SCHAERR JAFFE - Key Persons

Job Titles:

• Associate
• Associate With Schaerr

Aaron Gordon is an associate with Schaerr | Jaffe LLP. Previously, he served as a law clerk to Justice Jimmy Blacklock of the Texas Supreme Court and Judge Don R. Willett of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. Aaron graduated summa cum laude from Northwestern University, where he served as speaker of the Northwestern Political Union. His thesis studying the U.S. Supreme Court's jurisprudence on economic liberty was awarded the Political Science Department's 2017 Kenneth Janda Prize for Best Undergraduate Honors Thesis. Aaron subsequently earned his J.D. from Yale Law School, where he was a member of the Federalist Society and an editor of the Yale Law & Policy Review. As a law student, Aaron was part of the Advanced Appellate Litigation Clinic, where he drafted appellate briefs on behalf of prisoners in federal civil-rights cases. He also interned at the Office of the Texas Solicitor General and the New Civil Liberties Alliance. Aaron's scholarship has appeared in such publications as the Yale Law Review and the N.Y.U. Journal of Law & Liberty, and was cited by the U.S. Supreme Court in West Virginia v. EPA. Education Yale Law School (J.D.) Northwestern University (B.A.)

Job Titles:

• Associate
• Associate With Schaerr

Aaron Ward is an associate with Schaerr | Jaffe LLP. He joined the firm after clerking for Judge Julius Richardson on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. Aaron graduated in the top 10% of his class from Harvard Law School, where he was Deputy of Academic Affairs in the Federalist Society, Vice President of Finance of the Harvard Law Republicans, an Executive Editor for the Journal of Law and Public Policy, and a digest contributor for the Journal of Law and Technology. During his summer, Aaron worked at the New England Legal Foundation and at the Houston office of Simpson Thacher. He has a degree in Electrical Engineering, with a 4.0 GPA, from the University of Michigan-Dearborn. He was on the school's rifle team, leading the team to several NRA championships, and was president of the school's Tau Beta Pi chapter. Before law school, he worked on vehicle simulations and artificial intelligence in the automotive industry, and on autonomous UAVs. Education Harvard Law School (J.D.) University of Michigan-Dearborn (B.S.E.)

Job Titles:

• Associate
• Associate With Schaerr

Andrew is an associate with Schaerr | Jaffe LLP. Previously, he served as a law clerk to Judge Stephen Alexander Vaden of the U.S. Court of International Trade and will serve as a law clerk on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in fall 2024. Andrew graduated magna cum laude from George Mason University's Antonin Scalia Law School, where he served as an Articles Editor on the George Mason Law Review. As a law student, he was part of the Supreme Court Clinic, where he worked on an amicus brief at the cert petition and merits stages. Andrew also interned at Boyden Gray & Associates (now Boyden Gray PLLC), Stein Mitchell Beato & Missner, and Reed Smith, while attending Scalia Law. Education George Mason University (J.D.) Catholic University of America (M.A. Philosophy) Thomas More College of Liberal Arts (B.A.)

Job Titles:

• Associate
• Associate With Schaerr

Annika Boone Barkdull is an associate with Schaerr | Jaffe LLP. She joined the firm after clerking for Justice Thomas Lee of the Utah Supreme Court and Judge Ryan Nelson of the U.S. Court of Appeals of the Ninth Circuit. Annika graduated from Harvard Law School, where she served as president of the Federalist Society, an Executive Editor of the Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy, and executive vice president of Harvard Law Students for Life. During law school she assisted in drafting amicus briefs in Espinoza v. Montana and National Institute of Family and Life Advocates v. Becerra. Annika was a summer associate at the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty and at the Washington, DC office of DLA Piper. She also interned in the Office of Legal Policy at the Department of Justice, where she worked in support of the confirmation of Justice Brett Kavanaugh. Annika graduated summa cum laude from George Washington University with a B.A. in Political Communication. Education Harvard Law School (J.D.) George Washington University (B.A.)

