Continuing the expansion of its commercial litigation department with notable lateral hires, Cozen O’Connor announces that Stephen A. Miller, who previously clerked for Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, has joined the firm from the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
A former assistant U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York (2001 – 2007) and the Eastern District of Pennsylvania (2007 – 2010), Miller was most recently a deputy chief of the Violent Crime, Counter-Terrorism, and Immigration Fraud Unit. He has deep experience managing international criminal investigations, leading probes into Hezbollah criminal activity in the United States and the corruption of the United Nations' Oil-for-Food Program. He also has handled more than a dozen jury trials and has briefed and argued appeals before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second, Third, Seventh and Federal circuits.
“Stephen brings a unique combination of skills and experiences with him,” said Jeffrey Weil, chair of the commercial litigation department at Cozen O’Connor. “There are very few lawyers who have both served as a Supreme Court clerk and tried dozens of high level jury trials. His intellectual resources and trial skills make him stand out, even in the competitive field in which we work. This business is all about talent, and, in Stephen Miller, we have one of the most talented young lawyers in the country. We are thrilled to have him."
Miller will help lead Cozen O’Connor’s growing white collar and complex criminal litigation practice, and he will also assist clients with Supreme Court issues and complex commercial litigation matters.
“I am honored to be able to join the smart and creative lawyers of Cozen O'Connor,” said Miller. “This is a firm on the move. The growth of the firm's commercial litigation practice over the past few years has been especially impressive, and I hope to play a role in its continued development.”
"Stephen has excelled at everything he’s done: college, law school, U.S. Supreme Court clerkship, and then the most important trials for the U.S. Attorney's Office in both the Southern District of New York and the Eastern District of Pennsylvania,” said Tad Decker, president and CEO of Cozen O’Connor. “There is no doubt that he could have gone to any firm in the country, and it says a lot about Cozen O’Connor that he chose us. Stephen continues the line of first rate lawyers who have left significant jobs to join our firm, and I know he will help us continue to grow and attract other talented lawyers.”
Miller was also a law clerk for The Honorable Joel M. Flaum of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. The Department of Justice recognized Miller with one of its highest honors, the Attorney General's Distinguished Service Award (2008), and the Immigration & Customs Enforcement presented him with the Director's Award for Outstanding Teamwork (2009).
Miller earned his undergraduate degree from Princeton University (A.B., summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, 1993) before attending Northwestern University School of Law on a full-tuition scholarship where he finished first in his class of 218 (J.D., summa cum laude, Order of Coif, 1997). He served on the editorial board of Northwestern Law Review.