Against a backdrop of record low approval ratings for the U.S. Supreme Court and bitter controversies over White House nominations for federal appeals courts, Stephen Orlofsky is providing a shot in the arm for appellate practice.
Orlofsky, a former federal judge and now the appellate practice chair at Blank Rome, has helped create the Stephen M. Orlofsky Endowed Appellate Advocacy Fund at Rutgers Law School. His gift will provide specialized training in appellate practice to students at the law school, although it's yet to be determined whether Rutgers uses the gift to hire a professor or offer a separate appellate advocacy course. Amicus briefs and pro bono work may also be part of the mix.
Orlofsky was a U.S. district judge from 1996 to 2003 and a U.S. magistrate judge from 1976 to 1980. He said appellate law, in a sense, is a neglected area of the law.
"Lawyers and law schools have focused on the trial: all kinds of programs—trial advocacy, how to take depositions, and how to do opening and closing statements. What most lawyers do in the first instance is trial work, so that makes sense. What's emerged in the last five to 10 years is how important appellate advocacy can be, in terms of preserving issues at trial, for appeal, and in writing briefs," Orlofsky said.
"It's something that's needed now. I think it's time to try to train the next generation of appellate lawyers. I think that's not only in the interest of society, but the interests of our country. I mean, that's where the rule of law and the Constitution are protected. That's what this is really about," he said.
To read the full article, please click here.
"Ex-Judge Saw Underserved Practice—and Did Something About It," by Charles Toutant was published in the New Jersey Law Journal on August 1, 2025.