J. Austin Moore

Practice areas: Complex business litigation (plaintiff), consumer class actions

Law school: Washington University

As the son of two Wichita, Kansas, lawyers, the law always had some pull on the heart of J. Austin Moore.

Though he admits that Atticus Finch and movies where Matthew McConaughey plays an attorney may also have played a role in dramatizing the profession for him. Either way, it has agreed with him.

Previous to beginning his fruitful tenure litigating class actions and other matters at his current firm, he worked in private practice at both the state and federal levels dealing with a wide range of matters from RICO Act issues to antitrust actions.

Today, at Stueve Siegel Hanson, he is on the cutting edge when it comes to class actions over data breaches and privacy litigation.

Moore, who said he might have considered a career in journalism were it not for the law, was also honored for his writing ability in law school as recipient of the Mary Collier Hitchcock Prize at Washington University in St. Louis.

What is your biggest accomplishment this year?

In April my firm gave me the incredible opportunity to argue an appeal before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit involving an issue of statutory interpretation concerning the Federal Arbitration Act. The argument took place at the awe-inspiring (and even more intimidating) Thurgood Marshall Courthouse in New York before a panel of three very engaged judges. Making it out of there alive was easily my biggest accomplishment of the year.

What advice do you have for young lawyers?

Seek out opportunities and play to your strengths. If you are a talented writer then make yourself invaluable by submitting consistently top-notch written work product. If you are an effective communicator then get in the courtroom and in front of clients as often as possible. If you have a knack for cultivating relationships then use your skills to start developing business early. You don’t have to be great at everything in order to make yourself indispensable.