Kathryn Barber Returns to McGuireWoods After Clerkship With Justice Ginsburg

Litigator Expands Firm’s Appellate Bench of Former Supreme Court Clerks

December 16, 2019

Kathryn M. Barber has returned to McGuireWoods to join the firm’s nationally recognized appellate practice after serving as a law clerk to U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Barber is one of seven former Supreme Court law clerks in the firm’s litigation practices.

Barber was an associate with McGuireWoods’ Richmond, Virginia, office before beginning her Supreme Court clerkship in 2018. She is a member of the firm’s Business & Securities Litigation Department as well as the appellate group.

After graduating from the University of Virginia School of Law in 2015, Barber clerked for Judge Leonie M. Brinkema of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia and Judge John B. Owens of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit before beginning her first stint at McGuireWoods.

“The experience and insight Katie gained at the Supreme Court has immense value for the firm and our clients, and we are delighted to welcome her home to McGuireWoods,” said Matt Fitzgerald, a former Supreme Court clerk who co-chairs the firm’s appellate practice with partner Brad Kutrow.

“Katie is an outstanding young lawyer and her decision to return to McGuireWoods is a testament to the strong reputation of our litigation practices,” added Jonathan Blank, chair of the firm’s Business & Securities Litigation Department.

The National Law Journal named McGuireWoods to its prestigious 2018 Appellate Hot List honoring leading firms that achieved success before the U.S. Supreme Court and federal appeals courts. In addition to Fitzgerald and Barber, the appellate team includes former Supreme Court clerks John Adams, Benjamin Hatch, Andrew McBride, Brian Schmalzbach and Gilbert Dickey.

“My clerkship with Justice Ginsburg provided an opportunity to be on the front lines of the most consequential cases in our legal system,” Barber said. “I am excited to have the opportunity to bring that perspective to my work at McGuireWoods and to build on the tremendous experience I have had at the firm.”