Seth Waxman > WilmerHale > Washington DC, United States > Lawyer Profile
WilmerHale Offices
2100 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington DC 20036
United States
- Firm Profile
- Go to...
Seth Waxman
Work Department
Appellate and Supreme Court Litigation ; Government and Regulatory Litigation ; Litigation ; Public Policy and Legislative Affairs ; Intellectual Property Litigation ; Energy, Environment and Natural Resources ; Environmental Enforcement and Litigation ; Government Contracts ; National Security ; Antitrust Litigation ; Insurance, Annuities and Retirement ; Education ; Anti-Discrimination ; Administrative Law ; Native American Law ; Media and Entertainment ; Trials
Position
Partner
Chair, Appellate and Supreme Court Litigation Practice
Career
Universally considered to be among the country’s premier Supreme Court and appellate advocates, Seth Waxman served as Solicitor General of the United States from 1997 through January 2001. In addition to leading the firm’s appellate practice, Mr. Waxman engages in a broad litigation and counseling practice, with particular emphasis on complex challenges involving governments or public policy, intellectual property, regulatory, criminal and commercial issues.
A Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers, Mr. Waxman also is a widely respected trial litigator. In a December 2020 article, The Hill stated, “[T]here is no more respected lawyer in Washington.” The American Lawyer named him Litigation – First Amendment “Lawyer of the Year” for 2020, Appellate/Litigation “Lawyer of the Year” for 2018, and “Litigator of the Year” and Litigation – Intellectual Property “Lawyer of the Year” for 2016. Mr. Waxman was also named Litigation – First Amendment Law and Regulatory Enforcement Law “Lawyer of the Year” for 2015 by Best Lawyers in America, and, in 2014, Super Lawyers deemed him the “number one” lawyer in Washington DC. Mr. Waxman has been accorded both “star” rating by Chambers USA and “leading lawyer” ranking in PLC’s Global Counsel Handbook.
Mr. Waxman’s practice spans both federal and state trial and appellate courts. He has delivered over 80 oral arguments in the United States Supreme Court and many more in the lower federal and state courts. Mr. Waxman’s clients range from financial institutions to technology, consumer, industrial and media companies, universities and Indian tribes, and he leads the firm’s efforts to counsel tribal governments. He also represents a number of local, state and national governments and prominent business and government executives and professionals. The recipient of numerous professional awards and honors, Mr. Waxman is among a small handful of practicing attorneys elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He holds several honorary degrees, as well as the Jefferson Medal in Law, an honor awarded once a year and only rarely to an attorney in private practice. In recognition of exceptional service to law enforcement, Mr. Waxman holds the extraordinary status of permanent honorary Special Agent of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Memberships
- District of Columbia
Education
JD, Yale Law School, 1977
Rockefeller Fellow, 1974
AB, Harvard University, 1973
Lawyer Rankings
United States > Industry focus > Native American law
(Leading lawyers)Combining extensive Washington DC experience with a strong presence in the western United States, WilmerHale is uniquely positioned to represent Indian tribal governments, bands and nations in the most contentious and unsettled Native American legal issues at every stage of dispute resolution, especially at appellate level. With long-standing relationships to various tribes, the team led by Supreme Court litigator Seth Waxman boasts a diversified practice handling disputes about energy resource development, land acquisitions, water rights, gaming, and most notably, tribal sovereignty and self-determination matters, routinely working with tribal groups, members of Congress and the administration on ways to reinforce principles of tribal sovereignty. The group’s expertise expands to tribal white-collar and criminal internal investigation cases, where Tom Strickland is often called upon, next to capabilities in natural resources and environmental law, healthcare regulation and securities law. Several team members have previously worked on Native American law matters in government positions including at the Department of Interior and Justice, respectively. Notable names include Christopher Babbitt, who is active at the intersection of public policy, public affairs, and strategy, representing clients in litigation and enforcement matters involving the federal government and Daniel Volchok, whose Native American practice incudes representing tribes and nations in trial and appellate litigation, as well as counselling in non-contentious matters.
