TechFreedom is pleased to announce that Corbin K. Barthold has joined its ranks as Internet Policy Counsel and Director of Appellate Litigation. Tech policy has been, and will continue to be, at the center of some of the most important constitutional and administrative-law cases in the courts. Barthold, an experienced appellate litigator, will help TechFreedom expand its presence in important appeals involving internet policy, tech and telecom regulation, antitrust law, and civil liberties. He will lead TechFreedom’s efforts to build coalitions with like-minded appellate practitioners and public-interest lawyers. He will also be assisting with TechFreedom’s regulatory comments, op-eds, and other policy work.
After clerking for two federal judges, Barthold joined the Los Angeles office of Browne George Ross LLP, a prominent entertainment-law boutique, where he engaged in high-stakes complex litigation. He was elevated to partner in three years. He then served as Senior Litigation Counsel at Washington Legal Foundation, a D.C. public-interest firm, where his practice focused on appeals involving administrative law, the separation of powers, antitrust, and tech policy.
“It feels like TechFreedom and I were made for each other,” Barthold said. “I’m optimistic about where technological change will take us, and skeptical about anyone’s ability to plan or manage that change. So I think I’ll fit right in! The timing, too, is great. I’m glad to have reached a point in my career where I have something to contribute to this talented group. My goal is to help TechFreedom become as known and respected in the courts as it is in the agencies and the policy world.”
“I’m an attorney with a less-than-exalted view of his own profession,” Barthold continued. “The country isn’t supposed to be ruled by an oligarchy of lawyers. The courts are neither allowed to create, nor any good at creating, public policy for our fast-evolving markets, social conditions, and technology. Although I look forward to doing some valuable work in defense of constitutional free-speech and privacy rights, in statutory cases — cases about, say, the FTC Act, the Communications Act, or Section 230 — my goal will be to convince judges simply to acknowledge their limited role and apply the law as written.”
Corbin received his J.D. from the University of California, Berkeley, School of Law. He also holds a B.A., magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa, from the University of California, San Diego, and an Msc., with distinction, from the London School of Economics. His clerkships were for the Hon. Steven D. Merryday of the Middle District of Florida and the Hon. Robert H. Cleland of the Eastern District of Michigan.
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Corbin may be contacted at cbarthold@techfreedom.org. Follow him on Twitter at @corbinkbarthold.