Jake Warner
Senior Counsel
Jake Warner serves as senior counsel for Alliance Defending Freedom’s Appellate Team.
Since joining ADF in 2017, Warner has focused mainly on protecting the freedom of all Americans to express what they believe without fear of government punishment. He was lead counsel in Masterpiece Cakeshop Inc. v. Scardina, securing victory at the Colorado Supreme Court for cake artist Jack Phillips who was sued for declining to express a message that conflicted with his religious beliefs. Warner also served as co-counsel in 303 Creative v. Elenis, helping to secure a landmark victory at the U.S. Supreme Court that reaffirmed free speech is for everyone.
Beyond protecting free speech, Warner has worked to advance religious freedom and protect human life. In A.H. v. French, Warner successfully represented a Christian high school student on appeal at the Second Circuit, which led to the entry of an injunction that stopped state officials from excluding her from a publicly-funded educational program based on her faith. And in Planned Parenthood v. Mayes, Warner scored a win at the Arizona Supreme Court that upheld a state law protecting unborn human life against a high-profile challenge from Planned Parenthood.
Warner has also challenged administrative overreach. In Tennessee v. Cardona, Warner defended on appeal at the Sixth Circuit an injunction against the Biden administration’s unlawful attempt to rewrite Title IX, helping to preserve equal educational opportunities for women and girls. And in FCC v. Consumers’ Research, Warner authored an amicus brief showing Congress alone has power to make binding law and asking the Supreme Court to restore the constitutional separation of powers.
While at ADF, Warner has appeared on multiple national television networks, including CBS, Fox News, Newsmax, and CBN. He has been quoted in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and many other news outlets. And his work has appeared in the Denver Post, Arizona Capitol Times, Townhall, Daily Wire, and more.
Prior to joining ADF, Warner served as a judicial law clerk to Senior U.S. District Judge Malcolm J. Howard in the Eastern District of North Carolina. Before that, he engaged in private practice with the firm of Perry, Perry, & Perry, in Kinston, North Carolina, where he primarily represented criminal defendants in both federal and state courts.
Warner earned his J.D. at Regent School of Law, graduating magna cum laude in 2011. He obtained his B.A. in history and political science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2006.
Warner is admitted to practice in Arizona, North Carolina, and the U.S. Supreme Court, as well as many federal appellate and district courts.