Job Titles:

• Partner

Brian Field is a Partner with significant experience litigating cases spanning an array of subject areas in trial and appellate courts. Brian has handled class actions, contract disputes, tort claims, constitutional claims, and cases involving the interpretation of federal statutes and regulations. Through that work, Brian has developed an expertise representing clients throughout the discovery process, motions practice, and at trial. Brian has also briefed and argued many cases in appellate courts. Before joining Schaerr Jaffe, Brian served as an Assistant United States Attorney in the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia. In that role, Brian represented the United States in all stages of civil litigation, with an emphasis on defending the United States against employment discrimination, FOIA, Federal Tort Claims Act, Administrative Procedure Act, immigration, and Bivens claims. Brian handled multiple jury and bench trials and argued several cases before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. Brian also received numerous merit-based awards for exceptional achievement. Before serving as an Assistant United States Attorney, Brian was an Associate at Bancroft PLLC, where his work included representing publicly traded companies against False Claims Act allegations and shareholder class actions, and representing state political parties in regulatory challenges. Brian also participated in representing clients before state and federal appellate courts, including briefing several cases before the U.S. Supreme Court. Brian also assisted the firm's corporate governance work, advising clients on statutory and regulatory matters, participating in due diligence for potential acquisitions, and counseling clients through internal and federal investigations. Earlier in his career, Brian served as a political appointee at the Department of Defense during the George W. Bush administration. Brian is a graduate of Case Western Reserve University School of Law and Messiah College. Brian has also published scholarly works in the University of Pennsylvania Journal of International Economic Law, the University of Iowa Journal of International Law and Contemporary Problems, and for the Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies. Education Case Western Reserve University School of Law Messiah College

Job Titles:

• Senior Counsel

Charles B. Burnett specializes in representing tax exempt organizations. His experience with exempt organizations began as a tax law specialist with the Exempt Organizations Division of the Internal Revenue Service. There he reviewed and processed complex applications and issued private letter rulings. He also worked on special projects involving private benefits and administrative costs. Charles moved to the Employee Benefits/Exempt Organizations Division in the Office of Chief Counsel where he litigated exempt organization cases in the United States Tax Court and assisted exempt organization agents and counsel in IRS field offices. Charles also worked in the Phoenix office as a trial attorney in the Large Business and International Division and as Managing Counsel of the Salt Lake City Office. In these positions, he continued to assist on exempt organization matters. Most recently, he worked on a cadre reviewing materials for Congressional oversight relating to exempt organization applications review and exam practices. Charles received a Master of Laws in Taxation from Georgetown University and Juris Doctorate and Bachelor of Science degrees from Brigham Young University. Following graduation, he clerked for a Nevada State District Court judge and worked in private practice for 5 years before joining the IRS. He retired from the IRS after 30 years in 2017. Education Georgetown Law (LL.M) Brigham Young University (J.D.) Brigham Young University (B.S.)

Job Titles:

• Senior Counsel

Cristina Martinez Squiers has significant experience litigating high-stakes disputes at the trial and appellate levels in both state and federal courts. She has handled class actions, labor & employment investigations and lawsuits, FTC investigations, False Claims Act cases, contract disputes, personal injury and tort claims, and constitutional claims. Ms. Squiers has represented clients in numerous sectors, including telecommunications, automotive, food & beverage, financial services, and state & local governments. Ms. Squiers began her legal career in the litigation department of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher's Dallas office. She then served as a law clerk to Judge Don R. Willett of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. Ms. Squiers graduated from Princeton University and was a recipient of the University's ReachOut Fellowship, which is awarded to two seniors to complete a year-long entrepreneurial service project after graduation. During her fellowship year, Ms. Squiers worked at the nation's largest adoption agency and started a mentoring program for youth leaving foster care. She received her J.D. from Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law where she served as Editor-in-Chief of the SMU Law Review and interned for Catharina Haynes of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. During law school, Ms. Squiers was a student attorney in the criminal defense clinic where she managed dozens of misdemeanor cases, and in the child advocacy clinic where she represented children in the foster care system. Education SMU Dedman School of Law (J.D.) Princeton University (B.A.)

