Associate, MoloLamken LLP
James Barta’s practice focuses on complex civil litigation, white-collar matters, and appellate litigation.
Before joining MoloLamken, Mr. Barta clerked for the Honorable Raymond M. Kethledge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. He also clerked for the Honorable Stephen J. Murphy, III, of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan. During law school, Mr. Barta interned at the Indiana Solicitor General’s Office and the U.S. Department of Justice.
Vice President and Director of Litigation, EdChoice
Thomas M. Fisher served as a Deputy Attorney General for 22 years and as Indiana’s first Solicitor General from 2005-2023. In that role he handled high profile litigation for the State, defended state statutes against constitutional attack, advised the Attorney General on a range of legal policy issues, and managed the State’s U.S. Supreme Court docket. A two-time recipient of the National Association of Attorneys General Best Brief Award, Fisher has argued five times before the High Court.
His U.S. Supreme Court experience also includes authorship of dozens of cert-stage and merits-stage amicus curiae briefs on a wide range of issues. In addition, Fisher has argued dozens of important and high-profile cases before both the Indiana Supreme Court and the Seventh Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals. Fisher is a Fellow of the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers and was recently named a Sagamore of the Wabash by Governor Eric Holcomb.
A native Hoosier, Fisher is a graduate of Wabash College and Indiana University Maurer School of Law, where he serves as an Adjunct Professor of Law.
Vice President and Director of Litigation, EdChoice
Thomas M. Fisher served as a Deputy Attorney General for 22 years and as Indiana’s first Solicitor General from 2005-2023. In that role he handled high profile litigation for the State, defended state statutes against constitutional attack, advised the Attorney General on a range of legal policy issues, and managed the State’s U.S. Supreme Court docket. A two-time recipient of the National Association of Attorneys General Best Brief Award, Fisher has argued five times before the High Court.
His U.S. Supreme Court experience also includes authorship of dozens of cert-stage and merits-stage amicus curiae briefs on a wide range of issues. In addition, Fisher has argued dozens of important and high-profile cases before both the Indiana Supreme Court and the Seventh Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals. Fisher is a Fellow of the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers and was recently named a Sagamore of the Wabash by Governor Eric Holcomb.
A native Hoosier, Fisher is a graduate of Wabash College and Indiana University Maurer School of Law, where he serves as an Adjunct Professor of Law.
Eric Criss is an independent scholar who recently published The Boss of New Orleans: Martin Behrman and Machine Politics in the Crescent City with the LSU Press. He taught advanced public policy at Florida State University, where he earned his PhD in history. Eric earned his MA in Government at John's Hopkins University and BA in Political Science at the University of Florida. Eric began his career with U.S. Senators Don Nickles of Oklahoma and Phil Gramm of Texas at the National Republican Senatorial Committee in Washington, D.C. He later served as staff member or consultant to Fortune 500 corporations, political parties, and presidential, congressional, and gubernatorial campaigns.
Assistant Solicitor General, Kansas Attorney General
Adam Steinhilber is an assistant solicitor general for the State of Kansas. He was previously a litigation associate in the Kansas City office of Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner LLP. Before entering private practice, Adam clerked for Chief Judge Timothy M. Tymkovich of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit and Justice Mark S. Massa of the Indiana Supreme Court.
Adam earned his J.D., magna cum laude, from the University of Michigan Law School, where he was elected to the Order of the Coif. He earned his B.A. in Political Science from the University of Kansas, where he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa.
Adam has held several leadership positions within the Federalist Society, and he currently serves on the Board of the Kansas City Lawyers Chapter.
Legal Counsel, Alliance Defending Freedom
Julia Payne serves as legal counsel for Alliance Defending Freedom’s Center for Life. In this role, she defends the sanctity of life by litigating both beginning and end of life issues.
Before joining ADF, Payne worked at the Office of the Indiana Attorney General as a deputy attorney general for five years. While at the AG’s office, she managed all of Indiana’s pro-life litigation and also worked on cases concerning immigration, religious liberty, federalism, the Commerce Clause, criminal procedure, federal habeas corpus procedures, civil asset forfeiture, local and special laws, and the common law powers of the attorney general. She has argued cases before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit, the Southern District of Indiana, and Indiana state courts.
