SARA GROSS

Baltimore City Department of Law

Sara Gross has served as chief of the Affirmative Litigation Division in the Baltimore City Department of Law since 2020. She graduated with honor from the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law in 2004 and went on to clerk for the Honorable Carol E. Smith in the Circuit Court for Baltimore City before beginning her career as an assistant state’s attorney in Baltimore City from 2005 to 2012. She later transitioned to defensive litigation with the Law Department before joining the Affirmative Litigation Division.

Under her leadership, the division has more than tripled its caseload and risen to national prominence for taking on innovative cases. Working with outside counsel, Gross has secured over $600 million in settlements and verdicts for Baltimore City, most notably through its lawsuit against opioid manufacturers and distributors. The division filed the nation’s first case against cigarette manufacturers and distributors for rampant filter pollution and, after Gross co-drafted the city’s municipal ordinance against unfair and deceptive trade practices, brought a first-of-its-type consumer protection enforcement action against online sports gambling sites. She also coordinates the city’s litigation response to the actions of the current federal administration.

Gross mentors law students and young attorneys, serves in committee leadership roles with the Baltimore City Bar Association, participates in pro bono work, and is invited by various schools to speak on panels about her work. She has received the 2015 Government and Public Interest Lawyer of the Year award from the City Bar Association.

The 2016 Outstanding Volunteer Attorney Award from the Homeless Persons Representation Project, the 2017 Very Important Professionals List from the Daily Record, the 2023 Leadership in Law Award from the Daily Record and the 2024 Senior Team Member of the Year Award from the City Law Department.

As a child, she wanted to be like Matlock, making her case and getting others to agree with her. As a teenager, reading To Kill a Mockingbird deepened her appreciation for the role of lawyers in protecting the most marginalized members of society and their rights. Though she always wanted to be a trial lawyer, she was absolutely petrified of speaking in public. She forced herself to take speech classes and join the speech and debate team in high school, eventually delivering a commencement address before 1,500 people and winning multiple state championships on her college speech team.

“To inspire other lawyers to use their education and skills to make the community a better place for all,” Gross said of what it means to be a leader in law. “Whether it is being a dedicated public servant or picking up a pro bono case, we are gifted with the ability to give back. This is more important than ever now, while the rule of law and our democratic principles are under attack.”