Timothy T. Silvester

At Kobayashi Sugita & Goda, Tim represents financial institutions, Fortune 500 companies, and defense-sector clients in complex commercial litigation and arbitration, including high-stakes commercial construction disputes and significant contract matters. Tim focuses his practice on high-stakes commercial litigation, class action defense, government investigations, and crisis matters, with experience spanning commercial and residential construction, intellectual property, financial services, and regulated industries, such as real estate and technology. Tim works closely with in-house counsel, executives, and operational leadership to assess litigation exposure, manage repeat risk, and align legal strategy with broader business objectives, and is frequently engaged to manage litigation portfolios, protect proprietary information, and help clients integrate legal risk management into enterprise decision-making.

Before entering private practice, Tim served as a senior attorney in the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General's Corps. As a judge advocate, he served as first chair in more than 25 felony jury trials across multiple jurisdictions. At the Pentagon, Tim advised senior Army leadership and worked directly with senior officials in the U.S. Department of Justice, the White House Counsel’s Office, and Congress on sensitive investigations, oversight matters, and interagency coordination. His military service instilled a disciplined approach to leadership counseling, crisis decision-making, and complex risk assessment that carries through to his private-sector practice.

After completing his service, Tim served as a law clerk to the Honorable J. Rolando Olvera of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas. He then practiced at a leading international law firm in Houston, where his work included complex commercial litigation, internal investigations, financial disputes, and technology-related matters, frequently involving major energy-sector clients and issues.

Tim graduated with honors from the Antonin Scalia Law School at George Mason University, where he served as Executive Editor on the George Mason Civil Rights Law Journal and as a Symposium Editor on the Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy. He competed nationally as a member of the National Moot Court Team, earning honors at the National Moot Court Competition as Southeast Regional Champion and Best Oral Advocate and as National Quarterfinalist. Tim earned his Bachelor of Arts in English from Bob Jones University, where he graduated first in his class.

Tim is admitted to practice in Hawaii, New York, Texas, Washington, D.C., and Georgia.