Carrie Nee appointed as William & Mary university counsel
Carrie Nee: As a member of the president’s cabinet and executive leadership team, she will work with W&M leaders on legal issues related to such areas as employment, finance, civil rights and federal and state regulatory compliance. Photo by Stephen Salpukas
Virginia Attorney General Mark R. Herring has appointed Carrie Nee, senior assistant attorney general and chief of the education section, as William & Mary’s next university counsel.
Nee, who will start July 15, will provide representation and legal services to the university under the direction of the attorney general. She joins Sarah Melchior who will continue to serve as associate university counsel, a position she has held since 2013.
“We welcome Carrie Nee warmly; she is a trusted partner at William & Mary and is exceedingly accomplished,” said President Katherine A. Rowe. “I have full confidence she will represent the university ably and with distinction.”
Nee will supervise all aspects of litigation involving the university. As a member of the president’s cabinet and executive leadership team, she will work with W&M leaders on legal issues related to such areas as employment, finance, civil rights and federal and state regulatory compliance.
”This is an exciting time to join the William & Mary community,” she said. “I’m looking forward to helping the university navigate the complex demands placed on higher education institutions in the 21st century.”
Nee has served in her current role in the education section of the attorney general’s office since 2017, overseeing the 46 attorneys who advise all state educational agencies, including 17 institutions of higher education. At W&M, she succeeds Deborah Love, who was W&M’s university counsel from 2011 to 2019 before returning to the Virginia Office of the Attorney General as a senior assistant attorney general.
“Carrie is going to be a tremendous asset to President Rowe, the administration, the Board of Visitors, and the entire William & Mary family and community,” said Herring. “She is stepping into this new role with a wealth of experience and demonstrated excellence in serving the needs of a strong and growing Virginia college. I’d also like to thank Deborah Love for her many years of service to William & Mary, during which she laid a strong foundation and built an excellent team for Carrie to lead.”
Previously, Nee worked as a senior assistant attorney general for the education section from 2011 to 2017, serving as university counsel for the University of Mary Washington, representing the Library of Virginia and advising the Virginia Department of Education.
From 2005 to 2011, Nee was an assistant attorney general in the technology and procurement section of the attorney general’s office. In that role, she specialized in contract administration issues and served as counsel to the Virginia Information Technologies Agency while also advising other Virginia agencies on procurement and intellectual property issues.
Before that, Nee was a judicial clerk for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, an intellectual property associate for McGuireWoods LLP and a judicial clerk for the U.S. Court of Federal Claims.
Nee earned her undergraduate degree from the University of Virginia before pursuing a Master of Education degree from the University of Vermont. In 2001, she received her law degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Law.