Thomas B. Griffith

Judge Thomas B. Griffith, special counsel to the firm, recently served as a federal judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

Judge Griffith served on the DC Circuit from 2005–2020. The Washington Post has described him as “widely respected by people in both parties” and a “sober lawyer with an open mind.” Judge Griffith joined the firm in 2021, focusing his practice on appellate litigation, congressional and internal investigations, and strategic counseling.

Judge Griffith began his legal career in private practice before serving for four years as Senate Legal Counsel, the nonpartisan chief legal officer of the United States Senate (1995–1999). In this capacity, he represented the interests of the Senate in litigation as well as advising Senate leadership and committees on investigations. After a brief return to private practice, Judge Griffith served for five years as General Counsel of Brigham Young University, the largest religious university in the country.

As a member of the DC Circuit, Judge Griffith was the author of approximately 200 opinions on a range of matters including administrative, environmental and energy law, and congressional investigations. He was appointed by the Chief Justice of the United States to serve on the Judicial Conference’s Committee on the Judicial Branch, which involves the judiciary’s relationship to the Executive Branch and Congress, and the Code of Conduct Committee, which sets the ethical standards that govern the federal judiciary. Judge Griffith is a Lecturer on Law at Harvard Law School, and has held the same faculty position at the law schools at Stanford and Brigham Young Universities. He has long been active in rule of law projects in Eastern Europe, Eurasia, Asia and domestically.

Memberships

  • Judge, Data Protection Review Court, US Department of Justice, Office of Privacy and Civil Liberties
  • Deputy Member, First Composition of the Advisory Group of Experts on the Evaluation of Candidates for the Position of Judge of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine
  • Member, American Bar Association Task Force for American Democracy (Democracy Task Force)
  • Board of Advisors, Bech-Loughlin First Amendment Center, University of Texas
  • Member, Braver Angels Scholar Council
  • Member, American Law Institute
  • Fellow, The Wheatley Institute
  • Member, Board of Directors of the US Chamber Litigation Center
  • Member, Presidential Commission on the Supreme Court of the United States
  • Member, International Advisory Board of the CEELI Institute in Prague
  • Senior Advisor, National Institute for Civil Discourse
  • Member, Advisory Board of the Center for Constitutional Studies at Utah Valley University

  • Member, Advisory Board, the Election Official Legal Defense Fund

  • Member, the Secretary of Education’s Commission on Opportunity in Athletics (the Title IX Commission) (2002–2003)
  • General Counsel, Congressional Advisory Commission on Electronic Commerce (1999–2000)

Awards & Recognition

  • Recipient of the Distinguished Public Service Award from BYU Management Society D.C. Chapter (2023)
  • Lifetime Achievement Award, National Law Journal (2022)
  • Defender of Democracy Award, Center for Election Innovation & Research (2022)
  • Distinguished Service Award, Brigham Young University (2018)
  • Recipient of the David W. Peck Sr. Medal for Eminence in the Law from Wabash College (2014)

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