertise in areas such as health care, the environment, securities, employment, and banking.
The firm’s governmental litigators have special experience teaming with finance, policy, real estate, and land use lawyers in representing public and private clients on matters involving public infrastructure projects. We have represented public and private clients in relation to major projects involving the Washington State Major League Baseball Stadium (Safeco Field Project), Pike Place Market, the Washington Nationals’ Major League Baseball Stadium, King County, Sound Transit, the Philadelphia Convention Center, and the Port of Seattle.