Overview
Selby Brown is a trial and appellate lawyer who represents corporate clients in complex breach of contract and related disputes.
Customer obsessed, Selby works collaboratively with her clients to understand the nuances of their business operations as well as their litigation and business objectives. Clients know Selby to be sharp, persistent, and quick on her feet in a courtroom as well as a skilled writer, drafting lucid, effective briefs for complex matters.
After graduating first in her class and completing two federal judicial clerkships, Selby spent six years at Dechert LLP in Philadelphia, representing clients in high-stakes litigation involving topics ranging from sovereign debt litigation to multi-million-dollar contract and intellectual property disputes to Anti-Terrorism Act defense to white-collar criminal defense matters. During the Covid pandemic, Selby re-located to Seattle to be closer to family and join Summit Law Group. Today, she focuses her practice on:
Commercial litigation, including trial and arbitration advocacy. Selby represents clients in multi-million-dollar breach of contract disputes and related matters, including cases involving the Federal Arbitration Act, the Lanham Act, the Washington Consumer Protection Act, the Washington Franchise Investment Protection Act, tortious interference with contract, fraud, and negligence. She regularly appears before the American Arbitration Association as well as both state and federal courts.
Appeals. In addition to achieving success for clients through motions practice and trial advocacy, she has represented clients in more than a dozen state and federal appellate cases.
Litigation prevention and risk management. Knowing well the costs and risks of litigation, Selby advises clients on methods for reducing risk in their business operations and contracting as well as methods for resolving disputes outside of the courtroom, such as arbitration and mediation.
Clients. Selby’s clients include both emerging companies and Fortune 500 enterprises in the technology, e-commerce, finance, and real estate sectors.
In her spare time, Selby enjoys exploring the outdoors, street fairs, boardgames, and spending time with her family. In addition, throughout her career, she has dedicated substantial time to pro bono legal work, including work involving voting rights, immigration rights, and prisoners’ civil rights.
Credentials
Education
- University of Oklahoma College of Law
JD, first in class, highest honors, 2014
Editor-in-Chief, Oklahoma Law Review; ABA National Appellate Advocacy Competition, New York Regional Champion, First Place Regional Brief Award, and National Qualifier; Fellers Snider Diversity & Inclusion Scholar; Oklahoma Bar Association Outstanding 3L; Professional Responsibility Award (3L student vote); Joel Jankowsky Award (faculty vote for outstanding graduate); Nathan Scarritt Prize (graduate with the highest academic record); 11 American Jurisprudence Awards for the highest grade in a class; numerous additional awards for subject matter proficiency, including employment law, securities and civil procedure; Federal Bar Association Holloway Scholarship - Vassar College
BA, History, German Studies minor, 2009
Co-Ed A Cappella Group, President, Treasurer; study away at the Eugene O’Neill National Theater Institute (Waterford, CT) and the University of Mùˆnster (Mùˆnster, Germany)
Admissions
- Washington
- Pennsylvania (inactive)
- US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
- US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
- US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
- US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
- US Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
- US District Court for the Western District of Washington
- US District Court for the Eastern District of Washington
Clerkships
- Honorable Michael M. Baylson, US District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
- Honorable Robert E. Bacharach, US Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
Memberships
- Federal Bar Association, Appointee to the 2017/2018 and 2018/2019 National Task Force on Diversity & Inclusion, Membership Subcommittee Leader
- Federal Bar Association of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Secretary (2018–2021)
- Philadelphia Bar Association, Board Observer’s Program 2018, Women’s Law Project
Community Service
-
Philadelphia Theatre Company, Young Friends Committee Inaugural Member (2018–2021)
Publications & Speaking Engagements
- Co-author, “Petition to Confirm an Arbitration Award in Pennsylvania State Court,” Practical Law, August 28, 2019
- Co-author, “Global Principles of Compensatory Damages,” The Global Damages Review (The Law Reviews), January 11, 2019
- Co-author, “Cross-Border Discovery Disputes/Microsoft Case,” The 8th Annual Sedona Conference, International Programme on Cross-Border Discovery & Data Protection Laws, June 7, 2016
- Moderator, Supreme Court Roundup, Eastern District of Pennsylvania Chapter of the Federal Bar Association, Philadelphia, PA, July 24, 2019
- Presenter, Avoiding Criminal and Civil Liability for Hiring Practices: Top 10 Tips for Employers in 2018, New York, NY, July 10, 2018
- Presenter, 2017 Philadelphia Fall Labor and Employment Seminar, Philadelphia, PA, October 10, 2017
