Tell us about your top U.S. Supreme Court or federal appeals court victory or victories over the past year and how you and your team achieved the win.

The unanimous Supreme Court win in Byrd v. United States was a highlight. Byrd presented an issue that split lower courts 7-7: Whether a driver not listed on a rental agreement can object to a suspicionless search of a rental car. We demonstrated in our briefs that, as a matter of law and common sense, contract violations do not support the loss of Fourth Amendment rights. My moot courts forecasted an argument with rapid-fire hypotheticals, and so it was. The keys were to answer the hypos crisply, weave my answers into our major themes and not get bogged down on minor issues. After a contentious argument, I was only certain of two votes in our favor, and was happily surprised later by the unanimous ruling.

How did your firm approach appellate success over the past year?

Rather than building an appellate practice around one star partner, ours is a constellation approach, with multiple super-talented appellate partners, each handling high-stakes appeals. That is exemplified by our being undefeated in five Supreme Court cases last term argued by four different Orrick appellate partners.

What practice advice would you give your younger self?

I would tell him to reach beyond his introverted comfort zone. Law is also about learning from others and building relationships of trust. I would also tell him that, at the right firm, private practice can be as fun and interesting as working at the DOJ.

Responses submitted by Bob Loeb, partner at Orrick.