Of Counsel
Washington, D.C.
Ed is Of Counsel in the firm's Supreme Court and Appellate practice. He helps clients navigate complex legal issues from the trial level through appellate review including at the United States Supreme Court.
Ed Williams assists clients with complex matters focusing primarily on litigation in appellate tribunals, including the United States Supreme Court, and challenging legal issues at trial. Clients have relied on Ed’s exceptional knowledge to navigate class action lawsuits, certiorari and merits stage briefs before the United States Supreme Court, contract disputes, trade secrets misappropriation matters, and complex litigation matters that defy traditional categories.
For example, Ed litigated and successfully settled a sprawling dispute for a startup technology company that spanned state and federal court and substantively ranged from contract dispute to trade secrets misappropriation. Ed also represented a California municipal water district in class action litigation that led to a favorable settlement for the client.
Ed has experience in all three branches of the federal government and brings that experience to bear for clients navigating litigation that touches on government or political affairs. He served in the judicial branch as a judicial law clerk to two federal judges: Hon. Richard W. Roberts, retired Chief Judge of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia and Hon. Patricia A. Millett, U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. In the executive branch, Ed drafted briefs to various U.S. courts of appeal as an extern in the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Appellate Division. And in the legislative branch, Ed assisted with the nomination process of U.S. federal judges and provided analysis on potential legislation as a law clerk on the US Senate Committee on the Judiciary under the Chairmanship of Senator Patrick Leahy.
As the former Director of the Howard University School of Law Civil Rights Clinic, Ed has a unique understanding of civil rights litigation and relies on those insights to assist clients navigating today’s landscape on civil rights or civil rights-adjacent matters.
Ed maintains a robust pro bono practice. For example, Ed has successfully represented Black voters in Georgia in a major redistricting case; successfully represented a client before the Second Circuit on appeal of the client’s unlawful removal by the Board of Immigration Appeals; successfully represented a detainee in the Nevada prison system under RLIUPA to ensure the detainees access to religious exercise; and authored numerous amicus briefs before the United States Supreme Court, including on voting rights and anti-discrimination issues. Ed is a Teach for America Alum and served as a third-grade teacher in Atlanta Public Schools.