Rachel Higgins focuses her practice on white collar defense and investigations and complex litigation. Rachel has experience in high-stakes complex litigation and assists clients in sensitive investigative proceedings. She maintains an active pro bono practice, with a focus on criminal defense and immigration matters.
In 2024, Rachel completed a judicial clerkship with the Honorable José R. Almonte, U.S. Magistrate Judge, in the District of New Jersey.
Rachel earned her J.D. from Columbia Law School, where she volunteered as a student attorney in the Immigrants’ Rights Clinic and won political asylum for a client in removal proceedings. During law school, Rachel was a member of the Columbia Journal of European Law and externed for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the General Counsel, Public Health Division. Rachel received her B.A. from Bucknell University, cum laude, in Economics, Political Science, and Spanish.
Experience
- Major religious organization in an investigation by federal prosecutors involving allegations of visa fraud and forced labor.
- Prominent New Jersey real estate professional in defending him in a federal criminal tax investigation and participating in a presentation that persuaded the government to drop its investigation.
- Leading multinational furniture and appliance company in putative nationwide class action alleging consumer fraud, defects, and negligent recall in connection with chests and dressers.
Credentials
Education
- J.D., Columbia Law School, 2019
- B.A., Economics, Political Science, and Spanish, Bucknell University, 2015, cum laude
Admissions
- New York
- U.S. District Court, Eastern District of New York
- U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York
Clerkships
- U.S. District Court, District of New Jersey, The Honorable José R. Almonte