Kahn Scolnick is an appellate and litigation partner in the Los Angeles office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. He serves as co-partner in charge of the Los Angeles and Century City offices, co-chair of the firm’s Class Actions Practice Group, and is also an active member of the Appellate and Constitutional Law and Securities Litigation Practice Groups, among others. He specializes in class actions, complex commercial cases, and litigating a variety of constitutional issues—both in the trial courts and on appeal.

Representative trial court experience:

• Obtained a victory following a bench trial resulting in a California trial court vacating the California Insurance Commissioner’s $173 million penalty issued under the Unfair Insurance Practices Act (the largest such penalty ever issued to date).
• Defeated class certification in a novel “no poach” class action against a major sandwich restaurant chain.
• Persuaded a California federal court to deny certification of a nearly 200,000-member class of policyholders in a case challenging auto insurance rates in the state.
• Won a complete defense verdict following a lengthy bench trial before the California Superior Court in two consolidated nationwide class actions against a commercial mortgage lender.
• Obtained dismissal with prejudice of a discrimination class action suit against a major auto insurance company in federal court in Washington.
• He was part of the trial team that successfully represented Chevron Corporation in a RICO case against those seeking to extort billions of dollars from the company based on a fraudulently procured multi-billion-dollar judgment in Ecuador.
• Defended a city in a lengthy bench trial alleging a violation of the California Voting Rights Act and Equal Protection Clause.
• Successfully opposed a preliminary injunction in Nevada seeking to enjoin a $2.8 billion merger of two gaming companies. As a result of the ruling, the plaintiffs agreed to dismiss the entire case voluntarily, with each side paying their own fees and costs.
• Won judgment on the pleadings of the defendants’ sole affirmative defense (unclean hands) in a contentious corporate dispute in the Delaware Chancery Court.

Representative appellate experience:

• Won a unanimous decision from the California Supreme Court in a Medicare Part C pre-emption case.
• Obtained a published decision from the California Court of Appeal striking down a $100 million rate increase and refund order by the California Insurance Commissioner.
• Secured a published decision from the California Court of Appeal in favor of his client, in a high-profile, multi-jurisdictional dispute between a law firm and its former partner (the case is now pending before the California Supreme Court).
• Persuaded the California Court of Appeal to reverse a trial court judgment finding a city liable for violating the Equal Protection Clause, based on the City’s method of electing its council.
• Won a major victory in the California Court of Appeal in a CEQA (California Environmental Quality Act) case that will transform the way cargo moves through the Port of LA.
• Obtained a published decision from the California Court of Appeal affirming summary judgment in a “finder’s fee” dispute on behalf of a real estate investment company.
• Advised the inaugural California Citizens Redistricting Commission on a variety of legal issues including the Voting Rights Act and equal protection, and then successfully defended the Commission’s maps against an assortment of constitutional and statutory claims before the California Supreme Court.
• He was a key member the appellate team (in both the Second Circuit and U.S. Supreme Court) in Chevron’s successful RICO suit involving a fraudulent multi-billion-dollar judgment, described above.
• Secured the reversals on appeal of judgments totaling $295 million in three certified class actions in New Mexico and California involving installment payment plans for auto insurance policies.
• Prevailed on summary judgment in a high-profile “taxpayer” action challenging the constitutionality of a California statute – and then persuaded the California Court of Appeal.

Kahn graduated magna cum laude  in 2003 from the University of San Diego, School of Law. He was a lead articles editor for the San Diego Law Review and was awarded the Outstanding Student in Constitutional Law. Kahn received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Public Policy Studies, with honors, from Michigan State University in 2000.

Before joining the firm in 2006, Kahn served as a law clerk to Judge Ferdinand F. Fernandez of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (2005–06), and as a law clerk to Judge Dana M. Sabraw of the United States District Court for the Southern District of California (2003–05). While in law school, Kahn served as a judicial extern to Judge M. Margaret McKeown of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, and also to Magistrate Judge Louisa S. Porter of the United States District Court for the Southern District of California.

Kahn has published and spoken on a variety of topics, including class actions, trial practice, civil procedure, punitive damages, voting rights, and constitutional issues. He has been recognized by Best Lawyers in America® and was named eight times as one of Southern California’s “Rising Stars” by Los Angeles Magazine  and Southern California Super Lawyers. Kahn serves as the vice president of the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles (LAFLA) and he’s presently serving as the treasurer of the Los Angeles Chapter of the Association of Business Trial Lawyers (ABTL).

Kahn is a member of the California Bar. He is admitted to practice before the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and the United States District Courts for the Northern, Southern, and Central Districts of California.