Carolyn Frances Corwin was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota on July 27, 1950, the daughter of Gilbert and Esther Helen Smoot Corwin. She entered Oberlin College in 1967. An American history major, she was on the Dean’s List in her freshman, sophomore, and junior years, and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa in March of 1970. She received the George Grant and Carrie C. Life Prize for excellence in American history in 1971. After graduating from Oberlin College (1971), she attended the Catholic University of America (Washington, D.C.), earning a Master of Science degree in Library Science in 1972. For the next two years (1972-74), she worked as a reference librarian in the Office of Management and Budget in Washington.

In 1977, Ms. Corwin received a Juris Doctor degree from Yale University and was admitted to the bar in the District of Columbia. During 1977-78, she clerked for the Honorable Caleb M. Wright, United States District Court, District of Delaware. She then joined the Washington law firm of Covington & Burling as an associate, working there until 1982 when she assumed the responsibilities of an assistant in the Office of the Solicitor, United States Department of Justice. While there, she argued nine cases before the United States Supreme Court.

During her career, Ms. Corwin has been involved in a variety of litigation matters at both the trial and appellate levels. She has worked on, among others, antitrust and valuation cases, cases involving various federal programs, and cases raising constitutional issues. Recent cases on which she has been counsel include Puryear v. County of Roanoke, 214 F.3d 514 (4th Cir. 2000); Western Coal Traffic League v. STB, 169 F3d 775 (D.C. Cir. 1999); Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. v. Federal Communication Commission, 117 S. Ct. 1174 (1997); and Bottoms v. Bottoms, 457 S.E. 2d 102 (Va. 1995). Currently, as a partner at Covington & Burling, she specializes in federal energy regulation, transportation regulation, and appellate litigation. She is a member of several practice areas (umbrella groups): Antitrust (Antitrust/International trade); Appellate and Supreme Court (Litigation); Energy (Industry Teams); Energy Regulatory Practice (Regulatory/Legislative) Transportation (Regulatory/Legislative); and Trial Practice (Litigation).

Ms. Corwin is a member of the American Law Institute, the American Bar Association, and the Energy Bar Association. Presently, she serves as Vice-Chair of the Transportation Industry Committee of the ABA’s Antitrust Law Section and on the Advisory Board of the Georgetown University Law Center Supreme Court Institute.

Carolyn Frances Corwin is married to James F. Fish, a graduate of the University of Colorado and the University of California at Berkeley. Mr. Fish is with the Federal Office of Management and Budget where he works as an examiner in the operations and support branches. In 1993 he served on President Clinton’s task force to develop a national health plan. The couple reside in the District of Columbia.

Biographical Summary of Carolyn Frances Corwin, Oberlin College, Office of Development Research, March 24, 1977; October 18, 2002.

“Corwin, Carolyn F.,” Covington & Burling Web Page, June 26, 2001.