Recognized in Best Lawyers since 2020 Spencer G. Scharff represents and advises businesses, nonprofits, and individuals in complex litigation in state and federal courts. He is admitted to practice in California, Arizona, New York, and the District of Columbia, and has extensive experience in high-stakes commercial litigation, regulatory disputes, and appellate advocacy.
Before founding Scharff PC, Spencer was a member of Goddard Law Office PLC, where he practiced alongside former Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard. He previously practiced at a boutique litigation firm, where he regularly represented Fortune 500 transportation and logistics companies. He also practiced in the litigation department of a premier global law firm in Los Angeles, where his work included matters before the Supreme Court of the United States.
Spencer served in the chambers of three judges of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Following law school, he clerked for the Hon. Mary M. Schroeder from 2010-2011, who joined the Ninth Circuit in 1979 and served as Chief Judge from 2000 to 2007. He later clerked for the Hon. Andrew D. Hurwitz from 2013-2014, who was appointed to the federal bench in 2012 after Judge Schroeder announced her intent to assume senior status. During law school, Spencer externed for the Hon. Arthur Alarcón in his chambers in downtown Los Angeles.
Spencer earned his bachelor’s degree in History and Political Science from the University of Pennsylvania. After graduating from Penn, he received a full-tuition scholarship to attend the University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law, where he graduated magna cum laude. While at Arizona, he served as Executive Note Editor of the Arizona Law Review and as the founding Editor-in-Chief of the Arizona Journal of Environmental Law & Policy.
Since 2023, Spencer has served on the Advisory Board of the Western Center on Law & Poverty. From 2016-2025, Spencer served as a Member of the District of Arizona’s CJA Appellate Panel.
