Carine Williams is a litigation lawyer in the New York office of Squire Sanders. Carine’s practice focuses on representing parties and amici in federal and state appellate courts, in the US Supreme Court and in federal trial-level matters involving complex constitutional questions and commercial transactions. 

As a member of the Squire Sanders Public Service Initiative, Carine represents indigent clients in federal habeas suits, including death penalty cases, and in federal civil rights litigation. She is also active on its commercial litigation, and appellate and Supreme Court litigation practice teams. Carine handles matters in a wide variety of substantive areas. Besides federal civil rights law and federal habeas law, she has experience with questions involving federal civil procedure, federal jurisdiction, copyright law, contractual disputes and banking regulation. She has argued successfully in federal district courts and state trial court.

After graduating Yale Law School in 2006 Carine served as a law clerk to The Honorable Deborah A. Batts of the US District Court for the Southern District of New York. Carine was the recipient of Yale Law School’s C. LaRue Munson Prize for excellence in the investigation, preparation and presentation of civil, criminal or administrative law cases under a law school clinical program.

Carine plays an active role in Squire Sanders recruitment efforts. She is a member of the Federal Bar Council and serves on its Committee on Prison Reform. In the fall of 2012 she will be a lecturer-in-law at Columbia Law School, co-teaching a course on capital habeas law and prison litigation.

Representative Experience

United States Supreme Court

• Providing counsel to amici clients on behalf of state court judges supporting the petitioner in Martinez v. Ryan (2012). The Court ruled in favor of the petitioner, finding that procedural default cannot bar a federal habeas court from hearing a claim of ineffective assistance of counsel if state law required the claim be raised in an initial review collateral proceeding and there was no counsel provided in that proceeding, or the counsel provided was ineffective.
• Authoring an amicus brief on behalf of the American Bar Association in Brown v. Plata (2011). Plata held that federal district courts could mandate a reduction in California’s prison population in order to remedy on-going constitutional violations primarily related to overcrowded conditions.
• Providing counsel to amici clients in Graham v. Florida (2010) in support of the petitioner. The Court ruled in favor of the petitioner and held the sentencing of non-homicide juvenile offenders to life without the possibility of parole is unconstitutional.

Federal Circuit and District Courts

• Participating in briefing complex questions of international law and federal jurisdiction in a major maritime liability case in the Second Circuit.
• Drafting briefs filed in the Fifth Circuit in a habeas suit based on, among other grounds, claims for ineffective assistance of counsel.
• Successfully resisting two petitions for writs of mandamus in the Fifth Circuit, as well as motions for expedited review of those petitions. The petitions raised questions of jurisdiction, governmental privilege, attorney/client privilege and work product protection. The Fifth Circuit’s denial of these petitions resulted in the disclosure of wrongfully withheld discovery which strongly supported the client’s claims.
• Arguing a Rule 37 motion to compel discovery before federal district court, resulting in a ruling from the bench in favor of client.
• Arguing against a tactical motion to disqualify counsel in federal district court. The motion was subsequently denied.
• Successfully arguing a motion in federal district court for default judgment resulting in an award of more than US$1 million.
• Preparing and defending multiple depositions in a §1983 suit raising claims of violations of 8th Amendment, 1st Amendment and 14th Amendment rights.
• Successfully defending against a motion for Rule 11 sanctions, resulting in withdrawal of the motion.

State Courts and Mediation/Arbitration Proceedings

• Representing a leading property/casualty and life/health reinsurance company in a breach of contract claim in state court.
• Briefing and arguing a motion for a new trial in a pro bono death resentencing case in Texas.
• Providing counsel to clients defending against claims for breach of contract, misappropriation, trade secrets and fraud.

Publications

• Co-author, with John Reilly, “Liabilities Facing Off-Shore Wind Developers on the Outer Continental Shelf,” Infrastructure, Vol. 51, No. 1, Fall 2011.
• “Extraction and Compliance: New Reporting Requirements for Issuers Involving Oil, Natural Gas or Minerals,” originally published on www.complinet.com.