Daniel P. Doty
ddoty@agtlawyers.com
Daniel Doty, a/k/a Mr. Bowtie, thought that if he wrote his own bio, he would escape being the target of what we think is good-natured fun. He was wrong.
We first met Daniel when he came to our office to participate in a roundtable discussion regarding a somewhat notorious copyright case. Daniel did not hesitate to engage, with great charm, a federal judge who presented his views on another copyright case with which Daniel had been involved as co-counsel. Wow, we thought. Great presence and a taste for danger. We like that here. So we scooped him up when we had the chance.
Daniel joins us with a diverse litigation background. Insurance coverage, intellectual property, defamation, civil rights and other commercial disputes. Somewhat a savant, Daniel can recite off the top of his head the varying standards of proof that an employee must meet to defeat an employer’s “conditional privilege” in a defamation case and he can spot copyright issues that some practitioners have never even heard of. (Did you know there is a limited statutory exception for veterans’ and non-profit fraternal organizations performing nonliterary dramatic works? Daniel did.).
Daniel has argued cases before the Maryland Court of Appeals, the Maryland Court of Special Appeals, and the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, and wrote or helped to write the briefs in countless other cases before those and other courts. Daniel has vast trial experience in federal district court and in Maryland’s circuit and district courts, and has helped clients in zoning board and other administrative actions and appeals. A good settlement is often the right option, but, where a settlement is not in the stars, Daniel has proven stamina to keep up the fight as long as it takes. Daniel believes the practice of law, particularly litigation, requires civility, but civility does not mean passivity. He is tenacious, smart and exceedingly cute. (Have you seen his bowtie with the bears on it?)
In the rare moments when he’s not in the office, a courthouse, or taking a deposition, Daniel divides his time amongst his two talented and individualistic children, his passion for reading, and he and his wife’s culinary explorations. Some of us have been treated to his “all week” kim chi. Jim will tell you it’s called that because it stays with you at least that long. (Daniel says it’s because it takes at least that long to ferment.) Much like Daniel’s law practice, he and his fabulous wife, Melissa, keep their cooking diverse and, at all times, top-notch. They delight in preparing dishes ranging from standing rib roast (why wait for the holidays?) to vegetarian soul food (yes, there is such a thing as vegetarian soul food - you don’t know what you’re missing until you’ve tasted their vegan collard greens, mashed potatoes, and tofu with yeast gravy).
Daniel graduated magna cum laude from the University of Maryland School of Law in 2006 and was elected Order of the Coif (that’s for the smartest of the smart, for those of you not in the know). He is a member of the J. Dudley Digges American Inn of Court, as well as the Baltimore City and Maryland State Bar Associations. Although a New England native, Daniel met and married his wife in Athens, Georgia, a vibrant and progressive southern town with a rich and colorful heritage. Daniel explains that Athens is or has been the home of the world’s only double-barreled cannon, the seed of a tree that owns itself, and some of the best American artists and musicians of the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. So there.
We figure if Daniel found charm in Athens, Georgia, we have a good shot of keeping him in Baltimore. Sure hope so.
REPORTED CASES
McLong v. Oliver, reported sub nom. as Arrington v. Department of Human Resources, 402 Md. 79, 935 A.2d 432 (2007).
Walker v. Ed Rogers, Inc., 406 Md. 573, 959 A.2d 1207 (2008) (granting certiorari and vacating unreported Court of Special Appeals opinion).
Steiner v. County Com'rs of Caroline County, 490 F. Supp. 2d 617 (D. Md. 2007) (on brief)
Bouchat v. Baltimore Ravens Ltd. Partnership, 587 F. Supp. 2d 686 (D. Md. 2008) (on brief)
Click here to download and view Daniel's Resume.
