News, Pleadings
David Nathanson
Public Trial Amicus Brief

On March 6, 2017, Attorney Wood and a team of attorneys from Ropes & Gray filed a brief in the Supreme Court on behalf of the Massachusetts Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers in Weaver v. Massachusetts, No. 16-240. They argue that the Court should not shy away from vindicating the treasured right to a public trial. The government's argument that vindicating the right to a public trial would "open up the floodgates" is both factually incorrect and diverts attention from the real issue: whether our Constitution entitles everyone to a public trial. Read the brief here.

Emerging Defender

Attorney Ramos Receives Emerging Defender Award

Attorney Ramos Receives Emerging Defender Award

On May 23, 2023, Wood & Nathanson Senior Associate, Attorney Melissa Ramos received the Emerging Defender Award from the Committee for Public Counsel Services. The award honors defense attorneys “committed to indigent defense who have gone above and beyond the call of duty, excelled when facing challenging situations, and shown they are highly motivated to continuously learn and improve.” Recipients must “have demonstrated a commitment to the CPCS core values of courage, accountability, respect, and excellence.” We have known these things to be true about Attorney Ramos since she joined us in 2019, but we are extremely pleased that colleagues within the profession agree with us. We confess to cheering a little more loudly than we were probably expected to during the ceremony.