Payne graduated cum laude from Indiana University Maurer School of Law in 2017, where she served as an editor on the Indiana Law Journal and won best brief in the Sherman Minton Moot Court Competition. During law school, Payne interned as a clerk for Indiana Solicitor General Tom Fisher and as a Blackstone Fellow with ADF’s Center for Academic Freedom in Atlanta. She also served as president of the Christian Legal Society and as an officer for the Advocates for Life and the Federalist Society.
Before law school, Payne graduated summa cum laude from Western Kentucky University with a B.A. in History and a B.A. in Spanish. As an undergraduate, Payne studied abroad in both Spain and China. On campus, she served on the Student Government Association Judicial Council, led the music ministry for the Catholic Campus Center, and was an active member of Omega Phi Alpha Service Sorority. Payne was also a founding member of the Hilltoppers for Life, which helped spur her interest in First Amendment and pro-life issues. Payne is a member of the bars of the Indiana Supreme Court, the Northern and Southern Districts of Indiana, and the Seventh Circuit.
Partner, Lewis Brisbois
Sarah E. Lang is a partner in the New York office of Lewis Brisbois and a member of the Appellate Practice. Ms. Lang has represented clients at all levels of state and federal courts, including the New York State Appellate Division, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, and the U.S. Supreme Court. The primary focus of her practice is drafting and arguing substantive motions and appeals before the federal courts and New York’s trial and appellate courts in substantive areas including general liability, New York Labor Law, medical malpractice, premises liability, and rideshare and transportation matters, among others. She also has extensive experience representing clients, including religious institutions, in matters arising under Title VII, the First Amendment, RLUIPA, New York’s City and State Human Rights Laws, New York’s Religious Corporations Law, and New York’s Real Property Tax Law. This includes federal jury trial experience and providing preventive advice and counseling. Prior to joining the firm, Ms. Lang clerked on the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, as well as the United States District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina. She also previously served as an Attorney Advisor for the United States Department of Education.
Deputy Counsel, Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty
Luke joined WILL from the Wisconsin Department of Justice where he served for nearly four years as a Deputy Solicitor General and Assistant Attorney General.
Berg has argued nine cases before the Wisconsin Supreme Court and four before the Seventh Circuit, including one en banc argument. He graduated from the University of Wisconsin – Madison (B.S.) and New York University (J.D.) and served as a law clerk for Judge Diane Sykes of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. Prior to joining the Wisconsin DOJ in 2015, Berg worked as an attorney for the Office of the Comptroller of Currency in Washington D.C.
Berg resides in Madison with his wife and three boys.
Vice President and Director of Litigation, EdChoice
Thomas M. Fisher served as a Deputy Attorney General for 22 years and as Indiana’s first Solicitor General from 2005-2023. In that role he handled high profile litigation for the State, defended state statutes against constitutional attack, advised the Attorney General on a range of legal policy issues, and managed the State’s U.S. Supreme Court docket. A two-time recipient of the National Association of Attorneys General Best Brief Award, Fisher has argued five times before the High Court.
His U.S. Supreme Court experience also includes authorship of dozens of cert-stage and merits-stage amicus curiae briefs on a wide range of issues. In addition, Fisher has argued dozens of important and high-profile cases before both the Indiana Supreme Court and the Seventh Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals. Fisher is a Fellow of the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers and was recently named a Sagamore of the Wabash by Governor Eric Holcomb.
A native Hoosier, Fisher is a graduate of Wabash College and Indiana University Maurer School of Law, where he serves as an Adjunct Professor of Law.
Senior Counsel, Vice President of Advocacy Strategy, Alliance Defending Freedom
Emilie Kao serves as senior counsel and vice president of advocacy strategy for Alliance Defending Freedom, where she is a member of the U.S. Legal Team. In this role, she supports ADF’s legal and legislative objectives through culture shaping initiatives.
Before joining ADF, Kao served as director of the DeVos Center for Religion and Civil Society at the Heritage Foundation. She led a team of experts who provided strategy, research, and policy recommendations on life, marriage, and religious freedom consistent with Constitutional principles. She convened coalitions of strategic partners to support the protection of religious freedom and launched the Promise to America’s Children, a movement dedicated to the protection of children and parental rights.
Kao also served as senior legal counsel at an international human rights law firm, East Asia team leader in the U.S. Department of State’s Office of International Human Rights, and director of international advocacy at the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty. She was an adjunct professor at Antonin Scalia Law School at George Mason University and is co-editor of the “First Principles on International Human Rights” essay series.
