About David R.
David R. Baake earned a Bachelor of Science in Biological Sciences from Arizona State University in 2011 and a J.D. from Harvard University in 2014. He moved from the sciences into law during his time at Harvard, combining technical training with legal study. The combination of a science undergraduate degree and a law degree framed the early direction of his career.
After law school, Baake spent a year as a Ford Fellow in the Climate & Clean Energy Program at the Natural Resources Defense Council. That position placed him in the middle of policy work and litigation strategy on environmental issues. He then served two federal clerkships. In 2015 he clerked for the Honorable David G. Campbell in the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona. The next year he clerked for the Honorable George H. King in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.
In 2017 Baake opened his own practice, taking the title of Principal at The Law Office of David R. Baake. Running a small office meant handling a wide range of legal tasks himself. He managed filings, prepared briefs, and argued matters in the courts where he held admission. The move into solo practice followed his sequence of fellowships and clerkships and marked a transition to handling client matters directly.
Baake maintains active membership in multiple bars. He has been a member of the State Bar of New Mexico since 2017 and of the State Bar of California since 2019. He is also admitted to practice in the 5th Circuit and the D.C. Circuit, and he holds admission in Maryland. His admissions reflect a practice that crosses state and federal appellate lines.
His work history combines environmental policy experience at NRDC and hands-on federal court experience from two district court clerkships. Those roles exposed him to both litigation mechanics and the policy questions that can underlie federal cases. Colleagues and court records show a lawyer who moved steadily from academic training to policy work and then into federal court practice.
Baake continues to operate The Law Office of David R. Baake. He represents clients in the jurisdictions and appellate courts where he is admitted and handles matters through his solo practice, concentrating on cases brought in the federal and state forums available to him.
