Abigail Burton represents businesses and individuals through every stage of civil litigation in state and federal court. She has represented clients in preliminary injunction matters, class certification hearings, trials, and appeals, and has experience taking depositions, managing discovery, questioning witnesses at trial, and briefing and arguing dispositive motions and appeals. Abigail’s litigation background spans a wide range of subject matters, including constitutional law, products liability, mass torts, breach of contract, intellectual property, education law, construction law and contractor disputes, and employment law. In addition to her litigation practice, Abigail has experience drafting and reviewing contracts for commercial construction projects.

Abigail joined Welsh & Recker in August 2023 after serving for more than two years as a term staff attorney with the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, where she made recommendations to the Court in appeals involving habeas corpus, immigration, civil rights, constitutional law, appellate jurisdiction, and federal civil and criminal procedure. She also formerly worked as a litigation associate in the Washington, DC office of a large multinational law firm, where she developed experience in civil and administrative litigation, anti-corruption and anti-money laundering due diligence, and government enforcement matters and internal investigations related to alleged corruption, insider trading, and other alleged violations of federal law.

Abigail is dedicated to pro bono legal services, particularly the representation of incarcerated individuals in post-conviction review and civil rights matters. Her pro bono experience includes criminal and civil rights matters at the trial and appellate levels.

Abigail graduated magna cum laude from Georgetown University Law Center in 2019. While at Georgetown, Abigail served on the Senior Board of The Georgetown Law Journal, co-taught and mentored first-year Legal Practice students as a Law Fellow, and volunteered on the law school’s student-faculty committee for admissions.

Representative Matters

  • Represents businesses and individuals in contract and employment disputes in state and federal court.
  • Represents global manufacturing company in federal district court action involving false advertising and commercial disparagement claims.
  • Represents medical device manufacturer in litigation involving claims of environmental exposure.
  • Represented company in federal district court jury trial involving intellectual property claims.
  • Represented pro bono client in Third Circuit appeal, successfully obtaining writ of habeas corpus vacating criminal sentence following briefing and oral argument; represented the same client in resentencing in state court and successfully obtained a sentence of time-served, resulting in immediate release.
  • Represented individual in connection with DOJ investigation into alleged violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.
  • Conducted investigation for major pharmaceutical company related to internal compliance policies.
  • Represented company executives in insider trading investigation conducted by the SEC.
  • Advised corporate clients regarding federal enforcement risks associated with conducting business in highly regulated industry.
  • Litigated action against federal agency involving claims under the Administrative Procedure Act, federal anti-discrimination law, and the U.S. Constitution.
  • Performed pre-acquisition due diligence for private equity firms and other clients focused on anti-corruption, anti-money laundering, and trade control risk.
  • Litigated prisoner class action and petition for writ of habeas corpus on behalf of pretrial detainees seeking release and other remedial measures during the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • Represented individual in Third Circuit appeal from dismissal of Eighth Amendment claims related to prison medical care.

Memberships

  • American Bar Association
  • ABA Forum on Construction Law
  • District of Columbia Bar Association
  • Pennsylvania Bar Association
  • Philadelphia Bar Association
  • Philadelphia Lawyers’ Club
  • University of Pennsylvania Inn of Court
  • Women’s White Collar Defense Association