Philadelphia Address
Duane Morris LLP
30 South 17th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103-4196
Phone: 412.497.1083
Fax: 215.979.1020

Robert L. Byer is head of the Appellate division of Duane Morris' Trial Practice Group. Mr. Byer concentrates his practice in appellate litigation and also practices in the areas of complex civil litigation; corporate compliance, corporate governance and internal investigations; intellectual property litigation; and administrative law. Mr. Byer is a former judge of the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court and Pennsylvania Court of Judicial Discipline.

As an appellate lawyer, Mr. Byer has argued or briefed approximately 160 appeals in the United States Courts of Appeals for the Third, Fifth, Eighth, Ninth, Eleventh, District of Columbia and Federal Circuits, the Pennsylvania appellate courts and the appellate courts of California, Maryland and Washington. He also has briefed and worked on appeals in the United States Supreme Court. His appellate work covers a wide range of legal areas, including corporate governance, intellectual property, administrative agency law, tax cases, Constitutional law, insurance coverage contract cases, professional liability, product liability and toxic torts. He will be guiding the development of a firmwide appellate practice group at Duane Morris.

In addition to his work as an appellate lawyer, Mr. Byer brings to Duane Morris LLP a wealth of experience in complex civil and intellectual property litigation. He also advises major corporations on issues related to commercial contracts, corporate governance, corporate compliance (including export control and political contribution and lobbying issues), ethics and internal investigations.

Mr. Byer is a member of the American Law Institute, the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers and the Lawyers Advisory Committee of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. He is a former chair of the Pennsylvania Bar Association Civil Litigation Section, former chair of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court Appellate Court Procedural Rules Committee and a former adjunct faculty member at Duquesne University School of Law, where he taught advanced courses on civil procedure, and The National Judicial College, where he taught courses on judicial review of administrative agency adjudications. Mr. Byer is listed in Best Lawyers in America and in Pennsylvania SuperLawyers.

Mr. Byer is the author of a treatise on Pennsylvania civil practice and the author of numerous published articles, monographs, and course materials on various legal topics. He has been a speaker at seminars and continuing legal education programs throughout the United States.

Mr. Byer is a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh (J.D., 1977; editor, University of Pittsburgh Law Review; B.A., magna cum laude, 1973). He engaged in post-graduate studies at Harris Manchester College, Oxford University.

Areas Of Practice

Appellate Litigation
Complex Civil Litigation
Corporate Compliance
Corporate Governance
Internal Investigations
Intellectual Property Litigation
Administrative Law

Professional Activities

American Bar Association
- Council of Appellate Lawyers
--- Judicial Administration Division
- Appellate Practice Committee
--- Section of Litigation
- Appellate Advocacy Committee
--- Tort & Insurance Practice Section
--- Vice Chair, Subcommittee on Rules of Procedure, 1995-1997
--- Vice Chair, Special Committee on Class Actions, 1981-1985
Allegheny County Bar Foundation
- Charter Fellow
American Academy of Appellate Lawyers
American Judicature Society
- Board of Directors, 1998-2000
American Law Institute
- Member Consultative Groups
--- Federal Judicial Code Revision Project, 1997-2001
--- International Jurisdiction and Judgments Project, 1998-present
--- Principles and Rules of Transnational Civil Procedure, 1998-present
--- Intellectual Property: Principles Governing Jurisdiction, Choice of Law and Judgments in Transnational Disputes, 2000-present
Pennsylvania Bar Association
- Civil Litigation Section
--- Discovery Rules Committee, 1995-1996
--- Chair, 1989-1991
--- Vice Chair, 1987-1989
--- Secretary, l985-1987
--- Section Council, 1984-1985
- Amicus Curiae Brief Committee
--- Chair, 2006-present
--- Vice Chair, 2004-2006
--- Member, 2001-2004
- Post-Trial and Appellate Practice Committee
--- Vice Chair, Subcommittee on Procedural Rules, 2004-present
- House of Delegates, 1981-1996
- Section Council, Municipal Law Section, 1992-1993
- Judicial Selection & Administration Committee, 1995-1996
--- Legislative Subcommittee, 1995-1996
Pennsylvania Bar Institute
- Treasurer, 1996-1997
- Director, 1986-1992, 1995-1996
- Chair, Publications Committee, 1988-1990
- Chair, Judicial Education and Courts Liaison Committee, 1990-1992
Allegheny County Bar Association
- Pittsburgh Legal Journal
--- Executive Committee, 1988-1994
--- Associate Editor, 1988-1994
--- Editor-In-Chief and Chairman, 1985-1987
--- Opinion Editor, 1980-1984
- Appellate Practice Committee, 1987-present
Academy of Trial Lawyers of Allegheny County
- Chairman, Alternative Dispute Resolution Committee, 1994-1996
- Member, 1986-1997
Pennsylvanians for Modern Courts
- Southwest Pennsylvania Advisory Board, 1993-present
American Bar Foundation
- Life Fellow
Pennsylvania Bar Foundation
- Life Fellow

