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    Home /  Lawyers /  Morgan L. Ratner

    Morgan L. Ratner

    Partner

    Morgan L. Ratner Headshot Photo Portrait backdrop

    Washington, D.C.

    +1-202-956-7500

    |

    ratnerm@sullcrom.com

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    Morgan Ratner is a partner in Sullivan & Cromwell’s Litigation Group and is a member of the Firm’s Supreme Court and Appellate Practice. She has argued nine cases before the U.S. Supreme Court.

    Before joining the Firm, Ms. Ratner served in the Office of the Solicitor General at the U.S. Department of Justice. During her tenure there, she argued Supreme Court cases involving areas of federal law such as securities regulation, bankruptcy, employment, intellectual property, criminal law, and elections law. While at the Solicitor General’s Office, Ms. Ratner also filed over 150 Supreme Court briefs at the merits and certiorari stages. She received a John Marshall Award, the Department of Justice’s highest award offered to attorneys, for exceptional service to the Office of the Solicitor General and the Department of Justice.

    In private practice, Ms. Ratner regularly briefs and argues appeals and dispositive motions; provides strategic guidance for trial and administrative proceedings; and counsels clients confronting high-stakes legal issues. She has had particular success helping clients navigate—and challenge—federal regulations. The American Lawyer named her the 2024 Young Lawyer of the Year: Litigation, and Law360 recently profiled her as one of “12 Lawyers Who Are The Future Of The Supreme Court Bar.”

    After graduating Harvard Law School⁠—where she was awarded the Fay Diploma as the top student in her class⁠—Ms. Ratner clerked for Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr. of the U.S. Supreme Court and then-Judge Brett M. Kavanaugh of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. She is a member of the Edward Coke Appellate Inn of Court and is a volunteer with Street Law, Inc.

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    Spotlight

    A Spotlight on S&C’s Rising Litigators

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    litigatorsbrochure_spotlight

    S&C Secures Supreme Court Victory on Standing for Regulated Parties

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    S&C Supreme Court Business Review – October Term 2024

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    supremecourtbusinessreview_spotlight

    S&C Obtains Appellate Reversal for Sumitomo Entities in Tax Dispute Over International Mining Deal

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    Jeff Wall and Morgan Ratner Named ‘Litigators of the Week’ for Sixth Circuit Net Neutrality Win

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    • Experience
    • Rankings and Recognitions
    • News
    • Publications, Videos and Podcasts
    • Credentials
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    Experience

    Experience

    Selected Representations

    • NCTA – The Internet & Television Association, USTelecom – The Broadband Association, and Ohio Telecom Association in their successful challenge to the FCC’s reclassification of broadband under Title II of the Communications Act, in the Sixth Circuit. Morgan received The Am Law Litigation Daily’s “Litigator of the Week” award for this win.
    • Goldman Sachs in obtaining a major victory from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in a $13 billion securities case, with the court reversing class certification after 13 years of litigation and establishing important guardrails to the “inflation-maintenance” theory of securities fraud. The Second Circuit’s 2023 ruling followed a third discretionary Rule 23(f) appeal, marking just the second time a federal appeals court has granted interlocutory review of class certification three times.

