They’ve Got Next: The 40 Under 40 - Nicolle Kownacki of White & Case

Please describe two of your most substantial, recent wins in practice.
My team recently won a major victory at the US Supreme Court vacating a US$350 million judgment against our client the Republic of the Sudan in a case under the “terrorism exception” to sovereign immunity. The 8-1 opinion established clear precedent for serving process on foreign states in US litigation and paved the way for an historic bilateral claims-settlement agreement, executed last year between Sudan and the United States.

In May 2021, I obtained the complete dismissal of a suit against my client, INTERPOL, in the Eastern District of New York. The plaintiff had sued INTERPOL over an allegedly improper red notice issued against him from the United Arab Emirates. The court’s decision was the first ever to uphold INTERPOL’s immunity in the United States.

What is the most important lesson you learned as a first-year attorney and how does it inform your practice today?
As a first-year associate, I learned the importance of trusting my judgment to make decisions and informed recommendations, even when I may be intimidated by working for seasoned attorneys who know much more than me. As I learned, in some cases the more senior attorneys do not always have the “right” answers, and they truly are relying on their junior team to dig in, own the issues, and make informed assessments and recommendations with confidence. Learning to trust my judgment as I think critically has been key to finding that “right” answer, and has helped me build my own confidence as a lawyer. Trusting my judgment has helped me establish a rapport and trust with my team members and clients—something that likely will become even more important as I progress in my career. In my practice today, I also see the importance of supporting young attorneys in building that confidence and trusting their judgment to make an informed recommendation. I look for opportunities to encourage and support that growth so that the teams I work with are as strong as possible.

How do you define success in your practice?
Success in my practice means routinely getting the opportunity to litigate complex and novel issues at the forefront of legal debates concerning international law—issues, such as the evolving scope of foreign sovereign immunity or new developments in anti-terrorism laws, that frequently make their way to the U.S. Supreme Court or to the front pages of newspapers in various countries affected by our laws. The opportunity to litigate such issues comes because clients trust me to handle those sensitive and challenging matters, but also because we develop creative legal arguments that bring these issues to light. Of course, even greater success means being on the winning side of these issues and ultimately helping to shape the impact of U.S. law on foreign countries. In short, success in my practice means practicing, and influencing, the cutting-edge international law that motivated me to go to law school.

What are you most proud of as a lawyer?
I am most proud of our Supreme Court win on behalf of the Republic of Sudan. Following years of challenging litigation for our client, the partner asked me to take the lead on a petition for Supreme Court review. I jumped at the chance, and it was exciting to see my own words in the final printed and bound Supreme Court brief. Our team of nearly all women also had an opportunity to present our position to the Solicitor General’s Office, and we gained the U.S. Government’s support. The Supreme Court granted review, and, as I continued leading the work on our merits briefs, others in the firm started turning to me for their Supreme Court work as well. After weeks of preparations and moot courts, I sat at the argument—8.5 months pregnant—right behind the senior partner arguing our case. (I was only partly worried my son might arrive early to experience the excitement of a real SCOTUS argument, too.) We made it through, and a few months later won an 8-1 decision in our favor. My Supreme Court work has only grown from there, and I am now a trusted resource in the firm for such cases.

Who is your greatest mentor in the law and what have they taught you?
I am lucky to say: my greatest mentor has been the senior partner I work with, Carolyn Lamm. She is a fierce advocate and a pioneer in her fields of international arbitration and foreign sovereign litigation, with an incredible record of success. Most impressively, she is the trusted advisor of numerous foreign governments that are her loyal clients—including several you may not expect would rely on a woman advocate for their most sensitive disputes—and she is often the only woman in those top-brass meetings. She has taught me the importance of truly knowing the members of the team that you build around you, knowing particularly their diverse strengths and giving them each the best opportunities to employ those strengths for the common goal. She has shown, in how she artfully assembles her own diverse teams, that a cookie-cutter mold of big-law associates will not produce the best results.

Just for fun, tell us your two favorite songs on your summer music playlist.
Wheels on the Bus – If I must listen to it for the thousandth time to keep my 2-year-old son happy and singing, then that’s what I must do.

Raffi’s Greatest Hits – Have you heard “Down By the Bay”? It is endlessly entertaining.