Michael Abate - Louisville, KY
Attorney at Kaplan Johnson Abate & Bird LLP
Appellate & Constitutional Law Lawyers in Louisville, KY
710 West Main Street 4th Floor Louisville, KY 40202
- Free Consultation
- 1 Super Lawyers®
-
21
Years
Experience
Louisville Appellate & Constitutional Law Lawyer
Updated: 03/10/2026
Areas of Practice
- Appellate & Constitutional Law
- Complex Commercial & Business Litigation
- Arbitration & Alternative Dispute Resolution
- Securities & Wealth Management Litigation & Arbitration
- First Amendment & Media Law
- Managed Care Litigation
Attorney Information
Overview
Mike is an experienced litigator who has practiced at all levels of the federal court system. Mike began his career in the U.S. Department of Justice handling the United States’ most sensitive constitutional, statutory, and administrative law cases. After nearly eight years at DOJ, he joined a large regional law firm in Louisville where he became partner and chair of the firm’s appellate practice group. Mike has briefed and argued cases for his clients all across the country, including in eleven different U.S. Courts of Appeals, the Kentucky Supreme Court, and the Kentucky Court of Appeals. He also has briefed numerous cases in the U.S. Supreme Court at both the certiorari and merits stages.
Mike concentrates his practice on healthcare, media, and appellate litigation. He regularly represents Medicare and Medicaid managed care organizations in disputes pending in state and federal courts across the country. He also represents media organizations in litigation over constitutional issues and access to public records. Mike also handles state and federal appeals on wide range of different issues.
Awards and Honors
Honors
- Best Lawyers 2023 Appellate Practice – Best Appellate Lawyer, Louisville
- Louisville Legal Aid Society Access to Justice Champion
- Louisville Business First Forty Under Forty, 2016
- Director of National Intelligence Award, 2012
- US Department of Justice, Special Commendation (Immigration Preemption Litigation), 2012
- Attorney General’s Award for Furthering the Interest of National Security, 2010
- Life Member, Sixth Circuit Judicial Conference
Other Sources of Feedback About Michael Abate
Included on the 2026 Kentucky Super Lawyers list
Past Lists
- 2025 Kentucky Super Lawyers list
- 2024 Kentucky Super Lawyers list
- 2023 Kentucky Super Lawyers list
- 2022 Kentucky Super Lawyers list
- 2021 Kentucky Super Lawyers list
- 2020 Kentucky Super Lawyers list
Education
-
Legal Education
-
Stanford Law School,
Stanford,
California, 2005
J.D.
Honors: Order of the Coif
-
Stanford Law School,
Stanford,
California, 2005
-
Non Legal Education
-
Harvard College,
Cambridge,
Massachusetts, 2000
B.A.
Honors: magna cum laude
-
Harvard College,
Cambridge,
Massachusetts, 2000
Past Positions
- Hon. Diana Gribbon Motz, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, Law Clerk
Pro Bono Activities
- Seven Counties Services, Board Chair, 2017 - 2020; Vice Chair, 2015 – 2017; Board Member, 2013 - 2022
- ACLU of Kentucky, Committee on Litigation, 2017-2020
- Highland Presbyterian Church, Member of Session, 2018-2019
Representative Clients
Served as national counsel for Medicare Advantage Organizations in numerous cases successfully asserting Medicare Secondary Payer rights in litigation against no-fault and liability insurers, tortfeasors, and other parties responsible for reimbursing conditional Medicare payments.
Represented media organizations, journalists, and private individuals sued for defamation and other reputational torts.
Represented Medicare managed care organizations in connection with a variety of payer-provider disputes and regulatory matters.
Represented health care payers and providers in connection with government investigations and allegations arising under the False Claims Act.
Represented media clients in disputes arising under the Kentucky Open Records Act and Open Meetings Act, including obtaining an unprecedented fee and penalty award from a state agency following a multi-day bench trial.
Presented dozens of appellate arguments, including arguing before 11 different U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeals, the Kentucky Supreme Court, and the Kentucky Court of Appeals.
Represented state political party, elected officials, and voters in constitutional challenges to state house and congressional redistricting plans
Represented indigent litigants on appeal to the Kentucky Supreme Court seeking the right to obtain fee waivers in order to pursue felony expungements
Bar Admissions
- Illinois
- Kentucky
- District of Columbia
- United States Supreme Court
- U.S. Court of Appeals District of Columbia Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals Federal Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals 1st Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals 2nd Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals 3rd Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals 4th Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals 5th Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals 6th Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals 8th Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals 9th Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals 11th Circuit
- U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia
- U.S. District Court Eastern District of Kentucky
- U.S. District Court Western District of Kentucky
- U.S. District Court District of Maryland
- U.S. Court of Federal Claims
Photo
Contact
710 West Main Street
4th Floor
Louisville, KY 40202
Phone: 502-540-8280
Email: Send a message
Website: https://www.kaplanjohnsonlaw.com
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