United States > Dispute resolution > Appellate: courts of appeals / Appellate: supreme courts (states and federal)
(Hall of Fame)Ranking among the market leaders for high-stakes appellate work, WilmerHale is widely hailed for the depth of its bench and the reputation of its senior partners. Indeed, for some, the ‘experience and expertise of the appellate team at WilmerHale is unmatched’. The national group routinely appears before state and federal courts across the US, right up to Supreme Court level, and is a particularly dominant performer in the Federal Circuit. High-profile department head Seth Waxman is a former US Solicitor General, who has delivered over 80 oral arguments in the US Supreme Court alone. Waxman recently paired up with Daniel Volchok to successfully represent the justices of the Oklahoma Supreme Court, and the members and executive director of the Oklahoma Bar Association Board of Governors, before the Tenth Circuit in a case concerning the association’s mandatory-dues requirement. The team also leans on experienced practice vice chairs Catherine Carroll, who has argued four cases before SCOTUS, and Boston-based Mark Fleming, who has argued before SCOTUS seven times. Other key contacts include IP specialist Thomas Saunders and New York-based Alan Schoenfeld. Named attorneys are based in Washington DC unless stated otherwise. Danielle Spinelli recently retired.
United States > Industry focus > Education
(Leading lawyers)WilmerHale’s higher education-focused team has garnered a solid market reputation as the go-to firm for sensitive high-stakes litigation guiding colleges and universities through governmental investigations, congressional inquiries, and confronting contentious policy issues. The group frequently defends their clients’ intellectual property, handles major transactions and assists in handling accreditation, antitrust, art and antiquities, cybersecurity, free speech, and employee misconduct matters. Based in Washington DC, the group, jointly headed by educational law expert Bruce Berman, who is one of the most experienced attorneys in standardized educational testing, and esteemed litigator Jamie Gorelick, has expertise handling Title IX, Title VI, and other federal anti-discrimination statues for educational institutions. Alan Schoenfeld has extensive appellate litigation expertise and handles complex class actions out of the New York office. Other members of the team, including Seth Waxman and New York-based Debo Adegbile who leads the firm’s anti-discrimination practice alongside Brenda Lee, are acting for Harvard University in a Supreme Court affirmative action case concerning their admissions program. The group also counts advising on financial aid, federal grants, and on issues related to the misuse of research funds among its specialisms. Preet Bharara joined from the US Attorney for the Southern District of New York in June and in September 2022, Lauren Moore joined the group prior to being Associate Counsel for The White House.
Lawyer Rankings
- Education United States > Industry focus
- Hall of Fame United States > Dispute resolution > Appellate: courts of appeals / Appellate: supreme courts (states and federal)
- Leading lawyers United States > Industry focus > Education
- Leading lawyers United States > Industry focus > Native American law
- Native American law United States > Industry focus
- Appellate: courts of appeals / Appellate: supreme courts (states and federal) United States > Dispute resolution
Top Tier Firm Rankings
- Finance > Financial services regulation
- Antitrust > Cartel
- International Trade > CFIUS
- Antitrust > Civil litigation/class actions: defense
- Industry focus > Education
- Industry focus > Native American law
- Intellectual property > Patents: litigation (full coverage)
Firm Rankings
- Media, technology and telecoms > Cyber law (including data privacy and data protection)
- Dispute resolution > General commercial disputes
- M&A/corporate and commercial > M&A: middle-market ($500m-999m)
- Media, technology and telecoms > Outsourcing
- Dispute resolution > Securities litigation: defense
- Government > State attorneys general
- Media, technology and telecoms > Technology transactions
- M&A/corporate and commercial > Venture capital and emerging companies
- Finance > Capital markets: equity offerings
- M&A/corporate and commercial > Corporate governance
- Government > Government contracts
- Dispute resolution > International arbitration
- Healthcare > Life sciences
- International Trade > Trade remedies and trade policy
- Finance > Capital markets: debt offerings
- International Trade > Customs, export controls and economic sanctions
- Labor and employment > Employee benefits, executive compensation and retirement plans: transactional
- Environment > Environment: regulatory
- Dispute resolution > Financial services litigation
- Finance > Fintech
- Government > Government relations
- Antitrust > Merger control
- Tax > US taxes: non-contentious
- Finance > Commercial lending
- Dispute resolution > Leading trial lawyers
- Real estate > Real estate
- Finance > Restructuring (including bankruptcy): corporate
- Dispute resolution > Appellate: courts of appeals / Appellate: supreme courts (states and federal)
- Dispute resolution > Corporate investigations and white-collar criminal defense
- Environment > Environment: litigation