Job Titles:

• Partner

Donald Falk has a general appellate practice with specific expertise in class actions at all levels, recognized by the American Lawyer as a California "class action killer." He has significant experience in a wide range of subject matter, including antitrust, patent law, torts, contracts, tax, arbitration, federal preemption, constitutional law (commercial speech, Commerce Clause, and takings), federal and California administrative law, securities, and California's Unfair Competition Law (Business & Professions Code Section § 17200). In addition to dozens of arguments before state and federal intermediate appellate courts, Mr. Falk has argued successfully before the U.S. Supreme Court and the highest courts of California, New York, Texas, and Maryland. He has also provided antitrust counseling and analysis for high technology, pharmaceutical, and other industries, making presentations to federal executive and legislative personnel, foreign competition officials, and state attorneys general. Mr. Falk's class action appellate advocacy led to landmark decisions restricting the scope of class certification in both the Ninth Circuit and the California Court of Appeal. He has also defeated class actions as meritless even under the worker-friendly California Labor Code, and as federally preempted. Mr. Falk has significant experience in the Supreme Court and Ninth Circuit defending class action settlements from objectors and, in one case, from excessive trial court procedural restrictions. Complementing his appellate record is extensive experience in developing and briefing class actions at the trial level relating to online consumer privacy, online advertising, and employment. Mr. Falk was a central member of the team that changed the face of consumer and employment arbitrations by persuading the U.S. Supreme Court to invalidate categorical bans on class action waivers. He has argued dozens of motions to compel arbitration at the trial level and on appeal, and has actively participated in the development of the law at all levels as both a counselor and a litigator. Mr. Falk has a strong track record on common law claims representing plaintiffs and defendants in a wide variety of settings. These include persuading the California Supreme Court not to impose a tort duty on retailers, convincing the New York Court of Appeals to enforce a contractual release relating to the sale of a cellular service company, inducing the Ninth Circuit reinstating an intentional interference claim involving the rights to early Bob Marley recordings, and securing summary judgment and a summary affirmance on appeal in a derivative case before the Delaware courts. His briefs helped persuade the U.S. Supreme Court to adopt common-law standards of vicarious liability in Superfund litigation and persuaded the Nevada Supreme Court to overturn a jury verdict. Interested in Free Exercise issues since he wrote a law student Note on the religious protection of sacred lands, Mr. Falk has represented local churches seeking to control their own property, and has addressed employment issues for religious institutions. Mr. Falk's work on patent issues includes extensive work helping patentees enforce their patents against imitators who produced insubstantial variants (i.e., "equivalents") of particular elements of claimed inventions. He has addressed claim construction, patent ownership, and divided infringement issues, along with more typical infringement and damages briefing, predominantly involving technology in the electronics and health care industries. Mr. Falk is an effective author of amicus briefs on a wide variety of topics including on antitrust and unfair competition. His arguments have been explicitly or tacitly followed by several courts, including the Supreme Courts of the United States and California. Certified as a specialist in appellate law by the California Bar, Mr. Falk has been listed in Chambers for California Appellate since 2013 and has been recognized by Northern California Super Lawyers, Best Lawyers in America, Top Attorneys in Northern California, and Avvo, among others. He is a Ninth Circuit Vice Chair for the amicus program of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, and has assisted the Family Violence Appellate Project on many appeals and amicus briefs. Mr. Falk clerked for Judge Douglas Ginsburg on the D.C. Circuit. He then practiced for 30 years at Mayer Brown, where he was a partner in the Supreme Court and appellate practice in Washington, D.C., Palo Alto, and San Francisco. He graduated from the Boalt Hall School of Law at the University of California at Berkeley, where he was articles editor for the Ecology Law Quarterly. Before that he received an undergraduate degree from the University of California at Berkeley, a master's degree from the University of Chicago, and a degree in real life from five years working on Bay Area construction sites. Education B.A. University of California, Berkeley M.A. University of Chicago J.D. University of California, Berkeley Law School

Job Titles:

• Partner

Job Titles:

