Trace Mitchell is a Litigation Fellow at the Institute for Justice.
Prior to joining IJ, Trace clerked for the Honorable Judge Biran of the Court of Appeals of Maryland. He previously served as Policy Counsel for NetChoice, a technology-focused trade association dedicated to the principles of free enterprise and free expression on the internet, where he focused on issues surrounding content moderation, antitrust policy, and entrepreneurialism and innovation more generally. Before that, Trace worked as a Research Associate with the Mercatus Center and as a Program Associate with the Liberty & Law Center at George Mason University. Trace was the 2019 winner of Think Freely Media’s “Great Communicators Tournament” and his writing has appeared in the Wall Street Journal, Law360, InsideSources, The Hill, National Review, as well as various other publications nationwide.
Trace received his undergraduate degree from Florida Gulf Coast University and his law degree from the George Mason University, Antonin Scalia Law School.
Trace is a member of the D.C. bar.
Trace's Cases

Private Property
Devillier Cert Petition
“If you break it, you buy it” is a simple rule that anyone who has shopped at a Pottery Barn probably already knows. It means that if you cause damage to someone else’s property, you…

Economic Liberty | First Amendment | Private Property | Vending
Small business owners sue to strike down Jacksonville regulations effectively banning food trucks from city
Jacksonville, North Carolina effectively bans food trucks from operating in 96 percent of the city. That's why a group of small business owners has teamed up with the Institute for Justice to file a lawsuit…

4th Amendment Project | Private Property
Michigan Homeowners Fight to Vindicate Fourth Amendment Protections Against Warrantless Surveillance Using Drones
Todd and Heather Maxon live on a five-acre property in rural Long Lake Township, in northern Michigan. Todd spends his free time fixing up and tinkering with cars and other vehicles. He keeps those vehicles…
Trace's Amicus Briefs
Donald Logsdon, Jr. v. United States Marshal Service, et. al.
10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals