Cozen O’Connor taps Karl O. Riley to manage its Las Vegas office

Cozen O’Connor named trial lawyer and Olin alum Karl O. Riley, BSBA 2006—who for the past two years has served as law clerk to the Honorable Johnnie B. Rawlinson at the U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit, in Las Vegas—as the new office managing partner of its Las Vegas office.

One of the first African Americans to be named office managing partner for an Am Law 100 firm in Nevada, Riley joins the firm as a member within the firm’s Commercial Litigation department. Additionally, Riley will be a part of the Labor & Employment, Class Actions, and Appellate practice groups. 

As a clerk, he assisted with courtroom proceedings, conducted legal research and briefings and drafted bench and en banc memoranda, orders, opinions and memorandum dispositions. He also published opinions on matters ranging from antitrust, constitutional, immigration, criminal and environmental disputes to cases involving commercial, intellectual property, labor and employment, civil rights and habeas corpus issues.  

Prior to that, Riley worked at Snell & Wilmer LLP in Las Vegas, where he advised and litigated on behalf of a range of corporate-level clients in the global telecommunications, e-commerce, retail, gaming, banking, and construction industries.

“Since we opened the office in 2018 our goal in Las Vegas has been to provide comprehensive, national representation to Nevada’s thriving gaming, technology, education and real estate sectors,” said Vincent R. McGuinness, Jr., Cozen O’Connor’s president and managing partner. “As an attorney with clients in all of those industries—including several in gaming technology—Karl is the ideal choice to lead our Las Vegas office. I’m both pleased and excited he’s chosen to join our firm.” 

“Karl brings to us impeccable credentials, both for his work with Judge Rawlinson and as a corporate trial lawyer,” added James H. Heller, co-chair of Cozen O’Connor’s Commercial Litigation Department.

His clients run the proverbial gamut and he represents them from complaint through appeal in federal, state, and appellate courts, and in arbitration. Suffice to say I’m very happy to welcome him to our practice. 

James H. Heller

A previous chair of the State Bar of Nevada’s Young Lawyers Section and widely recognized as one of Nevada’s top up and coming lawyers, Riley has been named “Young Lawyer of the Year” by the State Bar of Nevada, a “Rising Star of Business” by the Las Vegas Business Press, and an “On the Rise” Top 40 Young Lawyer by the American Bar Association’s Young Lawyers Division.

“I chose Cozen O’Connor because I wanted to bring my practice to a full-service firm with a national litigation department. I can now provide a one-stop shop for my clients regardless of the type or location of their dispute,” Riley said. “In addition, the firm has also fully embraced the legal profession’s diversity initiatives, which is not only important to me, but to my clients as well.”