ABSTRACT
Edward Bennett Williams was one of the best-known criminal defense attorneys during the second half of the twentieth century. After law school, Williams worked at a large Washington law firm, but he found the practice there to be dull. He was more interested in the high-paced world of criminal law, so he decided to establish his own practice. Williams made a reputation for himself as a well- respected litigator, and his list of clients steadily grew. Williams was able to defuse the highly contentious atmosphere of the hearings by his mere presence; significantly, he also kept Costello from being deported. His greatest success, however, came in his defense of Jimmy Hoffa in front of a congressional committee that charged him with bribery. Williams tangled daily with the committee's legal counsel, a young Robert Kennedy. By the mid-1970s, Williams had become an elder statesman of the legal community.