• Partner

Erik Jaffe has been involved in appeals on a broad range of legal issues, including First Amendment challenges to campaign finance reform, Commerce Clause challenges to Health Care Reform and other federal legislation, Equal Protection Clause challenges to affirmative action in education, First Amendment challenges to school vouchers, Fifth Amendment challenges to takings of property, Second Amendment challenges to restrictions on gun ownership, and a wide variety of cases involving patents, copyrights, ERISA, securities fraud, federal preemption, environmental regulation, and other state and federal constitutional and statutory matters. He has represented businesses and non-profit groups, Judges, Senators, former government officials, Nobel Prize winners, and a broad cross-section of private individuals. Mr. Jaffe has been involved in over 100 Supreme Court matters, including filing 30 cert. petitions, representing half-a-dozen parties on the merits, and filing over 60 amicus briefs at both the cert. and merits stages. A 1990 graduate of the Columbia University School of Law, Mr. Jaffe was a law clerk to Judge Douglas H. Ginsburg of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit from 1990 to 1991. Following that clerkship he spent five years in litigation practice with the Washington, D.C. law firm of Williams & Connolly. In the summer of 1996 he left Williams & Connolly to clerk for Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. At the end of that clerkship he started his own practice, and he was a sole practitioner from 1997 to 2018. He joined the firm in 2018. Education Columbia University School of Law (J.D.) Dartmouth College (B.A.)

Job Titles:

• Academic Affiliate

Job Titles:

• Partner

Gene Schaerr specializes in handling civil appeals, writ proceedings and similar matters, both in appellate courts and in the kind of law-focused proceedings at the trial-court or agency level that often determine success or failure on appeal. He has argued and won dozens of cases in a variety of forums-including the U.S. Supreme Court (where he has argued seven cases), every federal circuit, and numerous federal district courts and state appellate courts. His win rate in the dozens of federal appeals he has argued in the past several years is over 75 percent. He was a coordinator of Sidley Austin's appellate practice from 1993 until 2005, and from 2005 until 2014 was the chair of the nationwide Supreme Court and appellate practice at Winston & Strawn-a practice he led to numerous recognitions in such publications as the Appellate Hot List. His personal practice successes have won him repeated recognition in such publications as Best Lawyers in Washington, D.C., Legal 500, D.C. Superlawyers, and Best Lawyers in America. In January 2014, Mr. Schaerr formed his own boutique litigation firm so that he could serve his clients without the conflicts and inefficiencies inherent in big-firm law practice. Substantively, Mr. Schaerr's experience includes virtually every area of federal law, including every area of constitutional law, as well as antitrust, defamation, higher education law, immigration, insurance coverage, labor and employment, patent and trademark, privacy, product liability, warranty, tax, and general statutory interpretation. He has represented clients in virtually every sector, including automotive, communications, energy, financial services, health care, higher education (including religious higher education), insurance, maritime, pharmaceuticals, technology and state and local government. He also teaches courses in Supreme Court litigation, religious freedom litigation, constitutional law, and advanced litigation skills as an adjunct professor at the Brigham Young University law school. Mr. Schaerr began law practice in 1987 following clerkships on the U.S. Supreme Court (for Chief Justice Warren Burger and Justice Antonin Scalia) and on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit (for then- Judge Kenneth Starr). He graduated in 1985 from the Yale Law School, where he was Editor-in-Chief of the Yale Journal on Regulation and Senior Editor of the Yale Law Journal. From 1991 to 1993, he served in the White House as Associate Counsel to the President, where he had responsibility for a wide range of constitutional and administrative-law issues, including those involving economic regulation, higher education, separation of powers, federalism and religious freedom.

Job Titles:

• Partner
• Partner at Schaerr

Chris Bartolomucci, a partner at Schaerr|Jaffe LLP, is a litigator who has represented major corporations, government entities, and individuals on appeal and in trial court. Chris has handled a wide range of cases involving constitutional law, complex statutory issues, products liability and tort, and other issues. Chris has been a litigation partner in both large and boutique law firms in D.C. for more than two decades. Prior to joining Schaerr|Jaffe, Chris was a partner at Kirkland & Ellis, at the Bancroft law firm, and at Hogan Lovells.