    • Walgreens Boots Alliance in obtaining a ruling from the Ohio Supreme Court, on certification from the Sixth Circuit, eliminating a $650 million public nuisance judgment in the national opioid multidistrict litigation.
    • Great Lakes Insurance in securing a unanimous ruling from the Supreme Court in a maritime insurance dispute that the parties’ contractual choice-of-law provision is binding.
    • Major League Baseball in an appeal before the Second Circuit defending the league’s exemption from the federal antitrust laws.
    • U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other industry groups in their challenge to the FCC’s digital-discrimination rule, pending in the Eighth Circuit.
    • Duke Energy in an appeal before the Fourth Circuit defending a judgment dismissing antitrust claims brought by a competitor.
    • Tesla, Inc. in two pending appeals to the Delaware Supreme Court, including in Tesla’s appeal from the Court of Chancery judgment in January 2025 voiding the compensation plan of Tesla CEO Elon Musk, then worth over $50 billion.
    • Spirit AeroSystems in two appellate victories in the Tenth Circuit in a case involving compensation for the company’s former CEO—first reversing a $45 million judgment, then winning again on a subsequent appeal.
    • The American Fintech Council in securing a preliminary injunction in an action in the District of Colorado challenging the legality and scope of Colorado legislation opting out of the Depository Institutions Deregulation and Monetary Control Act of 1980.
    • U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other industry groups as amici in several Fair Credit Reporting Act cases before the Second and Eleventh Circuits.
    • Valero Energy Corporation in a set of consolidated appeals to the D.C. Circuit challenging vehicle-emission and fuel-economy rules issued by the Environmental Protection Agency and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
    • Volkswagen as intervenor in successfully defending on appeal to the Second Circuit a Freedom of Information Act judgment with implications for companies attempting to shield confidential information shared with the government from public disclosure.

    Cases Argued in the Supreme Court

    Bankruptcy:

    • U.S. Bank National Association v. Village at Lakeridge (2018): whether a designation of non-statutory insider status is reviewable for clear error

    Intellectual Property:

    • Minerva Surgical v. Hologic (2021): whether and when the doctrine of assignor estoppel applies

    Securities:

    • Emulex Corp. v. Varjabedian (2019): whether an inferred private right of action exists under Section 14(e) of the Securities Exchange Act for misstatements or omissions made in connection with a tender offer

    Civil and Constitutional Rights:

    • Comcast Corp. v. National Association of African American-Owned Media (2020): whether a claim of race discrimination in contracting under 42 U.S.C. 1981 requires but-for causation
    • Our Lady of Guadalupe School v. Morrissey-Berru (2020): whether the First Amendment’s “ministerial exception” applies when an employee carries out important religious functions
    • Virginia House of Delegates  v. Bethune-Hill (2019): whether the Virginia House of Delegates had standing to appeal, and whether the redistricting plan was an unconstitutional racial gerrymander

    Criminal Law and Procedure:

    • Caniglia v. Strom (2021): whether the Fourth Amendment permits a non-investigative warrantless home search for “community caretaking”
    • Holguin-Hernandez v. United States (2020): whether a defendant must object after sentencing to preserve a substantive-reasonableness challenge
    • Jones v. Hendrix (2022): whether a federal inmate who previously sought postconviction relief may apply for habeas relief after an intervening Supreme Court decision construing his statute of conviction

    Recent Speaking Engagements

    • March 20, 2025, The Federalist Society, A Seat at the Sitting
    • February 5, 2025, Federal Bar Council 2025 Winter Bench and Bar Conference, Presidential Power and Supreme Court Review
    • December 9, 2024, Fourth Circuit Criminal Appellate Practice Seminar, Tips and Tricks for Effective Oral Argument
    • November 13, 2024, The Clearing House Annual Conference, The Impact of the Supreme Court on the Banking Sector: A Look Back and a Look Ahead
    • October 16, 2024, Original Jurisdiction podcast with David Lat, A 2024 Supreme Court Preview
    • October 4, 2024, Pacific Legal Foundation, Supreme Court Preview 2024
    • July 24, 2024, New York City Bar Association, Supreme Court – A Year in Review, 2023 Term
    • June 6, 2024, U.S. Chamber Litigation Center, This Week at the Court
    • May 14, 2024, Judicial Conference of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, The Supreme Court Panel
    • February 6, 2024, Federal Bar Council, Supreme Court Review
    • November 29, 2023, American Bar Association, Sound Advice: A Preview of the Supreme Court’s Decision in Loper-Bright v. Raimondo
    • October 26, 2023, Retail Industry Leaders Association’s Retail Law Conference, Decoding the Supreme Court: Critical Insights for Retailers
    • October 18, 2023, Federal Bar Association, Effective Oral Advocacy on Appeal
    • September 28, 2023, American Bar Association, On the Docket: Looking Ahead at the New Supreme Court Term
    • August 29, 2023, Federalist Society, Supreme Court Review and Preview
    • February 19, 2023, Federal Bar Council, Supreme Court Review
    • September 26, 2022, SCOTUStalk Podcast, The October Term 2022 Preview
    • September 16, 2022, William & Mary Law School, 2022 Supreme Court Preview
    • August 3, 2022, National Conference of State Legislatures – Legislative Summit, Supreme Court Center Stage
    • July 6, 2022, Washington Legal Foundation, The U.S. Supreme Court: October Term 2021 in Review
    • June 10–11, 2022, Street Law and Supreme Court Historical Society, Supreme Court Summer Institute  –Sessions on Precedent and Appellate Advocacy
    • June 9, 2022, SCOTUS 101 Podcast, Interview
    • March 17, 2022, State and Local Legal Center, Supreme Court Midterm Webinar
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    Rankings and Recognitions

