Daniel M. Kolkey is a partner in the San Francisco office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher.  He is a member of the Litigation Department and co-chair of the Appellate and Constitutional Law Practice Group.  Mr. Kolkey returned to the firm in November 2003 after five years as an Associate Justice on the California Court of Appeal, Third Appellate District, in Sacramento.

Named in 2004, 2005, and 2006 by the Daily Journal   as one of the top 100 attorneys in California, and recognized in 2005 and 2007 by  California Lawyer magazine as an Attorney of the Year in the fields of Government/Public Policy and Appellate law, respectively, Mr. Kolkey's practice focuses on appellate litigation.  He also writes a column on appellate practice, has advised four different governors on legal issues, and has served as Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's lead negotiator for tribal-state compacts under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act.

Prior to being appointed as an Associate Justice on the California Court of Appeal, Mr. Kolkey served as Legal Affairs Secretary and counsel to Governor Pete Wilson for four years. As such, he was responsible for all of the legal advice within the Governor's Office; approving all state agency appeals; supervising and directing litigation strategy with respect to lawsuits brought against the Governor in his official capacity; drafting the Governor's civil justice reform legislation; and negotiating tribal-state compacts under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act.

Before serving Governor Wilson, Mr. Kolkey was a partner at Gibson Dunn, where he handled litigation at both the trial and appellate levels, including commercial disputes, political law litigation, and international arbitration.

As a litigator (before and after his government service from 1995 to 2003), Mr. Kolkey has handled class and shareholder actions; construction, real estate, employment, and contract disputes; unfair competition litigation; and political law litigation, including ballot litigation, Voting Rights Act claims, and redistricting matters.

Representative Matters

• Successful defense in the California Supreme Court of a claim under the California False Claims Act. ( Harris v. PricewaterhouseCoopers , 39 Cal.4th 1220 (2006))
• Successful defense of Proposition 77 in the California Supreme Court. ( Costa v. Superior Court , 37 Cal.4th 986 (2006))
• Successful representation of business interests over the validity of a referendum petition. ( Zaremberg v. Superior Court, 115 Cal.App.4th 111 (2004))
• Successful representation of a corporation in a proxy dispute before the federal district court and Ninth Circuit. ( Acosta v. Pacific Enterprises , 950 F.2d 682 (9th Cir. 1993))
• Successful representation of a government contractor in a bankruptcy dispute before the bankruptcy court, federal district court, and Ninth Circuit. ( Softwaire Centre International, Inc. , 994 F.2d 682 (9th Cir. 1993))
• Successful representation of the Governor of California in the redistricting litigation before the California Supreme Court. ( Wilson v. Eu , 1 Cal.4th 707 (1992))
• Successful representation of the Arizona House of Representatives in the trial over Arizona's congressional districts. ( Arizonans for Fair Representation v. Symington , 828 F.Supp. 684 (D. Ariz. 1992), affirmed, 113 S.Ct. 1573 (1993))
• Successful representation against a challenge to a ballot initiative. ( League of Women Voters v. Eu, 7 Cal.App 4th 649 (1992))

He has also maintained an international arbitration practice that has included matters under the English Arbitration Acts and before the International Chamber of Commerce, the American Arbitration Association, and the Iran-United States Claim Tribunal.

As a judge, Mr. Kolkey's representative decisions include FNB Mortgage Corp. v. Pacific General Group, 76 Cal.App.4th 1116 (1999) (tolling of statute of limitations); Bank of America v. Jennett, 77 Cal.App.4th 104 (1999) (Full Faith and Credit Clause); Marin Healthcare District v. Sutter Health, 103 Cal.App.4th 861 (2002) (application of statute of limitations to public use property); Intel Corp. v. Hamidi, 94 Cal.App.4th 325 (2001) (dissenting opinion regarding e-mail trespass that became the majority decision in the California Supreme Court); and Pacific State Bank v. Greene, 110 Cal.App.4th 375 (2003) (parole evidence rule).

Appointments

• Elected to membership in the American Law Institute (2003 – present).
• Appointed to the California State-Federal Judicial Council, 2001-2003.
• Appointed by the California Judicial Council to the Blue Ribbon Commission on Jury System Improvement, 1996.
• Appointed by the Governor to the California Law Revision Commission, 1992-94, and elected chair of the Commission, 1994.
• Appointed by the U.S. Trade Representative as an arbitrator on the bi-national panel for the U.S.-Canada Free Trade Agreement, 1990-94.

Educational History

Mr. Kolkey received his J.D., magna cum laude , from Harvard Law School in 1977 and his B.A., with distinction and departmental honors, from Stanford University in 1974.

Affiliations

Mr. Kolkey is co-editor of The Practitioner's Handbook on International Arbitration and Mediation (Juris Publishing 2002) and was an adjunct professor teaching international arbitration at McGeorge Law School from 2001-2004.

He is admitted to practice in all California state and federal courts, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, the United States District Court for the District of Arizona, and the United States Supreme Court.