Biography
Samuel T. Harbourt serves as the Solicitor General of California, where he oversees litigation of California’s most consequential appeals in state and federal court. Prior to his appointment, Mr. Harbourt served as a Supervising Deputy Solicitor General. He joined the office in January 2020.
Mr. Harbourt’s work has included handling the merits briefing and oral argument before the U.S. Supreme Court in Lange v. California, which addressed the scope of the Fourth Amendment’s warrant requirement, as well as briefing and strategy before the U.S. Supreme Court in National Pork Producers v. Ross. He is also playing a leading role in the litigation concerning the federalization of the National Guard in Los Angeles and Portland. In the California Supreme Court, Mr. Harbourt has briefed and argued numerous cases, including cases involving LGBTQ+ rights, commercial bail regulation, and corporate liability for causing wildfires.
Mr. Harbourt is a graduate of Harvard Law and clerked for former Chief Judge Merrick Garland of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit and U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Prior roles included serving as a Bristow Fellow in the Office of the U.S. Solicitor General and working as a Managing Associate in the Supreme Court & Appellate Group at Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe.
