Eli Savit

Eli Savit is a Michigan-based attorney who has assisted the firm in an Of Counsel role since 2019. Eli is currently serving as the Prosecuting Attorney in Washtenaw County, Michigan. An experienced appellate and U.S. Supreme Court litigator, Eli has particular expertise representing sovereign and non sovereign governmental clients. In addition, Eli is a nationally recognized scholar on issues relating to government-initiated plaintiff’s-side litigation.

Eli previously served as a law clerk for Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Sandra Day O’Connor (ret.) on the U.S. Supreme Court. He also clerked for the Honorable David S. Tatel on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit and for the Honorable Carlos T. Bea on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. In addition, Eli previously practiced law with two major national law firms, where he focused on appellate and U.S. Supreme Court litigation.

Eli is a lecturer at the University of Michigan Law School. There, he teaches courses related to state and local government, as well as a litigation advocacy seminar. Eli’s academic scholarship focuses on litigation initiated by state and local governments. His recent scholarly articles cover state-initiated environmental litigation, sovereign and quasi sovereign standing, and parens patriae litigation.

Eli’s work has also appeared in popular publications  such as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Slate, The Hill, The Detroit News, the Detroit Free Press, and MLive.com. He is a frequent contributor to Take Care, a prominent legal blog, where he writes primarily about environmental issues.

In addition, and separate from his work for Dema Law, Eli brings the unique perspective of having worked on the client side of government-initiated public-interest litigation. Prior to being elected as Prosecuting Attorney in Washtenaw County, Eli served as the top attorney in the Detroit Mayor’s Office. There, Eli oversaw legal strategy on high profile litigation, legislation, intergovernmental negotiations, and executive action. He also oversaw the City’s public-interest litigation work, supervising in-house attorneys and outside counsel in the City’s lawsuits against the opioid industry, banks, slumlords, and land speculators.

Eli regularly consults with civil rights groups and environmental organizations in Michigan and across the country. He has worked on several major, successful initiatives around civil rights, voting rights, and environmental justice.