“Navigating an 11-Judge Pile-Up”: How Two Orrick Associates Led En Banc Ninth Circuit Arguments

7 minute read | February.12.2026

Arguing en banc before the Ninth Circuit – a panel of eleven judges – is one of the highest accomplishments for an appellate lawyer. In the past six months, two Orrick Supreme Court & Appellate senior associates, Katie Munyan and Alyssa Barnard-Yanni, achieved this milestone.

American Lawyer columnist Ross Todd tells the story of why this is such a tough forum and how Katie and Alyssa prepared: both clerked for federal judges in the Southern District of New York and in the Second Circuit before joining Orrick. Later, both took leave to clerk at the U.S. Supreme Court – Alyssa for Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Katie for Justice Sonia Sotomayor – and then returned to Orrick.

When they took on their arguments – Katie an immigration case in September 2025 and Alyssa a civil forfeiture case in January 2026 – they had limited time to prepare. Our Supreme Court & Appellate team helped, including by conducting several moots.

Both agreed it was a career highlight… so far! As Alyssa put it: “Having done it, it just feels like you can handle anything.”

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Katherine Munyan Senior Associate, Supreme Court & Appellate

New York

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D:+1 212 506 5247
E: [email protected]

Practice:

Supreme Court & Appellate

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Katherine Munyan Senior Associate

New York

Katherine represents clients in a wide range of complex litigation matters in both federal and state appellate courts. Her work spans a wide range of substantive areas, from contract interpretation and administrative law to novel questions of constitutional law and statutory interpretation. She maintains an active pro bono practice, focusing on issues of criminal justice and human rights.

Katherine rejoined Orrick after serving as a law clerk to Justice Sonia Sotomayor. Before joining Orrick, she clerked for Judge Robert A. Katzmann of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and Judge Jed S. Rakoff of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. She also worked at Debevoise & Plimpton LLP on a range of commercial litigation and white collar matters.

Katherine graduated from Yale Law School, where she served was a member of the Allard K. Lowenstein International Human Rights Clinic and the International Refugee Assistance Project. She has written, advised United Nations officials and diplomats, and appeared in a documentary addressing the genocide of the Rohingya in Myanmar. At Orrick, her pro bono practice has focused on the rights of defendants in the criminal justice system in the United States.

Alyssa Barnard-Yanni Senior Associate, Supreme Court & Appellate

New York

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D:+1 212 506 5111
E: [email protected]

Practice:

Supreme Court & Appellate

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Alyssa Barnard-Yanni Senior Associate

New York

Her litigation work spans a wide range of subject areas, from complex commercial litigation to white collar criminal defense.

At the trial level, Alyssa has drafted innumerable dispositive and evidentiary motions, served on criminal defense teams representing individual defendants from indictment through sentencing, and argued in both state and federal trial court. At the appellate level, Alyssa has drafted filings of every stripe--writs of mandamus, petitions for discretionary review, amicus briefs, and of course merits appeals--and presented argument in state and federal courts of appeals. Alyssa also advises clients on thorny issues outside of litigation, ranging from drafting white papers advocating against criminal charges to brainstorming ways to terminate a licensing agreement, and more.

Alyssa maintains an active pro bono practice focusing primarily on criminal law matters. She recently secured reversal of an attempted robbery conviction based on insufficient evidence in the New York Appellate Division. She has represented defendants in state-court appeals and petitioners for habeas relief in federal court; drafted cert- and merits-stage amicus briefs in the Supreme Court case Quarles v. United States; and co-drafted an amicus brief to the Second Circuit urging that failure to advise naturalized citizens of the denaturalization risks of a plea violates the Sixth Amendment.

Alyssa served as a law clerk to Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in the October 2019 Term. Before that, she clerked for Judge Alison J. Nathan on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York and Judge Robert A. Katzmann on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.

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Supreme Court & Appellate