Kate Harris

Associate | Washington, D.C.
T: 212.763.0883
E: kharris@kaplanhecker.com
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Kate Harris

Kate Harris is an associate at Kaplan Hecker & Fink LLP.

Kate was part of the legal team that successfully represented writer E. Jean Carroll in her sexual battery and defamation suits against Donald Trump, securing two substantial jury verdicts of $5 million and $83.3 million, respectively—both after under three hours of deliberations. Kate’s writings have appeared in the New York Times, the University of Chicago Law Review Online, Tax Notes State, and the Chronicle of Philanthropy.

Before joining the firm, Kate completed a clerkship with the Hon. David F. Hamilton of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.

Kate received her J.D., with High Honors, from the University of Chicago Law School, where she was named a Kirkland & Ellis Scholar and inducted into the Order of the Coif. During law school, Kate served as the Executive Articles Editor of the University of Chicago Law Review, received the first-place prize in the Law School’s annual moot court competition, worked as a research assistant to Professor Daniel Hemel, interned for the Honorable Joan H. Lefkow, and participated in the Federal Criminal Justice Clinic, where she helped lead the researching and drafting of the Clinic’s groundbreaking federal bailwatching report. Kate received many honors and awards during law school, including the Best Oralist Award, the Thomas R. Mulroy Prize, and the Ann Watson Barber Outstanding Service Award, given to the graduating students who have made exceptional contributions to the quality of life at the Law School.

Prior to law school, Kate worked for the Good to Great Project. Here, Kate assisted Jim Collins, the best-selling author and coauthor of a series of books that have sold in total more than 10 million copies worldwide. While working in his management laboratory in Boulder, Colorado, Kate helped Jim conceptualize, research, and execute various creative projects. Kate has also served several nonprofit organizations that seek to provide opportunities for women interested in playing baseball across the United States. Through this work, Kate was an invited speaker at the ESPNW Summit.

Kate received her B.S., with High Distinction, from the University of Colorado Leeds School of Business, where she graduated first in her class.

Select Publications

  • Co-author, “Police are stopping Black drivers for minor violations at record highs. Lawmakers should do something about it,” Chicago Sun-Times (2023)
  • Co-author, “The Road to Driving Equality: A Blueprint for Cities to Reduce Traffic Stops,” New York University Journal of Legislation and Public Policy Quorum (2023)
  • Co-author, “The Legal, Practical, and Moral Case for Transferring Russian Sovereign Assets to Ukraine,” Renew Democracy Initiative (2023)

Education

  • B.S., University of Colorado Leeds School of Business, with high distinction, 2016
  • J.D., University of Chicago Law School, with high honors, 2021

Clerkships

  • Hon. David F. Hamilton, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit

Bar and Court Admissions

  • District of Columbia

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