James Goldschmidt

Driving appeals with plain English and logically compelling interpretations

James Goldschmidt helps clients litigate and win complex appeals by crafting clear, persuasive legal briefs and arguments. Combining deep appellate experience with a focus on energy law and environmental litigation, James advises on:

• Appellate matters, including trial support and critical motions practice
• Energy regulatory matters
• CERCLA contribution litigation

Never settling for legalese where plain English will do, James drives home the points that matter most to clients. With court submissions now routinely reported in the media, clients appreciate that James’ writing sends a clear message to courts and the public alike. James also excels at interpreting statutes and relevant legal decisions in ways courts have not considered.

James chairs the firm's Appellate Practice Group.

• Advising on complex civil, regulatory and tax appeals, with a focus on reducing difficult issues to understandable concepts for decisionmakers. James has fully briefed over 40 appeals in Wisconsin, Illinois, Florida and the Seventh, Ninth and Federal Circuits, briefed and argued cases before the Illinois Appellate Court and the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, and argued three times before the Wisconsin Supreme Court.
• Crafting motions (and, more importantly, supporting briefs) for pivotal issues that especially matter to clients, and assisting trial teams with spotting and preserving key issues for appeal.
• Advising public utility clients on a wide variety of matters from rate cases before the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin (PSCW), to hydroelectric permit disputes before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), to utility right-of-way disputes with the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT).
• Advising on CERCLA Superfund litigation, in particular representing manufacturers and successor entities identified as potentially responsible parties (PRP) in connection with historically contaminated sites, focusing on historical and archival research in pursuit of successor claims and defenses.

Appellate

• Argued and won reversal by Wisconsin Supreme Court in favor of internet freedom of speech under the federal Communications Decency Act.
• Argued and won affirmance by Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals of judgment dismissing antitrust claims against scrap metal processor.
• Convinced Wisconsin Court of Appeals to reverse administrative ruling by trial court in connection with public utility rates.
• Briefed amicus issues in a wide range of cases of statewide interest, including securities litigation, transmission easement disputes, insurance coverage disputes and nursing facility litigation.

Regulatory

• Defended favorable PSCW ruling for public utility client in regulatory appeal relating to cost allocation for fuel conversion at a cogeneration plant.
• Developed testimony and crafted briefing in support of merger between two multi-state investor-owned utilities.
• Secured recovery of public utility’s costs in spent nuclear fuel litigation.