Former Assistant To The Solicitor General Lisa Blatt To Lead Arnold & Porter's Appellate And Supreme Court Practice

Washington, DC, November 16, 2009 -- Arnold & Porter LLP announced today the arrival of Lisa S. Blatt, a veteran of the Office of Solicitor General at the U.S. Department of Justice. Ms. Blatt joins the firm's Washington, DC, office as a partner and will head the firm's appellate and Supreme Court practice. 

Ms. Blatt served as an Assistant to the Solicitor General from 1996 to 2009, working directly with six solicitors general over the course of three administrations. She has argued more cases before the United States Supreme Court than any woman in practice today, prevailing in 27 out of 28 cases. Her oral advocacy before the Supreme Court was cited as exemplary in the Supreme Court Clerk's Guide for Counsel in Cases to be Argued Before the Supreme Court.

"Lisa has a highly visible record of accomplishment before the Supreme Court," said Arnold & Porter Chair Thomas Milch. "She is a rising star, with considerable breadth across many sectors. She has represented the United States regarding complex issues in the areas of antitrust, bankruptcy, civil rights, commercial law, national security, and preemption -areas where our firm already has a deep bench of experience. Lisa will greatly enhance our ability to assist clients who need appellate representation."

Ms. Blatt has briefed more than 250 cases before the Supreme Court and worked on numerous additional matters before the federal courts of appeals. Among the wide range of issues she has briefed or argued before the Court are path-marking cases in the areas of antitrust (e.g., Leegin Creative Leather Products v. PSKS, Inc.; Hoffmann-La Roche v. Empagran); employment (e.g., Ricci v. DeStefano ; Hulteen v. AT&T); healthcare (e.g., Fischer v. United States; PhRMA v. Concannon); ERISA (e.g., Hughes Aircraft Co. v. Jacobson); bankruptcy (e.g., Marrama v. Citizens Bank of Massachusetts; Lamie v. United States); national security (e.g., Tenet v. Doe); preemption (e.g., Bates v. Dow Agrosciences LLC); and criminal law (e.g., United States v. Dickerson). In 2005, she received the Attorney General's Distinguished Service Award, the Department of Justice's second highest award for employee performance.

After Ms. Blatt left the Department of Justice in May 2009, she served as a consultant to the Federal Trade Commission, where she advised the offices of the Chairman, the General Counsel, and the Bureau of Competition on antitrust matters before the Supreme Court, the U.S. courts of appeals, and federal district courts. She also argued on behalf of the Commission in an important case involving the intersection of patent and antitrust law, Federal Trade Commission v. Cephalon, Inc.

From 1993 to 1996, Ms. Blatt served as an Assistant General Counsel and Special Assistant to the General Counsel at the U.S. Department of Energy. From 1990 to 1993, she worked in the Washington, DC, office of a national law firm. Ms. Blatt also served as a law clerk to the Honorable Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit during the 1989 - 1990 term. 

Ms. Blatt graduated   summa cum laude  in 1989 from the University of Texas School of Law, where she was an editor of the Texas Law Review. In 1986, she graduated summa cum laude from the University of Texas at Austin, where she received her B.A. in the Plan II Liberal Arts Honors Program and in Economics.  

Ms. Blatt noted, "I am thrilled to be joining Arnold & Porter to provide appellate services to their outstanding litigation practice groups that serve a wide variety of clients across so many industries and geographic locations. I was drawn to the firm because of its demonstrated excellence, diverse practice areas, prominent Washington presence, and deep commitment to pro bono and community service."

Arnold & Porter lawyers have handled cases in the U.S. Supreme Court, all federal circuit courts of appeals and state appellate courts throughout the United States. There are more than 40 partners in the firm's appellate practice. They represent clients on a broad spectrum of issues under federal and state law, including administrative, antitrust, bankruptcy, constitutional, corporate and partnership, environmental, ERISA, intellectual property, product liability, and securities law. Cases the firm has handled have made new law in many of these areas. The firm maintains an impressive appellate track record, which includes: winning several ground-breaking federal preemption banking cases; representing Zacarias Moussaoui in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit; and obtaining two appellate victories regarding sovereign immunity for officials of the government of Israel.

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Arnold & Porter LLP is an international law firm of more than 675 lawyers with offices in Brussels, Denver, New York, Northern Virginia, London, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Washington, DC. The firm, founded in 1946, maintains more than 25 practice areas spanning a broad spectrum of the law, with a primary focus on litigation, transactional matters, and regulatory issues.