Jaime Santos > Goodwin > Washington DC, United States > Lawyer Profile

Goodwin
1900 N Street NW
Washington, District of Columbia 20036
United States
Jaime Santos photo

Position

Partner

Career

Jaime A. Santos is co-chair of Goodwin’s Appellate and Supreme Court practice, a member of the firm’s ERISA Litigation and Life Sciences Disputes groups, and co-chair of Goodwin’s Dobbs Task Force. Her work in appellate litigation, ERISA litigation, IP Litigation, and DEI issues have led to her being recognized as a DC Rising Star by the National Law Journal, a Rising Star by Law360, and a Top 250 Women in Litigation by Benchmark Litigation. She is Chambers ranked as an Up and Coming lawyer for ERISA Litigation and has also received Corporate Counsel’s Women, Influence & Power in Law Award and DCA Live’s Emerging Women Leader Award.

Jaime’s work focuses on appellate matters and complex civil litigation in federal courts, including ERISA litigation, patent litigation, class actions, constitutional law, and product litigation. She has argued before the Supreme Court of the United States and more than half of the federal courts of appeals. Most recently, Jaime successfully argued before the Supreme Court in Wilkinson v. Garland, an important case about the reviewability of immigration decisions that the Court decided 6-3 in favor of our client Situ Wilkinson. Jaime also regularly speaks publicly about matters affecting the Supreme Court, as well as diversity and bias within the legal profession. She previously co-hosted the Supreme Court podcast Strict Scrutiny and has been a guest on numerous podcasts and programs, including NPR’s All Things Considered, the National Constitution Center’s podcast We the People, and Bloomberg’s podcast Cases and Controversies. Jaime currently serves as on the Board of Directors of the Washington Lawyers’ Committee and has served on the Executive Committee of the Edward Coke Appellate Inn of Court (the first American Inn of Court dedicated to appellate practice), the MacArthur Justice Center Supreme Court & Appellate Advisory Board, the National Women’s Law Center’s Leadership Advisory Council, and as an appellate mentor for The Appellate Project—an organization committed to empowering law students of color to thrive in the appellate field.

Jaime maintains an active pro bono practice and was the 2023 winner of Robert B. Fraser Award, which Goodwin presents annually to one partner who has provided significant service to pro bono clients. She has been counsel of record in numerous criminal, immigration, and civil rights appeals in the Supreme Court and federal appellate courts. Jaime has received awards for her commitment to pro bono civil rights work from the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and from Goodwin.

In addition to her pro bono practice, Jaime has been a thought leader in preventing and addressing bias and harassment in the legal profession. She speaks at conferences across the country, has testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee and Judicial Conference of the United States, has advised state and federal courts on improving the policies and processes governing inappropriate conduct in the workplace, and has published several articles on the topic.

Before joining Goodwin in 2013, Jaime served as a law clerk to the Honorable George H. King of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, and to the Honorable Raymond C. Fisher of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. In law school, she was a supervising editor for the Harvard Law Review.

Education

JD, Harvard Law School (magna cum laude) 2011 / BA, University of San Diego 2005 (summa cum laude)

Lawyer Rankings

United States > Dispute resolution > Appellate: courts of appeals / Appellate: supreme courts (states and federal)

(Next Generation Partners)

Jaime SantosGoodwin

The team at Goodwin is well-versed in representing life sciences and tech companies in patent and licensing disputes, as well as ERISA and class action appeals. The group is also routinely engaged in immigration and financial services cases. Leadership is shared between William Jay and Jaime Santos, both of whom are based in Washington, D.C.; and Boston-based Kevin Martin. Jay draws on notable experience arguing patent, copyright, and trademark cases before the Supreme Court, as well as handling constitutional law, securities, financial services, and class action mandates. Younger partner Santos focuses on appellate matters and has experience in ERISA litigation, patent litigation and product litigation. Martin, for his part, has been engaged in recent years on federal and state appellate court cases that have included successfully representing Workhuman in a case involving questions of statutory interpretation under Florida’s Private Whistleblower Act. D.C.-based Brian Burgess and Boston-based David Zimmer are additional key contacts. Gerard Cedrone left the firm for the Massachusetts State Solicitor’s Office in November 2024.

United States > Labor and employment > ERISA litigation

Goodwin specializes in defending financial services companies, as well as other plan sponsors and service providers in class actions against allegations of breach of ERISA fiduciary duties, especially in relation to plan fees and investments. The firm is noted for its capital markets, healthcare and financial services experience, with the team securing victories for clients including MetLife, which resulted in the dismissal of a novel challenge to a plan’s use of prescription-drug rebates. The team’s appellate expertise is noted, with members including Boston-based Alison Douglass and Jaime Santos, in Washington DC, representing clients before circuit courts across the country and before the US Supreme Court. Also in Boston, James Fleckner has been active in defending against new ERISA litigation trends, including pension retirement benefit obligations to insurance carriers that have been filed and class action claims challenging the retention of foreign tax credits under the Internal Revenue Code relating to ERISA assets. Also in Washington DC, Michael Isenman represents a variety of clients including mutual funds and investment advisers in litigation and regulatory contexts including ERISA class actions and shareholder derivative demands and litigation. Christina Hennecken and David Rosenberg are key names.