ABOUT US

Trister, Ross, Schadler & Gold, PLLC combines personalized client service with decades of broad experience and specialized legal expertise. We are proud to advise and represent a broad range of clients, from national nonprofits, political organizations, unions and family foundations to local grassroots organizations, small businesses, employees, political services providers and candidates. Every lawyer here believes in our clients, their values and their work.

We see a lawyer’s role as empowering our clients to achieve their goals by wielding the law as their tool and not facing it as an impediment. In our experience there is always a lawful way to accomplish what a client hopes to do; the point is to determine every available option, present them in a practical and understandable way, and work with the client to make the best legally informed decisions.

Those decisions almost always entail both opportunity and risk, especially in the spheres of politics and advocacy. Where the law presents uncertainty and contested interpretations, a lawyer’s creative analysis and candor are essential. We are committed to providing our clients with a fully researched and considered assessment, and our best judgments; and whatever courses of action our clients choose, we support and defend them every step of the way.

We are indebted to the guidance and mentoring of our late founder and colleague, Michael B. Trister.

Our nonprofit lawyers have:

Helped create hundreds of charitable, social welfare, political and other nonprofit organizations – drafted articles of incorporation and bylaws, secured federal tax exemptions, registered with federal and state authorities, and counseled on all aspects of nonprofit activities.
Represented organizations under investigation by the Internal Revenue Service, the Federal Election Commission, the Justice Department and other federal and state agencies.
Advised national, regional and local labor organizations about the unique interplay of internal union, labor-management, campaign finance and lobbying law in political and advocacy campaigns.
Argued McConnell v. Federal Election Commission, one of the most important campaign-finance cases, before the U.S. Supreme Court, and submitted amicus curiae briefs in numerous other cases there.
Advised hundreds of organizations about how to contribute and make independent expenditures in federal and state elections, and advised dozens of federal and state candidates on all aspects of their campaigns.
Helped organizations navigate campaign finance, lobbying, corporate or voter registration laws in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
Advised organizations and individuals regarding the Foreign Agents Registration Act and government ethics laws.

Our employment lawyers have:

Represented individuals in lawsuits, arbitrations, investigations and negotiations to vindicate the right to employment free from discrimination based on race, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, religion, age, or disability.
Negotiated employment agreements, non-compete agreements, consulting agreements, and separation agreements in information technology, government contracting, medicine, law, and many other fields.
Successfully guided whistleblowers through the administrative processes, Congressional relations, and media attention.
Advised organizations on employment policy, workplace disputes, and internal investigations.

Our intellectual property lawyers have:

Prosecuted countless trademark applications at the U.S. Trademark Office.
Sent and responded to numerous cease and desist letters regarding infringement matters.
Drafted and negotiated all sorts of agreements.
Advised clients regarding fair use under copyright law.
Prepared privacy and other policies for our clients’ websites.
Counseled clients regarding defamation issues.
Assisted clients with contests, sweepstakes, and charitable raffles