Admissions

Pennsylvania
U.S. Supreme Court
U.S. Courts of Appeals for the Third, Fifth, Eighth, Ninth, Eleventh, District of Columbia and Federal Circuits
U.S. District Courts for the Eastern, Middle and Western Districts of Pennsylvania
U.S. Tax Court

Education

University of Pittsburgh School of Law, J.D., 1977

University of Pittsburgh Law Review

Oxford University, Harris Manchester College, Post-Graduate Studies, 1974
University of Pittsburgh, B.A., magna cum laude, 1973

Experience

Duane Morris LLP
- Partner, 2006-present
Kirkpatrick & Lockhart Nicholson Graham LLP
- Partner, 1992-2006
Pennsylvania Court of Judicial Discipline
- Judge, Gubernatorial Appointee, 1997-2001
Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania
- Judge, 1990-1992
Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellott
- Partner, 1985-1990
- Associate, 1977-1984

Board Memberships

American Jewish Committee
- Board of Directors, Pittsburgh Chapter, 1996-1999

Civic and Charitable Activities

Duquesne University Law School
- Adjunct Professor, 1995-2000
National Judicial College
- Faculty, 1992-1995
Pennsylvania Election Reform Task Force, 2004
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Office of Attorney General
- Transition Team, 1996-1997

Honors and Awards

United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, Lawyers' Advisory Committee (appointed as nominee of Third Circuit Judges stationed in the Western District of Pennsylvania), 2005-present
Pennsylvania Supreme Court, Committee for Standard Jury Instructions, Civil Instructions Subcommittee, 2005-present
Named a Pennsylvania SuperLawyer for Appellate Practice by Philadelphia Magazine, 2004 and 2005
Chair of Pennsylvania Supreme Court Appellate Court Procedural Rules Committee, 1994-1998; member, 1987-1991, 1992-1994)
Fellow, Academy of Trial Lawyers of Allegheny Court, 1986-1997
Chair of Civil Litigation Section, Pennsylvania Bar Association, 1989-1991
Outstanding Young Lawyer of 1987 Award (awarded by Allegheny County Bar Association, Young Lawyers Section for "leadership and service to the legal profession and his community")
Chief Justice of Pennsylvania's Advisory Committee on Comprehensive Education, Subcommittee on Appellate Judges Education, 1988
Fellow, American Academy of Appellate Lawyers
American Law Institute, Elected Member
Advisory Committee for the Study of Rules of Practice, United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania

Selected Speaking Engagements

Speaker, "Matching Advocacy to Audience: Difference Between Intermediate Appellate Courts and Courts of Last Resort," Appellate Judges Education Institute Summit, Scottsdale, Arizona, November 14, 2008
Panelist, "Appellate Advocacy," Philadelphia Bar Association Bench Bar Conference, Atlantic City, New Jersey, September 29, 2007
Speaker, Practical Pretrial," Pennsylvania Bar Institute seminar, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, September 24, 2007; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, September 27, 2007; Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, October 3, 2007
Faculty member and speaker, "The Nuts and Bolts of Appellate Advocacy," Pennsylvania Bar Institute program, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, February 6, 2007; Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, February 8, 2007; and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, February 13, 2007
Speaker, Novartis Corporation's Americas Lawyers meeting, Livingston, New Jersey, June 7, 2006.
Speaker, "Don't Slip on Appeal," Pennsylvania Bar Association Civil Litigation Section Retreat, April 30, 2006