    Rankings and Recognitions

    • The American Lawyer – Young Lawyer of the Year, Litigation (2024)
    • Law360 – 12 Lawyers Who Are The Future Of The Supreme Court Bar (2024)
    • Chambers USA – Nationwide Appellate Law (2023–2025)
    • National Law Journal – D.C. Rising Star (2023)
    • Benchmark Litigation – 40 & Under List (2023)
    • Lawdragon 500 X – The Next Generation (2023–2024)
    • Law360 – Rising Star in Appellate Practice (2022)
    • U.S. Attorney General’s John Marshall Award (2021)
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    News

    News

    • S&C Secures Supreme Court Victory on Standing for Regulated Parties

      July 1, 2025
    • S&C Obtains Appellate Reversal for Sumitomo Entities in Tax Dispute Over International Mining Deal

      May 20, 2025
    • Bob Giuffra Discusses Potential Impact of Macroeconomic Factors on 2025 Litigation Trends with Litigation Daily

      January 10, 2025
    • S&C Obtains Victory for Broadband Industry in FCC Net-Neutrality Appeal

      January 6, 2025
    • S&C Helps Eliminate $650 Million Award Against Walgreens and Other Pharmacies

      December 19, 2024
    • Morgan Ratner Featured in Law360’s ‘High Court Bar’s Future’ Series

      November 26, 2024
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    Publications, Videos and Podcasts

    Publications, Videos and Podcasts

    • SEC’s Final Climate Rules for Public Companies: Key Requirements and Takeaways

      Webinars March 18, 2024
    • S&C Supreme Court Business Review –
      October Term 2022

      Emerging Issues July 12, 2023
    • A Discussion of In Re Grand Jury

      Podcasts October 25, 2022
    • S&C Critical Insights – Supreme Court Business Review: Viking River Cruises v. Moriana and Southwest Airlines Co. v. Saxon

      Podcasts September 19, 2022
    • S&C Critical Insights – Supreme Court Business Review: ZF Automotive v. Luxshare, Badgerow v. Walters and Morgan v. Sundance

      Podcasts August 22, 2022
    • S&C Critical Insights – Supreme Court Business Review: Cassirer v. Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection Foundation

      Podcasts August 15, 2022
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    Credentials

    Credentials

    Education

    • Harvard Law School, J.D., 2012
    • University of Maryland, B.A., 2009

    Bar Admissions

    • South Carolina
    • District of Columbia
    • New York

    Clerkships

    • Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr., United States Supreme Court, 2013-2014
    • The Honorable Brett M. Kavanaugh, United States Court of Appeals, District of Columbia Circuit, 2012-2013
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    Related Practices

    Related Practices

    • Litigation
    • Administrative Law
    • Supreme Court and Appellate
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