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Alexis E. Danneman
Alexis has experience counseling clients and litigating in diverse areas, including constitutional, political, criminal, and appellate law.
Alexis advocates for clients in federal and state court at both the trial and appellate levels, with extensive experience in the Arizona appellate courts and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Alexis recently received client accolades in Chambers USA, describing her as an “exceptional appellate lawyer”; “excellent writer and appellate lawyer who is so careful about identifying legal issues”; “extremely smart and capable”; and “thoughtful, poised, refined and deliberate.”
Alexis has significant election and political law experience. She has litigated voting rights cases across the country since 2016 and has represented Democrats in post-election litigation and election contests. Following the 2020 election, Alexis helped defend then President-elect Joe Biden’s victory. In 2022, Alexis defended two Democrats elected to statewide offices against election contest challenges. As part of her political litigation practice, she also provides election law counseling advice to Democratic candidates and campaigns.
Alexis also represents clients in criminal law matters. Drawing on her constitutional and analytic experience, she has successfully defended clients against investigations and proceedings brought by the Arizona Attorney General’s Office, the U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, and the U.K. Serious Fraud Office. As part of this practice, she conducts confidential internal investigations for her clients, who range from privately held firms to Fortune 500 public companies. Her clients rely on her judgment and knowledge during investigations of significant issues involving the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, other anti-bribery laws, fraud, and employee misconduct. She has led on-the-ground investigations of these and other issues in the United States and abroad.
Before joining Perkins Coie, Alexis served as a law clerk to the Hon. Michael D. Hawkins of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
Areas of focus
Services
Education & Credentials
Education
- University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law, J.D., summa cum laude, Order of the Coif, Editor-in-Chief, Arizona Law Review, 2012
- Georgetown University, B.S., Foreign Service, cum laude, 2009
Bar and Court Admissions
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Arizona
Related Employment
- Perkins Coie LLP, Phoenix, AZ, Summer Associate, 2011
- Hon. Stephen M. McNamee, U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona, Phoenix, AZ, Extern, 2010
- U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Legislative Affairs, Washington, D.C., Intern, 2009
- National Security Network, Washington D.C., Policy Intern, 2007, 2008
- U.S. Senate, Office of Senator Herb Kohl, Washington, D.C., Intern, 2007
Clerkships
- Hon. Michael Daly Hawkins, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
Professional Recognition
Recognized by Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch, Commercial Litigation Law; Criminal Defense: White-Collar Law, 2021-2024
Listed in Chambers USA "America's Leading Lawyers" for White-Collar Crime & Government Investigations, 2019-2024
Listed as a "Rising Star" by Southwest Super Lawyers, 2017-2023
Impact
Professional Leadership
- Arizona Law Review Alumni Association, President, 2014-present
- Georgetown Alumni Admissions Program, Interviewer, 2009-present
- Georgetown Scholarship Program, Chair, Arizona, 2012-present
Insights
News
Professional Experience
Selected Appellate Experience
- Won reversal from the Ninth Circuit of a criminal conviction as unconstitutional.
- Won judgment in an original jurisdiction action at the Arizona Supreme Court in a constitutional challenge to a municipal client’s right to control its municipal-owned property.
- Won judgment in an original jurisdiction action at the Arizona Supreme Court in a constitutional challenge to a charter city’s right to hold municipal elections free from interference by the state legislature.
- Won judgment in the Arizona Supreme Court on a federal constitutional challenge to Arizona’s state constitutional restrictions on bail.
- Obtained reversal of criminal conviction in Arizona state court based on trial error.
Selected Complex Litigation Experience
- Obtained trial verdict in U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona for a political party challenging the constitutionality of a state election law.
- Successfully defended political parties in post-election challenges brought in trial and appellate courts following the 2020 election.
- Obtained victory for commercial marijuana grower faced with constitutional and other legal challenges that threatened the existence of its business.
- Obtained victory for individual clients in the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona in challenge arguing Arizona’s ban on marriage for same-sex couples violated the Equal Protection Clause and the Due Process Clause of the U.S. Constitution.
- Successfully obtained partial summary judgment on behalf of a debtor in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York in a multimillion-dollar insurance dispute.
Selected Internal Investigations
- Conducted multiple internal investigations for a public resource extraction company into its compliance with environmental regulations.
- Conducted internal investigations for a municipal client regarding compliance issues.
- Conducted FCPA investigations on four continents for companies in a variety of industries, including the natural resources and food and beverage industries.
- Conducted internal investigations for companies related to accounting and financial improprieties.
Selected Government Investigations and Defense Work
- Obtained multiple deferred prosecution agreements for individual clients charged with financial crimes.
- Obtained dismissal of an indictment in a multiyear prosecution by the U.S. Department of Justice National Security Division involving the Classified Information Procedures Act and alleged violations of the Arms Export Control Act.
- Participated in a multicontinent investigation for a communications company, which was disclosed to the U.S. Department of Justice and the UK Serious Fraud Office.
- Represented a major technology company in a multiyear government investigation in Arizona.