Kenneth D. Sansom

Kenneth D. Sansom

Partner

Kenneth D. Sansom has established himself as a premiere business litigator through his ability to devise and implement legal resolutions that fit his clients’ needs. In the course of building his practice, Sansom has assisted clients, including Fortune 100 and Fortune 500 companies, with achieving a variety of results tailored to their specific needs, such as:

Favorable verdicts in venues nationwide, including several of the most challenging;
Internal and external management, coordination and cost control assistance;
Vindication of important legal principles.

The areas of practice where Sansom has the most experience are state and federal appeals, commercial and labor and employment class actions and corporate investigations. However, his legal expertise is by no means limited to those practice areas.

Sansom’s commercial litigation experience extends to business torts, employment benefits, intellectual property, transportation industry regulation, corporate taxation and financial services regulation. He has also filed amicus briefs with various federal courts of appeal and the U.S. Supreme Court on behalf of industry groups. In addition, Sansom has advised companies on how to strategically modify their contracts to better anticipate the litigation environment.

Ken Sansom’s drive to become the experienced commercial litigator he is today, has led to achievements that include:

The dismissal of significant class actions in multiple states
The establishment of important precedent in areas such as state-court venue principles and federal preemption
Successfully petitioning the U.S. Supreme Court for writ of certiorari

Practice Areas

Complex Litigation
- Commercial Disputes
- Employment Disputes
- Class Actions
Appellate Practice
Insurance Coverage Litigation
Strategic Counseling

Bar Admissions

Alabama
U.S. Court of Appeals – First, Sixth, Seventh, Ninth and Eleventh Circuits
U.S. District Courts for the Northern, Middle and Southern Districts of Alabama

Education

Rice University
- B.A.
University of Texas School of Law
- J.D.
- Board of Advocates (Advocacy Honor)
- Texas Law Review, Articles Editor and Best Constitutional Law Note

Clerkship

Hon. Emmett R. Cox, U.S. Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit

Industry Experience

Air and Ground Transportation
Financial Services
Health Care
Others

Professional Honors, Affiliations and Memberships

American Bar Association
Litigation & Antitrust Sections
Forum on Air & Space Law
Alabama State Bar
Birmingham Bar Association
Federal Bar Association
Transportation Lawyers Association
Selectee, Alabama Super Lawyers 2008 – 2009, 2014 – 2017
Recognized by The Best Lawyers in America since 2014
Named by Chambers USA as a Leading Commercial Litigator (multiple years)

Publications

“Who May Speak for the King? Challenging Common Assumptions about Representing the Government in Class Action,” Class Action Litigation Report, Vol. 5, No. 15, page 549.
Note, “Sharing the Burden: Exploring the Space Between Uniform and Specific Applicability in Current Free Exercise Jurisprudence,” 77 Texas L. Rev. 753 (1999).

Speaking Engagements

Understanding Two Emerging Issues Impacting Class Action Litigation [Evolving Personal Jurisdiction Standards and Issue Classes]; 15th Annual American Bar Association Section of Labor and Employment Law Conference; November 11, 2021; Los Angeles, California.
Employee Litigation; Plenary Session Presentation to In-House and Outside Counsel at Private Conference for Counsel Representing a Major Corporate Client; January 23, 2020; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
The Role of Outside Counsel in Defending the [Corporate] Brand and Model; Plenary Session Presentation to In-House and Outside Counsel at Private Conference for Counsel Representing a Major Corporate Client; January 24, 2019; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Contours of Preemption for General Counsel; American Trucking Associations, Litigation Center, Forum for Motor Carrier General Counsel; July 15, 2013; Coeur d’Alene, Idaho.
Preservation of Electronically Stored Information Before Suit; American Bar Association Forum on Air and Space Law Annual Conference; October 25, 2012; New Orleans, Louisiana.
Class Action Litigation; Transportation Law Institute; 2003; Sturm College of Law; University of Denver; Denver, Colorado.