Ms. Chanoine is a Senior Associate in Mayer Brown's Supreme Court & Appellate group in New York. Ms. Chanoine has been the primary author of appellate briefs in state and federal courts, including the United States Supreme Court, covering diverse and complex issues, including a hedge fund’s multi-million dollar compensation dispute between its co-founders; a sentencing challenge by a high-profile former public official; and a church’s First Amendment challenge to the public release of sensitive internal documents.

In addition to practicing directly in the appellate courts, Ms. Chanoine works closely with trial counsel around the country on legal strategy and issue preservation in connection with high-stakes jury trials. Typically involving punitive damages and preemption issues, this practice includes developing defense strategies; preserving claims of error; and drafting jury instructions, trial briefs, bench memoranda, and other legal filings.

In 2011, Super Lawyers named Hannah to its New York “Rising Stars” list. Ms. Chanoine currently serves on the Second Circuit Court of Appeals’ Pro Bono Panel, and is a member of the Federal Bar Council’s Second Circuit Courts Committee. She has been published on the subject of practicing in the United States Supreme Court and is a member of the Federal Bar Council Inn of Court.

Prior to joining Mayer Brown, Ms. Chanoine served for three years as a Trial Attorney in the Department of Justice, Civil Division (Federal Programs Branch) through the Attorney General's Honor's Program. During her tenure there, she had lead responsibility for defending a variety of federal agencies in federal and state courts nationwide.

Ms. Chanoine received her JD from Columbia University School of Law, where she was twice named a James Kent Scholar for outstanding academic achievement. In addition, she won the Columbia Law Review’s annual publishable notes competition. Her resulting publication on the Fourth Amendment has been cited in a leading Fourth Amendment treatise, as well as in a 2010 federal district court opinion that described it as “instructive” and “first-rate.”

From 2004-2005, Ms. Chanoine clerked for the Hon. Sonia Sotomayor on the Second Circuit Court of Appeals.

Notable Engagements:

• United States v. Kerik (2d Cir) - Represented Bernard Kerik, the former Police Commissioner of New York City, in his sentencing appeal before the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.

• Olson v. Halvorsen, 986 A.2d 1150 (Del. 2009) – Represented hedge fund in victorious appeal before the Delaware Supreme Court in high-stakes compensation dispute between co-founders. The Delaware Supreme Court took up an issue of first impression on whether Delaware’s expansive LLC statute implicitly repealed the statute of frauds with respect to LLC operating agreements. The court agreed with our arguments in their entirety that the statutes could be harmonized.

• Legal strategy, legal briefing, and issue preservation for Philip Morris USA Inc. in connection with recent and upcoming trials, including a May 2010 personal-injury trial in Florida that was tried to a defense verdict; a May 2011 personal injury trial in the Southern District of New York that was tried to a defense verdict; an upcoming personal-injury and products-liability trial in West Virginia consolidating the claims of over 600 plaintiffs; and an upcoming medical monitoring class action in Massachusetts.

• Legal strategy and briefing for Philip Morris USA Inc. in connection with multiple appeals in the Florida District Courts of Appeal.  Issues in these product-liability and personal-injury cases include diverse matters of first impression on substantive areas of law, such as federal preemption, proximate cause, vicarious liability, punitive damages, the First Amendment, federal due process, as well as a wide variety of evidentiary and procedural issues arising out of jury trials and summary judgment.

• Bridgeport Roman Catholic Diocesan Corp. v. New York Times Co., 130 S. Ct. 500 (2009) (Mem.) – In a pro bono case, sought a stay and certiorari review from United States Supreme Court on behalf of a church seeking to prevent the public release of privileged documents.

• Lead counsel defending Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) from First and Fifth Amendment challenges to new travel provisions of the Cuban Asset Control Regulations.  Emergency Coalition to Defend Educational Travel v. Dep't of Treasury, 498 F. Supp. 2d 150 (D.D.C. 2007), aff’d 545 F.3d 4 (D.C. Cir. 2008) (educational travel); Vilaseca v. United States (D. Vt.) (family travel).

• Lead counsel defending Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) from constitutional and statutory challenges to administration of asset blocking programs.  Washington Mutual Bank, FAS v. Logan (N.J. Sup. Ct.) (Asset blocking program pursuant to sanctions against regime of former Liberian dictator); World Fuel Corp. v. Paulson (S.D. Fla.) (Asset blocking program under Narcotics Kingpin Act).

• Lead counsel defending Department of the Interior against suit arising under the Freedom of Information Act.  Citizens For Responsibility and Ethics in Washington v. Dep’t of the Interior, 503 F. Supp. 2d 88 (D.D.C. 2007). 

• Pretrial discovery and trial preparations, including among other responsibilities:  developing legal and jury trial strategy, drafting and arguing motions (discovery and dispositive), drafting jury instructions, preparing trial exhibits, deposing opposing fact and expert witnesses and defending defense fact and expert witness depositions, propounding and responding to discovery requests, and shepherding defense expert reports.  Taylor v. Rice (D.D.C.) (Allegations under Rehabilitation Act that Foreign Service engaged in discriminatory hiring practices); Tunica-Biloxi v. United States (D.D.C.); Pueblo of Zuni v. Thompson (D.N.M.) (Class action claims under Indian Self Determination Act that Indian Health Service breached hundreds of contracts with Native American tribes).