Derek J. Linkous

Appeals

• Won appeal in the Ninth Circuit in the first federal appellate ADAS failure-to-perform case, affirming summary judgment for a heavy-truck manufacturer.
• Defended in the Fifth Circuit a defense verdict in a product liability case involving alleged carbon monoxide exposure.
• Obtained affirmance in the Tenth Circuit after leading successful summary judgment for automotive manufacturer in an ADAS failure-to-equip case.
• Defended multiple jury verdicts in Michigan Court of Appeals in personal-injury cases.
• Won multiple appeals for employer in defense of dismissals of discrimination claims, including in the Sixth and Eighth Circuits.
• Avoided settlement enforcement on appeal to the California Court of Appeal in consumer-warranty action.
• Received dismissal for lack of appellate jurisdiction from Ninth Circuit in consumer-warranty case.
• Achieved affirmance of summary disposition in a statutory-immunity case on behalf of a telecommunications provider in Michigan appellate courts.
• Obtained vacatur of trial-court order purporting to re-open a putative RICO case against an automotive manufacturer after several years in Ohio Court of Appeals.
• Represented pro bono a juvenile lifer in a successful appeal of re-sentencing in the Michigan Court of Appeals and another defendant in the Michigan Supreme Court, establishing the duress defense to depraved-heart homicide.

Embedded Appellate Counsel for Trial

• Represented multiple vehicle manufacturers at trial as appellate counsel, leading motions in limine arguments, jury-instruction conferences, and record preservation.
• Drafted motions for summary judgment and to exclude experts in multiple automotive defect cases that resulted in summary dismissal of all claims.
• Secured midtrial judgment as a matter of law—three times—as to punitive damages in product-liability cases before the trial team ultimately obtained a complete defense verdict.
• Aided two defense verdicts in cases involving allegations of exposure to carbon monoxide, winning a nonsuit on warnings in one and precluding res ipsa theory on the other.
• Won summary judgment on advanced driver assistance (ADAS) claims in federal courts in Arizona and Oklahoma on behalf of two different clients.
• Secured pre-trial victories on motions in limine in several cases relating to experts and causation that precipitated a favorable settlement.
• Won summary judgment on issue of future damages through an opinion that distinguished several unfavorable prior decisions.
• Obtained trifurcated trial in a consumer-warranty action that paved the way for a successful judgment as a matter of law motion.

BSP Law’s Critical Motions and Appeals team represents clients in state and federal appellate matters across the United States, while also supporting trial teams on issues that can shape the outcome of a case before an appeal is ever filed. The group includes former clerks from the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Circuits, as well as former federal district court clerks.

The team handles appellate briefing and strategy, including matters where BSP Law was not involved at trial. Its lawyers review complex records, identify and develop the strongest appellate issues, and translate technical or novel legal questions into clear and persuasive arguments for appellate courts. The practice also assists with critical trial-stage motions that may affect later appellate review, including Rule 702 challenges, motions in limine, dispositive motions, and post-verdict motions.

BSP Law also provides embedded appellate counsel within trial teams, helping shape briefing, preserve the record, and position cases for both trial success and potential appeal. Its lawyers take leading roles on expert challenges, jury instructions, verdict forms, directed-verdict motions, and other significant filings arising before and during trial.

Bush Seyferth is a litigation boutique of driven trial and appellate lawyers, with offices in Michigan, Texas, and North Carolina. Some of America’s best-known companies turn to Bush Seyferth for their complex commercial, class action, tort, and insurance-coverage matters, including as national trial counsel and embedded appellate counsel in high-exposure trials.

The firm handles matters at every stage of litigation, from discovery and dispositive motions through trial and appeal, and serves as national discovery counsel for major manufacturers. Its attorneys have tried cases in more than 40 states, and the firm’s clear-eyed case evaluation, which doesn’t change on the courthouse steps, positions clients for success in mediation, motion practice, trial, arbitration, or appeal. Rather than relying on cookie-cutter, settlement-only strategies, Bush Seyferth tailors each case to the client’s business objectives.

Bush Seyferth combines the talent and capabilities of the most competitive national firms with the agility, responsiveness, and personal attention of a boutique. The result is a firm that clients trust to see their most important matters through from start to finish.