Anna-Rose Mathieson

In April, Mathieson argued to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on behalf of Iman Suradi, a Jordanian woman who is seeking protection under the United Nations Convention against Torture to remain in the U.S.

Suradi has claimed that if she was sent back to Jordan, family members would kill her for bringing shame to the family. The Board of Immigration Appeals had denied her application for protection.

The three-judge 9th Circuit panel heard arguments last month concerning whether the Jordanian government acquiesces to these so-called "honor killings."

"The Jordanian government still has laws on the books that essentially embrace honor killings," Mathieson told the panel.

The Jordanian government is "not doing anything to stop this torture that Ms. Suradi would likely be subject to if she were returned to the country," Mathieson later argued. The case was still ongoing as of press time. Sitting on the panel, 9th Circuit Chief Justice Sidney R. Thomas thanked Mathieson for her pro bono representation of Suradi. Mathieson takes on a variety of cases pro bono, including domestic violence disputes. She is currently on the board of directors for the Family Violence Appellate Project, an Oakland-based nonprofit devoted to free civil appellate representation of domestic violence survivors.

"I think it's an incredibly valuable and rewarding part of my practice," Mathieson said of her pro bono work.

In August, Mathieson scored a 9th Circuit win in a trademark infringement lawsuit that her client, grocer Trader Joe's, had brought against a Canadian resident, Michael Norman Hallatt. Hallatt unabashedly purchases the grocer's goods in Washington state and resells them across the border at his Canadian knockoff store, Pirate Joe's.

"Hallatt's conduct may cause Trader Joe's reputational harm that could decrease the value of its American-held trademarks, and Hallat operates in American commerce streams when he buys Trader Joe's goods in Washington and hires locals to assist him," 9th Circuit Judge Morgan B. Christen wrote for the unanimous panel. Trader Joe's v. Hallatt, 2016 DJDAR 8902 (9th Cir. Aug. 26, 2016). The lawsuit is currently ongoing in Washington federal court. Mathieson joined California Appellate Law Group in 2015 because she was excited by the challenge of developing an appellate boutique.

"It's both fun and an honor getting to work with so many talented appellate lawyers and benefiting from all their knowledge of the courts," Mathieson said. "That range of expertise at both the state and federal appellate levels means we can put together fantastic teams for every case to offer appellate insights most other firms can't match."

— Kevin Lee