She has testified before the U.S. Congress and spoken at the United Nations in Geneva and New York. She has been interviewed and quoted extensively in the media, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, CNN, C-SPAN, and 60 Minutes+.
Kao earned her A.B. cum laude from Harvard University and her J.D. from Harvard Law School. She is a member of the state bars of California and the District of Columbia and is admitted to practice in the U.S. Supreme Court. She speaks Mandarin Chinese.
United States District Judge, Southern District of Ohio
Judge Matthew W. McFarland was born in Portsmouth, Scioto County, Ohio, and raised in Wheelersburg. He graduated from Wheelersburg High School in 1985, from Capital University in 1989 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science, and from the Capital University Law School in 1992, where he was inducted in the Order of the Barristers. He also served as a research assistant for Dean Rodney K. Smith. Judge McFarland first took the bench in 1999 as a Magistrate in the Scioto County Common Pleas Court. He was first elected to the Ohio Fourth District Court of Appeals in 2004 serving fourteen southeast Ohio counties. In 2010 and 2016 he was re-elected, and in 2016 by winning all fourteen counties. As an appellate judge, Judge McFarland authored over 1,000 opinions and made over 2,900 panel votes and served as the Presiding and Administrative Judge for multiple years. He has served as a visiting Judge on the Supreme Court of Ohio on four separate occasions allowing him to sit on each level of the Ohio Judiciary including the trial, appellate, and supreme court bench. The Ohio Chief Justice also appointed him to serve as a Commissioner on the Board of Grievances and Discipline and the Advisory Committee on Court Security and Emergency.
On October 10, 2018, President Donald J. Trump announced his intent to nominate Judge McFarland to a seat on the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio after being recommended by the Portman/Brown Bipartisan Federal Judicial Search Commission. The United States Senate received Judge McFarland’s nomination on November 13, 2018. At the sine die adjournment of the 115th Congress on January 3, 2019, the Senate returned Judge McFarland’s nomination to President Trump. President Trump then re-nominated Judge McFarland on January 23, 2019. The Senate Judiciary Committee held Judge McFarland’s confirmation hearing on June 26, 2019, and favorably voted his nomination to the full United States Senate on July 18, 2019. The United States Senate then confirmed Judge McFarland on December 18, 2019, and President Trump signed Judge McFarland’s Commission on December 31, 2019. With Judge McFarland’s confirmation, he is now only the second federal judge to serve the Southern District of Ohio from Scioto County. The first being Judge Albert Thompson, who served from 1898-1910. Judge McFarland succeeded Judge Thomas M. Rose who took senior status on June 30, 2017.
Representing Indiana in Colorado, Idaho & Other Locales Nearby feat. James Barta
Indianapolis Lawyers Chapter
Indianapolis, INIntegrity or Interference?: Evaluating the Constitutionality of Georgia's Election Integrity Act
Eric Criss
Recent political earthquakes such as the assassination attempt against former president Donald Trump and President...
Indiana Supreme Court Recognizes State Constitutional Right to a Jury in Civil Forfeiture Actions
Adam Steinhilber
In State v. $2,435 in U.S. Currency, the Indiana Supreme Court unanimously held that Article...
Education Freedom: The Legal Landscape after Espinoza and Carson
Toledo Lawyers Chapter
Toledo, OHEducation Freedom: The Legal Landscape After Espinoza and Carson feat. Thomas Fisher
Atlanta Lawyers Chapter
Atlanta, GAIndiana Supreme Court Upholds Law Banning Most Abortions, Establishes Right To Life-Saving Abortion
Julia Payne Koon
After the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization,[1] Indiana...
Groff v. DeJoy: The Death of the “De Minimis” Test Breathes Life Back into Religious Accommodation
Sarah E. Lang
In a unanimous decision last June, the Supreme Court in Groff v. DeJoy heightened the...
2023 Education Law & Policy Conference
Co-Sponsored by the Defense of Freedom Institute for Policy Studies
Washington, DCTopics
Federal Appellate Court Upholds State Ban on Gender Medicine for Minors
Recently, the Sixth Circuit upheld Tennessee’s ban on so-called gender-affirming medical interventions for minors. Of...
Panel I: Recent Developments on Parental Rights
Luke Berg, Thomas M. Fisher, Emilie Kao, Matthew W. McFarland
Anxiety regarding parental rights in American healthcare and education is at an all time high. ...