James Tsouvalas

James Tsouvalas is a litigation associate in the Los Angeles office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher.  He specializes in litigating complex commercial and constitutional matters at the trial and appellate level, and has represented clients in high-stakes litigation in federal and state courts across the country.  He is a member of the firm’s Appellate and Constitutional Law, Administrative and Regulatory Practice, and Litigation practice groups.

James has represented a wide variety of paid and pro bono clients, ranging from Fortune 100 companies to quasi-governmental entities and non-profit civil rights organizations.  A sample of recent clients includes USAA, New Village Charter School, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), State Farm, AIG, Lockton Companies, and the Howard Hughes Corporation.  His cases have been featured on various publications including Law.com and the Daily Journal.

Some recent representative matters for James include:

• Successfully representing a leading software support company against a competitor that sued it for over $1.4 billion in damages.  The defense caused the competitor to drop all of its damages claims on the eve of trial.
• Defeating certification of a class seeking over $170 million from a Fortune 200 insurance company.
• Securing a pair of landmark copyright victories in the Ninth Circuit on the definition of derivative works and application of the essential step defense.
• Successfully representing a client on appeal after it lost a multimillion dollar judgment.  Persuaded the Ninth Circuit to vacate and remand the award, and then the district court to reduce it by $18 million.
• Obtaining interlocutory review from the Hawaii Supreme Court on novel eminent domain issues, and persuading it to reverse critical summary judgment orders.

James also maintains an active pro bono practice focused on education, civil rights, and criminal justice reform.  He recently won a lawsuit against the California Department of Education for unlawfully denying hundreds of thousands of dollars appropriated by the California Legislature to a school in Los Angeles that serves high-needs young women facing challenges like homelessness, poverty, teen pregnancy, abuse, and trauma.

James joined Gibson Dunn after serving as a law clerk to two federal appellate judges, the Honorable Patricia A. Millett of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, and the Honorable Sandra S. Ikuta of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

James earned his law degree magna cum laude from Harvard Law School in 2018.  He graduated with distinction for having performed over 1,000 hours of pro bono work for clients while in law school, and also interned for then Chief Judge Patti B. Saris of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts.  James received his undergraduate degree in political science summa cum laude from American University.

James is admitted to practice law in the State of California as well as before the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and District of Columbia Circuit, and the United States District Courts for the Central and Southern Districts of California.

Capabilities

• Appellate and Constitutional Law
• Administrative Law and Regulatory Practice
• Litigation

Credentials

Education:

• Harvard University - 2018 Juris Doctor
• American University - Washington D.C. - 2014 Bachelor of Arts

Admissions:

• California Bar

Clerkships:

• US Court of Appeals, DC Circuit, Rt. Hon. Patricia A. Millett, 2019 - 2020
• US Court of Appeals, 9th Circuit, Rt. Hon. Sandra S. Ikuta, 2018 - 2019