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Kelly Woodruff, Esq.
Complex Appellate Litigation Group https://calg.com/team/kelly-woodruff/
About The Lecturer
Kelly Woodruff has more than 30 years of experience handling significant appeals and writs in state and federal appellate courts.
Her practice spans nearly all subject areas, including commercial disputes, intellectual property, real estate, antitrust, and trust and estate litigation, but she has developed a particular expertise in handling family law appeals and writs.
Kelly is certified by the California State Bar as an appellate law specialist.
In addition to appeals and writs, she is often retained to write amicus briefs to ensure her clients’ voices are heard in cases where they are not otherwise participating.
She often works with trial counsel to prepare more effective motions, preserve issues for appeal, and strategize on appellate impacts for clients.
Kelly also has experience assisting trial counsel in securing writs to obtain interlocutory review of orders before final judgment or to stay a damaging order pending full appeal.
Kelly was named one of the Top Women Lawyers in California by the Daily Journal.
She has been repeatedly named a Northern California Super Lawyer for appellate law as well, and listed in Best Lawyers in America in the areas of Appellate Practice and Commercial Litigation.
She is committed to giving back to the community.
Kelly was named by California Chief Justice Tani G. Cantil-Sakauye to the Appellate Caseflow Workgroup led by First District Presiding Justice Jim Humes to study and recommend solutions to systemic delays impacting the speedy resolution of appeals in some of California’s appellate courts. She is also currently serving as the Chair of the California Lawyers Association Litigation Section’s Committee on Appellate Courts. She was Co-Chair of the Bar Association of San Francisco’s Appellate Section from 2017-2020 and continues to serve on the Executive Committee of the Section. She is also on the UC Law San Francisco (formerly Hastings) Board of Governors and is Co-Chair of the San Francisco alumni chapter. In addition, Kelly acts as a panel attorney representing indigent criminal defendants in their appeals, and she has succeeded in overturning death sentences in two capital cases.
Kelly graduated magna cum laude from the University of California College of the Law, San Francisco (formerly UC Hastings College of the Law), and clerked on the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.
She received numerous awards for her law school academic achievements and served as Senior Executive Editor for the Hastings Law Journal. After graduating, she clerked for James R. Browning of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and David A. Ezra of the U.S. District Court for the District of Hawaii.
Practice Area(s)
Trial
Family Law
Commercial / Consumer Law
Intellectual Property
Real Estate
Antitrust
Wills, Trusts, & Estates
Education
J.D., magna cum laude, U.C. Hastings College of the Law