Job Titles:

• Counsel

Hannah Smith specializes in appellate and religious freedom matters. She has contributed to over 25 briefs at the US Supreme Court and has represented diverse religious parties in federal courts around the country, including Anglicans, Assemblies of God, Baptists, Catholics, Hindus, Hutterites, Jews, Lutherans, Muslims, Russian Orthodox, Santeros, Sikhs, and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Hannah previously served for a decade as Senior Counsel at The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty. While at Becket, she represented the winning parties in four landmark religious freedom SCOTUS victories: Hosanna-Tabor v. EEOC (2012); Burwell v. Hobby Lobby (2014); Holt v. Hobbs (2015); and Zubik v. Burwell (2016). Hannah served as a law clerk to two U.S. Supreme Court Justices: Justice Clarence Thomas and Justice Samuel A. Alito, Jr. She graduated from Princeton University (majoring in the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs) and BYU Law School (Order of the Coif). She served as Executive Editor on the Law Review. Hannah has testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee in support of then-US Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch and has briefed policymakers at the White House, U.S. Capitol, and State Department, among others. Hannah received BYU's Alumni Achievement Award, the JRCLS's Women-in-Law Leadership Award, and the Center for Constitutional Studies' James Madison Award. She serves on the Board of Directors of the Religious Freedom Institute, the Board of Advisers for her Law School alma mater, and as a Senior Fellow at the International Center for Law and Religion Studies. She joined Schaerr Jaffe as counsel in December 2019. Education Brigham Young University (J.D.) Princeton University (B.A.)

Job Titles:

• Counsel

James Heilpern specializes in complex litigation and corpus linguistics, representing clients at all stages of litigation, from discovery at the trial court level through merits briefing at the Supreme Court. These include: Representing a private, religious university in pre-litigation matters seeking redress for First Amendment retaliation by state actors in response to the university's religious teachings and political statements made by the university's president; resulted in favorable settlement

Job Titles:

• Academic Affiliate

Job Titles:

• Partner

John has a wide range of experience litigating both civil and criminal cases, in both trial and appellate courts, at both the state and federal levels. Before joining Schaerr | Jaffe, he was a shareholder in the appellate boutique firm Lee|Nielsen, founded with Thomas R. Lee, former Associate Chief Justice of the Utah Supreme Court. John's work in private practice has included constitutional, employment, tort, patent, trademark, criminal, municipal, contract, and other matters. Before entering private practice, John was an Assistant Solicitor General in the Utah Attorney General's Office, where he litigated criminal appeals, state postconviction cases, and federal habeas claims for eleven years. He has litigated more than 100 appeals and argued in appellate courts more than 70 times. During his time as an Assistant SG, John drafted in whole or in part six amicus briefs in the United States Supreme Court and was a fellow at the National Association of Attorneys General Supreme Court Center. Before joining the Utah Attorney General's Office, John was a Deputy Utah County attorney for four years, prosecuting all manner of criminal cases for four years, and doing numerous jury trials. John has taught law school courses on appellate practice and legal rhetoric and reasoning at the S.J. Quinney Law School (University of Utah) and appellate brief writing at the J. Reuben Clark Law School (Brigham Young University). He is also an active poster on the Appellate Advocacy Blog. Education BA, Political Science, 2003 (BYU, magna cum laude) JD, 2007 (BYU, magna cum laude)

Job Titles:

• Chief

Job Titles:

• Associate

Justin Miller has experience litigating high stakes matters in federal and state courts across the country. He has handled a wide range of issues including class actions, contract disputes, noncompetition agreements, policyholder disputes, procedural and attorney fees challenges, state and local tax issues, property disputes, arbitration, criminal defense, and constitutional claims. Justin has represented clients in many sectors, including state & local governments, financial services, insurance, pharmaceuticals, environmental law, and healthcare. Justin began his legal career as a law clerk for the Honorable Andrew L. Brasher on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit and the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Alabama. He also interned for judges on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, the U.S. District Court for the District of Utah, and the Texas First Court of Appeals in Houston. Before joining Schaerr|Jaffe LLP, Justin was an associate in the appellate group of a law firm in Birmingham, Alabama. Justin graduated cum laude from BYU Law School, where he held leadership positions on the BYU Law Review and with the International Center for Law & Religion Studies. During law school, Justin also worked for the Utah Office of the Attorney General and spent a semester prosecuting criminal appeals with the U.S. Air Force JAG Corps at Andrews Air Force Base in Washington, D.C. Education BYU Law School (J.D.) Brigham Young University (B.A.)

