Kendall Brill & Kelly LLP attorneys are ranked among the top appellate litigators in California. They have appeared before the U.S. Supreme Court and federal and state appellate courts nationwide. Most of KBK’s attorneys have served as judicial clerks in the U.S. Supreme Court or the federal appeals courts, including the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. One of our attorneys, Laura W. Brill, has been elected to the California Academy of Appellate Lawyers, the nation’s oldest lawyers’ organization dedicated to appellate practice. KBK’s attorneys provide a strategic appellate perspective on trial litigation and are often engaged to provide advice about and litigate questions of constitutional law. Examples of representative matters include:
- Obtained appellate victory for international media company, upholding a multimillion-dollar award against a major toy manufacturer.
- Successfully defended Current TV LLC and former Vice President Al Gore in trial court and on appeal against claims brought by a consultant seeking a multimillion-dollar “finder’s fee” in connection with the sale of Current to Al Jazeera.
- Succeeded on appeal on behalf of the heirs of the creator of the television show, Hawaii Five-0, in proceedings involving a rights dispute with the creator’s former talent.
- Won the reversal of a client’s federal healthcare-fraud and money-laundering convictions. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit vacated the client’s convictions and sent the case back for retrial.
- Prevailed on appeal in upholding a $9.8 million judgment, fees, costs and interest fees on behalf of a national law firm.
- Successfully defended a media group and several of its executives, obtaining a dismissal that was affirmed on appeal, in a lawsuit filed by a former executive claiming fraud, legal malpractice, and an illegal dismissal.
- Obtained a complete defense victory at the trial and appellate court level for Paramount Pictures Corporation in federal securities, contract, and business tort actions related to complex domestic and international film financing transactions.
- On appeal, won dismissal of a lawsuit under the anti-SLAPP statute on behalf of a law firm facing defamation and trade libel claims filed by a company over statements the law firm made in a press release.
- Secured an appellate court ruling in favor of Olympic Gold Medalist Kerri Walsh in a breach of contract action against AOS Group for its refusal to pay Ms. Walsh Jennings substantial amounts it owed her. This case is one of only a handful of reported Court of Appeal decisions which have held that a contracting party was entitled to prevailing party fees against the other contracting party in a first party action for breach of contract based on an indemnity provision in the contract.
- Represented the heirs in appeals in a long-running case concerning restitution of Nazi-looted art.
- On appeal, upheld summary judgment for the estate of Robert Philpott, who had been sued by the ex-wife of Dick Wolf, creator of the Law & Order TV franchise, based on allegations he negotiated a divorce settlement that denied her franchise-related revenue.
- Won an appeal on behalf of a major talent agency in a $55 million lawsuit brought by producers and film financiers of motion picture projects that alleged misrepresentations, fraud, and breaches of fiduciary duty. The Court of Appeal denied plaintiff’s petition seeking to void arbitration clauses in its contracts and ordered the case to arbitration.
- Represented a leading cell phone service provider in an appellate matter regarding private rights of action to enforce compensation provisions of the Federal Communications
- Won Ninth Circuit appeal in a pro bono case involving allegations that an Arizona correctional officer sexually harassed and assaulted a transgender inmate. Appellate court upheld lower court ruling that had denied the individual officer’s claim of immunity.
- Represented the County of Los Angeles on appeal in a case involving constitutional challenge to State law involving redistricting.
- Obtained summary judgment and Supreme Court affirmance for the California State Senate in a redistricting challenge.
- Represented the NOW Legal Defense and Education Fund as amicus curiae in a successful U.S. Supreme Court challenge to a Texas criminal law that punished same-sex sexual conduct.
- Represented the speaker of the California State Assembly in filing amicus brief relating to California initiative process.
- Argued successfully before the California Court of Appeal to uphold the dismissal of tort claims in an appeal arising from a suit alleging that defendants had sold the plaintiff’s semiconductor processing equipment that was the source of a patent infringement claim against the plaintiff by a third party.
- Successfully represented an outdoor advertising company in obtaining affirmance on appeal of order denying injunction seeking demolition of property and demand for millions of dollars in attorney’s fees.
- Represented leading securities industry trade groups in the filing of an amicus brief in the Fifth Circuit in a case concerning third-party liability for securities violations in civil litigation arising out of the Enron scandal.
- Won an appellate court victory on behalf of a prominent law firm with an unanimous three-judge panel upholding a $7 million “prevailing party” fee award to the law firm in affirming the arbitrator’s rejection of the former client’s malpractice claim.
- Successfully defended a regional law firm and its partners against malpractice claims arising from the sale of real estate owned by an LLC. The plaintiffs sought over $25 million in damages. Obtained summary judgment and an award of attorney fees and costs, which were affirmed on appeal.
- Obtained summary judgment for an international law firm in a legal malpractice action filed by real estate developers arising out of a failed development agreement with the City of Los Angeles involving over $400 million in alleged damages. Summary judgment was affirmed on appeal.
- Successfully represented a national law firm sued for malicious prosecution arising from complicated underlying litigation of copyright and trademark infringement claims which were decided against the firm’s client. Prevailed on an anti-SLAPP motion with an award of $315,000 in attorneys’ fees and costs as the prevailing party. At the time, this was the single largest anti-SLAPP fee award in California history among all reported decisions.
- Argued before the U.S. Supreme Court on behalf of the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) in the Winter v. NRDC case, in which the Navy appealed a lower court’s ruling in favor of the NRDC that had limited the Navy’s use of underwater sonar during training drills because of its harmful effect on whales and other marine mammals.
- Represented neighborhood associations and hotel industry group in amicus brief addressing zoning issues and opposing Airbnb’s claim of immunity under the Communications Decency Act.
- Submitted amici briefs on behalf of Genentech, Inc., one of California’s leading biotech firms, in two widely watched cases filed by plaintiffs claiming the commonly used weed killer, Roundup, caused their non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
- Filed an amicus brief in support of environmental organizations in the County of Maui v. Hawaii Wildlife Fund case before the U.S. Supreme Court, seeking a ruling that upholds the Clean Water Act’s provisions that require permits for discharging pollutants into navigable waters when the pollutants travel through groundwater.
- Represented property owner in appeal involving California Coastal Act and local land use regulations and approvals.
- Represented Greenpeace USA in a Ninth Circuit appeal of injunction against protest activity relating to Arctic drilling.