Charles Kagay has decades of appellate experience in both California and federal courts.
He frequently handles appeals involving complex or novel legal questions, and his cases have addressed first-impression questions of civil procedure and statutory interpretation, including issues related to antitrust law, administrative law, physician credentialing, and anti-SLAPP (Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation) motions. He also handles trial court actions of an appellate nature, such as petitions for writs of administrative mandamus and bankruptcy appeals.
He has been certified as California appellate specialist by the Board of Legal Specialization of the State Bar of California for well over a decade.
He has been selected ten times as a “Northern California SuperLawyer” in appellate law, and he has both a peer rating and client rating of 5 out of 5 from Martindale-Hubbell.
Previously, Charles served as Chief Appellate Counsel in two Independent Counsel probes of cabinet-level officials in Washington, D.C.
He also acted as a Deputy Attorney General for the State of California. Charles is a past member of the State Bar of California’s Committee on Appellate Courts, Committee on the Administration of Justice, and Antitrust and Unfair Competition Section’s Executive Committee.
He holds three degrees from Harvard University.
He earned his law degree, his graduate degree in public policy, and his undergraduate degrees there.
Law School
Harvard Law School
Awards
Super Lawyer Super Lawyers Magazine
5/5 Martindale-Hubbell
Bar Admissions
California
U.S. Court of Appeals Third, Fifth, Ninth, Eleventh, and D.C. Circuits
U.S. Supreme Court
Certifications
Appellate Law
Some of Charles’s cases
California Court of Appeal
Young v. Tri-City Healthcare Dist.
Established that a petition for writ of administrative mandate cannot generally be characterized as a SLAPP action
California Supreme Court
Mileikowsky v. West Hills Hospital and Medical Center
California Supreme Court decision that established a hearing officer in a hospital administrative proceeding lacks authority to dismiss a case on his or her own initiative
California Court of Appeal
UAS Management, Inc., v. Mater Misericordiae Hospital
Major, multi-million dollar decision that reversed a summary judgment and created new law regarding reconsideration motions in the context of antitrust lawsuits related to unlawful tying arrangements in the hospital industry.
California Supreme Court
Cel-Tech Communications, Inc. v. Los Angeles Cellular Telephone Co.
Important California Supreme Court ruling that established the parameters of the unfairness prong of California’s Unfair Competition Law, Business and Professions Code section 17200 et seq.
U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit
In re Sealed Case
Established parameters for enforcement of a special prosecutor’s subpoena to the White House.
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
Abramson v. Gonzalez
Convinced federal appellate court to strike down Florida regulatory statute on First Amendment grounds.
Litigation Is Just Stuff People Do
This article originally appeared in the Daily Journal on November 25, 2019. John …
Navigating the Post-Judgment Motion Maze
This article originally appeared in The Recorder on July 5, 2017. Frank Lloyd Wright …
Map a Safe Route to a Summary Judgment Appeal
This article originally appeared in The Recorder on June 12, 2020. Most appeals, particularly …