Attorneys
Scott McKay
Scott McKay practices criminal defense and civil litigation in federal and state courts. He has a wide breadth of litigation and trial experience and has successfully represented clients in a number of significant cases.
Mr. McKay has been involved in a number of cases that involve issues of national security. He is presently assisting a "high value detainee" in capital proceedings before the Military Commissions at the United States Naval Station in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Mr. McKay and David Nevin of the firm were asked to undertake this representation as part of the John Adams Project, a project sponsored by the American Civil Liberties Union and the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. Both previously received the Clarence Darrow Award from the ACLU of Idaho and the Gargoyle Award from the Idaho Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers for their defense of Sami Omar Al-Hussayen, a Saudi national acquitted of terrorism charges following a lengthy trial in federal court.
Mr. McKay also works on complex civil litigation including pending federal litigation consolidated in New York arising out of the events of September 11, 2001. He has helped achieve multi million dollar settlements for clients including on behalf of current and former employees of a large retail grocery chain who brought suit in multi-state collective and class wage and hour actions and on behalf of a child and his parents who brought suit against the physicians and hospital responsible for the child's catastrophic birth injuries.
Mr. McKay has an AV rating, the highest rating available from the Martindale-Hubbell lawyer rating service. He has been selected by his peers each year since 2003 for listing in "The Best Lawyers in America" and is presently listed in both white collar criminal defense and criminal defense. Mr. McKay is listed in Mountain States Super Lawyers Magazine which features the top 5% of lawyers in Nevada, Utah, Montana, Idaho and Wyoming.
Mr. McKay has been admitted to practice in Idaho, California and before the U.S. Supreme Court, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, and various district courts throughout the United States. He also is admitted to the pool of civilian defense counsel qualified to practice before the U.S. Military Commissions.
Mr. McKay graduated magna cum laude from the Gonzaga University School of Law where he was a Thomas More Scholar and associate editor of the Gonzaga Law Review. He served as a law clerk to the Honorable Byron J. Johnson (1990-91) and the Honorable Linda Copple Trout (1992-93), Justices (Ret.), Idaho Supreme Court.
Mr. McKay has appeared nationally as a legal commentator on Court TV and in a variety of other media outlets. He lectures frequently on legal topics. Mr. McKay is a member of the Idaho and National Associations of Criminal Defense Lawyers. He serves on a number of legal committees including the Judicial Fairness Committee for the Idaho State Bar and the Electronic Records Committee for the Idaho Supreme Court. He actively volunteers in the local community including coaching youth sports. Mr. McKay formerly served on the Magistrate Commission for the Fourth Judicial District, as Chair of the Young Lawyers Section for the Idaho State Bar and on the Board of Directors for Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Southwest Idaho after serving several years as a volunteer Big Brother. He and his wife, Nicole, have three children and all attend public school in Boise.
Practice Areas: Criminal Defense and Civil Litigation
- J.D. (Magna Cum Laude) Gonzaga University School of Law, 1990; Thomas More Scholar, Associate Editor, Gonzaga Law Review
- B.A. (Cum Laude) Business Management and Accounting, Whitworth College, 1986
- Law Clerk - Honorable Byron J. Johnson, 1990-91, and Honorable Linda Copple Trout, 1992-93, Justices (Ret.), Idaho Supreme Court
- Bar Admissions: Idaho; California; U.S. Supreme Court; U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit; U.S. District Court for the District of Idaho; U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. Admitted pro hac vice in various courts throughout the United States.