Eric Tirschwell, Director, Litigation and National Enforcement Policy, Everytown for Gun Safety

Kramer Levin was founded on a commitment to recruiting the best lawyers and building a collaborative environment where they could grow and thrive. Through our Alumni Profiles series, we proudly share the important and exciting work our alumni have undertaken. 

Eric Tirschwell is the director of Litigation and National Enforcement Policy at Everytown for Gun Safety. Eric began his Kramer Levin career as an associate in 1994. In 1997, he left to serve as an assistant U.S. attorney in the Eastern District of New York. In 2003, he returned to Kramer Levin in the Litigation department as special counsel, making partner in 2005. He was named co-chair of the White Collar Defense and Investigations practice in 2014. He also chaired the firm's pro bono committee and received numerous accolades for his work on several high-profile pro bono cases. 

Eric Tirschwell Director, Litigation and National Enforcement Policy, Everytown for Gun Safety

Working at Kramer Levin taught me about excellence – about making sure every written product, every presentation, every argument was the best it could possibly be.

How did working at Kramer Levin help advance your career?

Working at Kramer Levin helped open many doors that have been important to my career as a lawyer. As a young associate I was inspired by more senior lawyers who had spent time in public service, and I was supported and encouraged when I applied to work as a federal prosecutor. When I flubbed a question in my final interview with then-U.S. Attorney Loretta Lynch, one of the partners I was working with was good enough to call the Eastern District and reassure them that I would do a decent job. And that opened the door to one of the most rewarding and challenging professional experiences of my career. Kramer Levin also supported and encouraged my deep interest in pro bono work and public interest litigation, which allowed me to take on a wide range of challenging and rewarding pro bono matters, including representing several wrongfully imprisoned Uighurs at Guantanamo Bay (all of whom were eventually released after years of litigation), a successful First Amendment challenge to a punitive voter registration law in Florida, and co-chairing the firm's Pro Bono Committee for several years. I view my current position with Everytown for Gun Safety as a direct outgrowth and extension of the pro bono and litigation work that I was fortunate to be able to do at Kramer Levin.

How did your time at Kramer Levin help you prepare for your current role?

First and foremost, working at Kramer Levin taught me about excellence – about making sure every written product, every presentation, every argument was the best it could possibly be. Good enough was never good enough at Kramer Levin, and briefs and other work product were polished and polished and then polished some more until they were as persuasive, strategic and well written as they could possibly be. I also learned about the importance of preparation and making sure you had mastered your material before going to court or to meet with and persuade regulators, adversaries, clients or potential clients. And Kramer Levin taught me that being an excellent and successful lawyer and being a decent person are not mutually exclusive; in fact, they are mutually reinforcing.

What types of projects are you working on now? 

In my current role, I work on a wide range of litigation aimed at advancing gun violence prevention in the courts. Projects my team is working on now include a lawsuit to enforce a blocked background check ordinance passed in Missoula, Montana;  defending a Seattle, Washington, ordinance that requires safe storage of firearms, challenging an Ohio school district's decision to arm teachers without the requisite training; a constitutional challenge to a punitive Florida law that threatens local officials with removal from office and personal fines if they pass a gun safety law later found to be preempted, and defending against Second Amendment challenges to the laws of various states that limit who can carry concealed weapons in public.