Renee M. Knudsen

Associate

Washington, D.C.
T +1.202.861.1599
F +1.202.861.1783

Overview

Renee Knudsen is a legal strategist and litigator who advises clients on complex questions at the appellate and trial levels. She has experience in nearly every federal court of appeals and has represented clients and amici curiae at every level of the federal judiciary.

She regularly plays a significant role in researching and drafting motions for summary judgment, post-judgment motions, opening briefs on appeal and replies. A member of the Appellate and Major Motions practice group, Renee regularly works with practice groups across the firm. Her substantive experience includes commercial litigation, environmental law, patent litigation, labor law and constitutional issues.

Before joining BakerHostetler, Renee served as a judicial law clerk for Judge Leslie Southwick on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit and for Judge Claude Hilton on the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia (the “Rocket Docket”). While in law school, she interned for the U.S. Department of Justice, a state attorney general’s office and a public defender’s office.

Experience

  • Counsel for product manufacturer in aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF) multidistrict litigation in the U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina.
  • Counsel for prolific patent inventor in litigation in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, and the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
  • Drafted an amici curiae brief to the U.S. Supreme Court on behalf of acclaimed economists and law professors arguing that a state statute with residency requirements for obtaining and renewing a retail liquor license violated the dormant Commerce Clause, and the Supreme Court agreed in a 9-0 decision.
  • Represented a hotel in an appeal from an NLRB decision to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, and successfully obtained a 3-0 reversal.
  • Represented an oil company in litigation related to legacy ownership of a fuel terminal and successfully defended and obtained partial summary judgment, resulting in a favorable settlement.
  • Defended a journalist in a defamation lawsuit and obtained a favorable settlement vindicating the journalist’s First Amendment rights.

Recognitions and Memberships

Memberships

  • Federal Bar Association (NOVA), Young Lawyers Division: Committee Member

Prior Positions

  • The Honorable Leslie Southwick, U.S. Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit: Law Clerk (2017 to 2018)
  • The Honorable Claude Hilton, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Virginia: Law Clerk (2016 to 2017)

Admissions

  • U.S. Court of Appeals, District of Columbia Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals, Federal Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit
  • U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Virginia
  • U.S. District Court, District of Columbia
  • District of Columbia
  • Virginia

Education

  • J.D., Regent University School of Law, 2016, summa cum laude; Regent Law Review: Managing Editor, Staff Editor of the Year
  • B.S.B.A., Thomas Edison State University, 2011