Job Titles:

• Senior Counsel

Ken Klukowski is senior counsel at Schaerr Jaffe LLP, with extensive experience in constitutional law, administrative law, election law, civil rights, and federal courts. Mr. Klukowski has held multiple appointed positions in the U.S. government, including serving as senior counsel in the Civil Division of the U.S. Department of Justice, and prior to that serving in the White House as special counsel in the Office of Management and Budget. Previously, he was senior advisor for constitutional rights on the policy staff of the Presidential Transition Team of President Donald J. Trump. In the private sector, Mr. Klukowski has worked as senior counsel at First Liberty Institute, as a legal journalist, and a senior fellow at the American Constitutional Rights Union. He has litigated constitutional cases in the U.S. Supreme Court, including the landmark Establishment Clause case American Legion v. American Humanist Society. Mr. Klukowski has also litigated before several lower federal courts, including successfully arguing a Ninth Circuit appeal on federal abstention doctrine in United States v. California Water Resources Control Board. Additionally, Mr. Klukowski regularly contributes to media coverage of the nation's highest court and legal issues, and testifies before Congress and other policymaking bodies. Earlier in his career, Mr. Klukowski served as special deputy attorney general of Indiana and worked on faculty at Liberty University School of Law. His academic works have been published by legal journals such as the Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy and Yale Law & Policy Review, and his op-eds have appeared in the Wall Street Journal and other national publications. His amicus briefs and nine law review articles have been cited by various federal courts and top legal journals. He has participated in numerous Supreme Court cases, and lectured at dozens of law schools nationwide. Education George Mason University (J.D.) University of Notre Dame (B.B.A.)

Job Titles:

• Partner

Mark Paoletta represents clients in connection with government investigations, with an emphasis on congressional investigations and hearings. He also counsels clients on how to successfully navigate legislative and regulatory issues before the government. Mr. Paoletta served in senior positions in the Legislative and Executive Branches for more than eighteen years, and he brings that experience to effectively help his clients. In private practice, Mr. Paoletta has successfully represented many Fortune 500 companies in congressional investigations, including companies in the following areas: pharmaceutical and healthcare; telecommunications and media; privacy and technology; hedge funds and banking; energy; defense contracting and services; and education. He has represented government officials in high-profile inquiries, including a Governor, a Mayor, and a senior White House official. Mr. Paoletta served for a decade as Chief Counsel for Oversight and Investigations for the Committee on Energy and Commerce in the U.S. House of Representatives. During his tenure, Mr. Paoletta managed nearly 200 investigative hearings, many of which involved high-profile issues and investigating some of the largest U.S. corporations. Many of those investigations led to substantial revisions to federal law, regulations and public awareness on significant issues of the day. Mr. Paoletta most recently served as General Counsel for the Office of Management & Budget in the Executive Office of the President during the Trump Administration. As General Counsel to what many consider the most powerful agency in Washington, D.C., Mr. Paoletta worked daily with agencies across the federal government to ensure programs were implemented consistent with the President's policies. Mr. Paoletta also worked closely with the other component offices within OMB, such as the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), which reviews and signs off on every regulation issued by federal agencies. Mr. Paoletta also served as Counsel to Vice President Pence during the first year of the Trump Administration. During his time in the Trump Administration, Mr. Paoletta helped prepare many nominees for confirmation hearings, including Cabinet nominees, several Court of Appeals nominees, and two Supreme Court nominees. Mr. Paoletta also served in the White House as Assistant Counsel to President George H.W. Bush. In that position, he played a key role in the successful confirmation effort of United States Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. Education Georgetown University Law Center (J.D.) Duquesne University (B.A.)

