They’ve Got Next: Appellate Fresh Face Sarah Harris

Sarah Harris’ first U.S. Supreme Court oral argument wasn’t typical.

With the high court closed for the pandemic, she’d argue over the phone and audio of the exchange would be broadcast live.

Harris was lucky though. It was November 2020 and her mentor, Lisa Blatt, had argued the first remote case in May. And she’d had a front row seat for how the Supreme Court powerhouse and fellow Williams & Connolly partner prepared.

In February 2021, it paid off. The justices handed Harris a 5-4 victory in a benefits case, Salinas v. United States Railroad Retirement Bd., that drew ...