Partner, Holtzman Vogel
Joe Burns is a partner with Holtzman Vogel and focuses his practice on representing candidates and party committees in election cases throughout New York State.
Prior to joining the firm, Joe served as Deputy Director of Election Operations at the New York State Board of Elections. In this role, he worked with county Boards of Elections, candidates, and party committees, and was involved in New York State's transition from lever to optical scan voting. He also conducted hearings for the NYSBOE and represented it in court proceedings.
Additionally, Joe has served as an attorney for the Erie County and New York State Republican Committees, and has also represented candidates for a variety of public offices throughout New York State, including candidates for U.S. Congress and New York State Supreme Court.
From 2018 to 2024, Joe was the Deputy Administrative Director for the Erie County Water Authority; and from 2015 to 2018, he was the Secretary to the Erie County Water Authority.
A life-long resident of Upstate New York and active member of the Western New York community, Joe served as vice chair of the Erie County Charter Revision Commission in 2016 and was a member of the Erie County Advisory Commission on Reapportionment in 2021. City and State named Joe to its Upstate Power 100 list in 2024, and in 2025, Joe was named as one of New York State’s Law Power 100 by City and State.
Joe is a frequent commentator and author on New York State and national politics, and election law.
Law Clerk, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois
Tom Fogarty is currently a law clerk in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.
Tom received his J.D. from Duke University School of Law, where he was the VP of Internal Affairs of the Duke Law Federalist Society, the President of the Mock Trial Board, a member of the Moot Court Board, and an Online Editor of the Duke Law Journal. He also received his B.A. in History from the Ohio State University.
Law Clerk, United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas
Deputy Solicitor General, Office of the Attorney General of Iowa
Patrick C. Valencia serves as Iowa’s Deputy Solicitor General in the Iowa Attorney General’s Office. In this role, he helps marshal Iowa’s appellate docket, and briefs and argues cases, before state and federal appellate courts, including the Iowa and U.S. Supreme Courts.
Before moving to Iowa, Patrick worked on appeals across all levels of state and federal courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court, as a senior associate in the Supreme Court and Appellate practice group at Hogan Lovells in Washington, D.C. Patrick has worked on cases involving a wide range of issues, including constitutional law, civil procedure, civil rights, employment law, and complex commercial litigation, across a variety of industries, including the automotive, energy, health care, and technology industries. Patrick has also served as appellate counsel in federal district courts, including on several antitrust cases.
Before Hogan Lovells, Patrick clerked for the Honorables Roger W. Titus and Paul W. Grimm of the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, and then for the Honorable Steven M. Colloton of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit.
Patrick graduated Order of the Coif with high honors from the George Washington University Law School. Patrick completed his undergraduate degree at the University of Notre Dame, where he studied political science and Irish history.
Challenge to New York Ballot Canvassing Law Thrown Out by State High Court
Joseph Thomas Burns
On October 31, 2024, in Amedure v. State, the New York State Court of Appeals...
Pandemic Orders and the Right to Earn a Living in North Carolina
Tom M. Fogarty
In March of 2020—during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic—North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper...
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FCC v. Consumers’ Research: Will the Court Reinvigorate the Nondelegation Doctrine or Phone It In?
To protect liberty and promote accountability, our Constitution exclusively tasks the People’s elected representatives in...
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Jared C. Huber
The South Carolina Legislature passed the Education Scholarship Trust Fund Act (ESTF) to “provide scholarships...
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Court Holds the Corporate Transparency Act Is Unconstitutional: A Victory for Limited Government and the Right to Privacy
Earlier this month, a federal district court judge issued a preliminary injunction against the enforcement...
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Sheldon Gilbert to Become Next Federalist Society President and CEO
The Federalist Society’s Board of Directors is delighted to announce that Sheldon Gilbert will become...
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Will the Supreme Court Finally Address the Private Nondelegation Doctrine?
The Supreme Court is poised to tackle a key separation of powers issue this term:...
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United States v. Skrmetti: Oral Arguments Indicate SCOTUS Justices Are Likely to Uphold Tennessee’s Ban on Gender Medicine for Minors
On Wednesday, December 3, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in one of the...
Iowa’s Constitution Provides a Legislative Privilege Despite Lacking a Speech or Debate Clause
Patrick C. Valencia
A civil rights organization, the League of United Latin American Citizens of Iowa (LULAC),...
Topics
Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v. Eagle County: What’s at Stake in the Supreme Court’s First Major NEPA Case in 20 Years
On Tuesday, the Supreme Court hears Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v. Eagle County, a case...