Carolin Guentert is a Partner in the New York office of Sanford Heisler Sharp and Co-Chair of the firm’s Criminal/Sexual Violence Practice Group. As a passionate plaintiffs-side advocate, Carolin specializes in bringing Title VII and Title IX cases against entities that often turn a blind eye to systemic gender discrimination, sexual harassment, and sexual abuse.
Carolin has negotiated settlements on behalf of individuals and classes alleging a broad range of discrimination, harassment, and retaliation claims under state and federal law, including claims brought by employees in the legal, financial services, tech, and consumer goods industries. She has litigated a proposed pregnancy discrimination class action filed by seven former female attorneys against Morrison & Foerster LLP, and represented lawyers who were discriminated against on the basis of pregnancy or for being a caregiver to their children.
Carolin has brought notable Title IX actions against major universities. As co-lead counsel, she is representing three Harvard University graduate students in a Title IX discrimination case alleging that Harvard ignored a near-decade-long pattern of sexual harassment and retaliation by an influential anthropology professor. Under Title IX and the Fair Housing Act (FHA), she litigated a proposed class action against Yale University and its all-male fraternities on behalf of students who were subjected to discrimination and a sexually hostile environment. Carolin also successfully negotiated a settlement on behalf of a college student who was sexually assaulted by a professor.
Carolin received her law degree from New York University School of Law, her LL.M. with distinction from Georgetown University Law Center, and her Bachelor of Arts summa cum laude from The College of New Jersey. While at New York University School of Law, Carolin served as the Senior Symposium Editor for the Journal of International Law & Politics. She also served as the president of the Domestic Violence Advocacy Project and participated in the Reproductive Justice Clinic.
Carolin is a member of the New York and District of Columbia bars. She has authored/co-authored articles that appear in the Cardozo Law Review, the Federal Sentencing Reporter, Law360, and the New York University Journal of International Politics. Carolin is also a member of the Sanctuary for Families Pro Bono Council.
Before joining Sanford Heisler Sharp, Carolin completed a clerkship for the Honorable Jack B. Weinstein of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York. After her clerkship, Carolin was a clinical teaching fellow in Georgetown University Law Center’s Domestic Violence Clinic, where she gained substantial experience in representing survivors of domestic violence, supervising law students in their representation of clients, and designing and teaching clinic seminar classes. As part of the fellowship, she completed the Women’s Law and Public Policy Fellowship Program at Georgetown. Carolin speaks German (native) and French (proficient).
Updated July 2023