Job Titles:

• Associate
• Associate With Schaerr

Megan Shoell is an associate with Schaerr | Jaffe LLP. Her interest in appellate law began in law school, where she won first place in a national moot court competition and succeeded in winning a grant of certiorari from the United States Supreme Court as part of a SCOTUS litigation clinic. Following law school, she clerked for Judge Jay Bybee on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, where she witnessed firsthand the importance of effective brief writing and appellate advocacy. That experience now guides her practice as she strives to persuasively frame and present legal issues.

Job Titles:

• Associate
• Associate With Schaerr

Miranda Cherkas Sherrill is an associate with Schaerr | Jaffe specializing in social issues and election law. Miranda joined Schaerr | Jaffe from Jones Day's DC office, where she counseled and represented Fortune 500 companies, emerging financial institutions, and individuals in federal litigation and appeals, internal investigations, and government enforcement actions. Before practicing, she completed two clerkships, first in her home state for Justice Carla Wong McMillian of the Supreme Court of Georgia, and then for Judge Ryan D. Nelson of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. A 2020 graduate of BYU's J. Reuben Clark School of Law, Miranda earned the Order of the Coif and was a member of the law review. Her student note was awarded Best Student Paper in the 2020 Antitrust Writing Awards by Concurrences and BYU Law's John S. Welch Award for Outstanding Writing. She is a former JRCLS Religious Liberty Fellow and helped draft merits briefs and petitions for certiorari as part of the Schaerr | Jaffe U.S. Supreme Court Clinic. She also interned with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit for Judge Thomas B. Griffith, the Utah Supreme Court for Justice Thomas R. Lee, and the Asia Area General Counsel for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Miranda was a management board member for the International Center for Law and Religion and received the Student Bar Association President's Award for service to the law school. Miranda maintains an active pro bono practice, including successfully representing a Rwandan refugee who secured asylum, seeking restitution for victims of sex trafficking, and in appeals as appointed counsel in the Fourth, Seventh, and Eleventh Circuits. Miranda is conversational in Mandarin. Education Brigham Young University (J.D. magna cum laude 2020; Order of the Coif; Senior Editor, BYU Law Review) The University of Chicago (B.A. in Political Science 2015)

Job Titles:

• Senior Counsel
• Senior Counsel With

Nicholas P. Miller serves as Senior Counsel with Schaerr Jaffe, and is a tenured Professor of law and religion at Andrews University in Berrien Springs, Michigan. He has practiced law for more than twenty-five years in state and federal court, specializing in the needs of churches, religious colleges and universities, and other religious institutions. He has served in the civil litigation departments of the District of Columbia, as well as major US corporate law firms. He has a PhD in legal and religious history from the University of Notre Dame, and received his JD from Columbia University, where he was an editor of the Law Review. He has appeared before the United States Supreme Court, helped draft federal legislation protecting religious freedom, and was the executive director of the Washington, D.C.-based Council on Religious Freedom. Dr. Miller has published more than fifty scholarly and professional articles and book chapters on topics of church and state. He has written or edited several books, including The Religious Roots of the First Amendment (Oxford University Press, 2012), and 500 Years of Protest and Liberty: From Martin Luther to Modern Civil Rights (Pacific Press, 2017). Education Columbia University School of Law (J.D.) University of Notre Dame (M.A., Ph.D) Pacific Union College (B.A.)

Job Titles:

• Academic Affiliate

Thomas R. Lee is the Rex & Maureen Rawlinson Professor of Law at Brigham Young University. He is a former Justice of the Utah Supreme Court, a former Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the Civil Division of the United States Department of Justice, and a former member of the Advisory Committee on the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. In his judicial opinions and legal scholarship, Lee has been an innovator at the intersection of law and linguistics. His judicial opinions and scholarship have advocated the use of theories and tools used by linguists in interpreting the language of law. See Judging Ordinary Meaning, 127 YALE L. J. 788 (2018) (co-authored with Stephen Mouritsen); Data-Driven Originalism, 167 PENN. L. REV. 261 (2019) (co-authored with James Phillips); and The Corpus and the Critics, 88 U. CHI. L. REV. 275 (2021) (co-authored with Stephen Mouritsen). And his work has now been cited in state and federal courts throughout the nation. Lee has argued in trial and appellate courts throughout the country and in the United States Supreme Court.