Robert A. Long

Robert Long is a partner who practices in the areas of appellate litigation, antitrust, and administrative law. He chairs the firm’s appellate and Supreme Court litigation group.  Mr. Long has argued 14 cases before the U.S. Supreme Court and has played a substantial role in the briefing or oral argument of more than 100 cases in federal and state appellate courts.  He was a law clerk to Justice Lewis F. Powell, Jr., of the U.S. Supreme Court and Judge John Minor Wisdom of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.  From 1990 to 1993, he served as an Assistant to the Solicitor General of the United States.  He is recognized as a leading appellate lawyer in Best Lawyers in America (also listed for administrative law), Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers, Guide to the World's Leading Lawyers, Washingtonian "Top Lawyers," and Washington, D.C. Super Lawyers.  Mr. Long is an adjunct faculty member at Georgetown University Law Center and has also taught at the University of Virginia School of Law.

Representative Matters

• Watters v. Wachovia Bank, N.A. (U.S. Supreme Court 2007).  Mr. Long was lead Supreme Court counsel to Wachovia Bank in this preemption case.  The Court ruled for Wachovia, holding that national bank operating subsidiaries are supervised exclusively by the federal Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.  Mr. Long successfully argued this issue on behalf of the National City Bank and Wells Fargo Bank in National City Bank of Indiana v. Turnbaugh (4th Cir. 2006) and Wells Fargo Bank N.A. v. Boutris (9th Cir. 2005).
• Lopez v. Gonzales (U.S. Supreme Court 2006).  Mr. Long was lead Supreme Court counsel for Petitioner Lopez in this immigration case.  The Court ruled for Mr. Lopez, holding that a drug crime is an "aggravated felony"  for immigration law purposes only if it is a felony under the federal drug laws.
• Bell Atlantic v. Twombly (U.S. Supreme Court 2007), Leegin Creative Leather Products v. PSKS, Inc. (U.S. Supreme 2007), and Texaco v. Dagher (U.S. Supreme Court 2006).  Mr. Long was lead Supreme Court counsel to the American Petroleum Institute, which filed briefs as amicus curiae in each of these antitrust cases.  Twombly concerns the standard for dismissing a complaint alleging a violation of Section 1 of the Sherman Act; Leegin asks the Court to reconsider the rule that vertical minimum resale price maintenance is a per se violation of the Sherman Act; Dagher concerned the legal standard for antitrust analysis of joint ventures.
• Ortega v. Star-Kist Foods, Inc. (U.S. Supreme Court 2005).  Mr. Long was lead Supreme Court counsel for Star-Kist Foods.  The court held that in a case in which federal jurisdiction is based on diversity of citizenship, only one plaintiff in a multi-plaintiff case is required to satisfy the $75,000 amount-in-controversy requirement.
• Carolina Power & Light Co. v. Dynegy Marketing and Trade (4th Cir. 2005).  Mr. Long presented oral argument on behalf of Carolina Power & Light Co.  The Court of Appeals rejected an argument that CP&L's appeal in a breach of contract case was untimely.

Previous Experience

• Assistant to the Solicitor General of the United States (1990-93)

Honors and Rankings

• Best Lawyers in America, Appellate Litigation and Administrative Law (2007)
• Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers, Appellate Litigation (2007)
• Guide to the World’s Leading Lawyers, Appellate Litigation (2006)
• Washingtonian Magazine "Top Lawyer" (2007)
• Washington D.C. Super Lawyers, Appellate (2007)

Pro Bono

• Lopez v. Gonzales (U.S. Supreme Court 2006).  Mr. Long was lead Supreme Court counsel for Petitioner Lopez in this immigration case.  The Court ruled for Mr. Lopez, holding that a drug crime is an "aggravated felony" for immigration law purposes only if it is a felony under the federal drug laws.
• Samson v. California (U.S. Supreme Court 2006).  Mr. Long was lead Supreme Court counsel for the petitioner.  The court held that suspicionless searches of parolees are permissible under the Fourth Amendment.
• Gonzales v. Raich (U.S. Supreme Court 2005).  Mr. Long was counsel of record for the respondents.  The court held that Congress has power under the Commerce Clause to prohibit individuals from possessing locally produced cannabis for personal medical use, even if such use is authorized by state law and recommended by a physician.
• Brown v. Legal Foundation of Washington, 538 U.S. 216 (2003).  Mr. Long was counsel to amicus curiae Texas Equal Access to Justice Foundation. The court held that Interest on Lawyers Trust Accounts (“IOLTA”) programs do not violate the Takings Clause of the Fifth Amendment.
  

Memberships and Affiliations

• American Academy of Appellate Lawyers, Fellow
• American Law Institute, Member
• Edward Coke Appellate Inn of Court, Master
• Georgetown University Law Center, Adjunct Professor (Administrative Law and Solicitor General Seminar
• University of Virginia School of Law, Lecturer  (Appellate Litigation Seminar)
• Historical Society of the District of Columbia Circuit, Trustee 
• The Barker Foundation, President of the Board of Trustees

Publications and Speeches

• Watters v. Wachovia Bank, N.A., North Carolina Banking Institute (2007).  The discussion and an overview of the case may be accessed here.

• "New Hampshire Prescription Data Ban Ruled Unconstitutional," Covington E-Alert (5/17/2007), Co-Author
• "National Bank Act Preemption Litigation," Practicing Law Institute (2004), Co-Author
• "Chapter XI: "Antitrust Audits of Trade and Professional Associations" Antitrust Treatise: Antitrust & Trade Associations: How Trade Regulation Laws Apply to Trade and Professional Associations," Reproduced by permission. All rights reserved. (1/1/1996), Co-Author