Overview
Justin M. Sandberg represents clients in government and regulatory litigation and appellate matters. He draws on 19 years of experience litigating on behalf of the federal government to help his clients achieve their objectives.
At the US Department of Justice’s Civil Division’s Federal Programs Branch and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Office of the General Counsel, Justin served as lead counsel on some of the most consequential civil litigation facing the government in diverse sectors, including healthcare, finance, and transportation. He has handled dozens of cases presenting questions of agency authority, primarily under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), including statutory interpretation, subject-matter jurisdiction and venue, access to government information (including through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)), and the constitutionality of statutes and agency actions.
Justin’s experience spans the country and various stages of litigation. He’s litigated in the US Supreme Court, six federal circuit courts, more than 20 federal district courts, bankruptcy court, and state courts. He has argued appeals, dispositive motions, and motions for emergency relief.
Beyond his federal government experience, Justin clerked for Judge Morris S. Arnold of the US Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit and Judge Robert Lowell Miller Jr. of the US District Court for the Northern District of Indiana. These clerkships provide him with valuable insight into judicial decision-making and help him craft persuasive arguments that resonate with the bench. While in law school, Justin was a staff member on the University of Chicago Law Review and a research assistant for two professors.
Results
- Represented the CFPB in the Seventh Circuit in a case that raised statutory and constitutional questions about the scope of the government’s authority under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act
- Represented the CFPB in the Fifth Circuit in a matter that presented questions, including questions under the major questions doctrine, about the Bureau’s Unfair, Deceptive, or Abusive Acts or Practices authority under the Consumer Financial Protection Act
- Represented the CFPB in an APA lawsuit challenging a regulation affecting billions of dollars in bank overdraft fees
- Represented the US Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) in APA litigation regarding changes to the 340B Drug Pricing Program
- Represented the HHS Office of Inspector General in an APA suit over an advisory opinion on a patient assistance program
- Represented HHS with respect to APA and constitutional challenges brought by multiple states regarding the agency’s interpretation of the Affordable Care Act
- Represented the Securities and Exchange Commission in constitutional challenges to its procedures for appointing and removing administrative law judges
- Represented the US Department of Transportation (DOT) in a lawsuit disputing the constitutionality of a statute that authorized DOT to work with Amtrak to enact regulations governing freight railroads
- Represented numerous agencies in FOIA lawsuits
Recognitions
- DOJ Attorney General’s Award for Exceptional Service
- DOJ Civil Division Commendation Awards
- DOJ Civil Division Perseverance Award
Credentials
Education
University of Chicago Law School, JD, 2002
University of Notre Dame, BA, summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, 1999
Admissions
District of Columbia
Illinois
Languages
English
