Honors and Awards:

• Honored as the only female criminal defense attorney in Pennsylvania invited to join the "Top 100 Trial Lawyers" in 2012, where membership is obtained by special invitation from The National Trial Lawyers and extended only to those "Top 100" in every state who exemplify superior qualifications of leadership, reputation, influence, stature & profile as trial lawyers
• Recognized as a "Top Northeast Lawyer" in America for Criminal Defense by Avvo and featured in the November / December 2011 issue of Avvo's Arrive Magazine
• Honored and selected as a "2011 Global Awards Winner" and named "Pennsylvania Criminal Defense Attorney of the Year" by Corporate INTL Magazine. The Global Awards "merit leading firms in their chosen specialisms throughout the world" and "commemorate those who have shown excellence not only in expertise but in service and during a difficult global economic downturn"
• Honored by her peers and selected as a "Pennsylvania Super Lawyer" in 2011, 2009, and 2008 as well as a "Pennsylvania Rising Star Super Lawyer" in 2006 and 2005
• Highest professional rating (AV® Preeminent™ 5.0 out of 5 Peer Review Rated) by Martindale-Hubbell for 2012, 2011, 2010, 2009, 2008, 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004 and 2003
• Named as the "Pennsylvania Law Firm Of The Year in Criminal Law and White Collar Crime" in 2010 by Corporate INTL Magazine and is the only PA law firm selected in each category
• Law School Honors -- (a) Commencement Award (BNA Law Student Award); (b) American Jurisprudence Award (Criminal Trial Practice); (c) Edward F. Hennessey Scholar; Commencement Speaker to the Faculty
• Superb rating (10.0 out of 10) on Avvo.com for 2012, 2011, 2010 and 2009
• NiaLena's closing argument on behalf of her client, Frank Gambino, in the federal mob racketeering trial of United States v. Joseph Merlino was subsequently selected among nationwide submissions and spotlighted as the featured defense advocate by Center for Criminal Justice Advocacyin Houston and is also being used to this day as a teaching tool by professors nationwide
• NiaLena has been recognized among the most elite women in the legal industry through her inclusion in the Martindale-Hubbell® Bar Register of Preeminent Women Lawyers™ in the area of "Criminal Trial Practice"
• NiaLena's law firm is among only 5% of the law firms in the United States repeatedly recognized in the Martindale-Hubbell® Bar Register of Preeminent Lawyers™
• Recently profiled by Main Line Today in the 2009 "Top Lawyers" edition
• Graduated with honors (cum laude) from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania

Bar/Professional Activity:

• Member, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL)
• Member, Pennsylvania Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (PACDL)
• Member, Pennsylvania Bar Association
• Member, Criminal Justice Section, Philadelphia Bar Association
• Member, Federal Criminal Bar for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
• Massachusetts
• Pennsylvania
• U.S. District Court Eastern District of Pennsylvania
• U.S. Court of Appeals 3rd Circuit
• U.S. Supreme Court

Scholarly Lectures and Writings:

• Frequent guest speaker on white collar crime as well as ethics in Leadership programs of the Management Department at The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania (Examples of various issues discussed include the changing perception by the courts and society of white collar crime versus violent crime, ethical dilemmas, the motivation of money, defining oneself as a corporate executive, Sarbanes-Oxley Act, evidentiary issues, 5th Amendment privilege, and federal sentencing issues. Examples of various cases discussed include United States v. Michael Milken, Enron (United States v. Kenneth L. Lay and Jeffrey K. Skilling), United States v. Martha Stewart, United States v. Bernard L. Madoff, and United States v. Vincent J. Fumo).  NiaLena has consistently received "Excellent" ratings from the students, along with very positive feedback such as: (a) "She had an extremely interesting insight into law and business"; (b) "She was a great speaker and presenter as well"; and (c) "The ethics of white collar criminal defense are intriguing and she communicates this in such an effective way."
• Lecturer in CLE seminars at PBI Criminal Law Symposium
• Co-author with her former law partner, F. Emmett Fitzpatrick, an article entitled "Ineffective Assistance of Counsel", which was published in The Philadelphia Lawyer, The Forum, and The Richmond Journal of Law and the Public Interest

Verdicts and Settlements:

• Successfully represented a New York Arab American client in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania in a multi-defendant white collar federal indictment with voluminous electronic surveillance. Due to relentlessly aggressive and strategic advocacy over the course of one year as well as meticulous analysis of audio and video surveillance recorded by a confidential informant, charges of conspiracy to internationally traffic in counterfeit goods and conspiracy to commit passport fraud were eventually dismissed against the client. The young man is now a full-time college student on the honor roll and is also volunteering his talents with an international organization that builds schools in Africa. (Please visit NiaLena's profile on Avvo.com in order to read the full client review entitled "Second Chance" in which the client describes NiaLena as "not your typical attorney" but as someone who "will go well beyond her professional mandate and help you as a person" and who "will defend your rights and protect you when the prosecution attempts to exploit your weaknesses." The client further explains that "meeting NiaLena" was "the only positive thing that came from this bad experience" and shares his opinion that "believe me you want her on your side.")
• Successfully represented a medical doctor against various charges, including aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, which threatened his ability to maintain his license and practice medicine. In a race against the clock, the defense embarked upon a path of intensely aggressive and proactive pretrial representation and succeeded in having all charges withdrawn only four months after his arrest. The doctor is now continuing his promising career of being able to practice medicine and help patients in need. (Please visit NiaLena's profile on Avvo.com in order to read the full client review entitled "This lawyer saved my career and life" in which the client describes NiaLena as "responding to all my emails within hours" and "really taking charge in the courtroom" and also credits NiaLena for "saving my career as a doctor!")
• Successfully represented a client in two separate and unrelated multi-defendant indictments that received headline news and charged him as a lead defendant with multiple counts of conspiracy and federal drug trafficking charges in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania as well as multiple counts of conspiracy, corrupt organizations, and drug trafficking charges in the Court of Common Pleas and exposed him to potential mandatory and consecutive sentences of at least 10 years up to possible sentences of 15 years to life in each case. Following 3 1/2 years of the most intense, grueling, and relentless advocacy, during which time multiple winning arguments were developed and set forth on behalf of her client, the end result was that the client received only a 6-month period of incarceration in a federal facility followed by a 6-month term in a federal halfway house for both cases and, as a result, will be able to start his life anew. (Please visit NiaLena's profile on Avvo.com in order to read the full client review entitled "The Person Who Gave Me A New Life" in which the client describes NiaLena as "fighting the prosecution like a rabid pitbull," coupled with the fact that "she sees me as a person and not a criminal," being "undoubtedly one of her strongest weapons in the courtroom" that concluded "the long process of fighting for my life" with an "ending [that] mirrored that of a fairytale and not a tragedy.")
• Successfully represented a university student accused of rape and sexual assault. Through relentless and aggressive and proactive pre-indictment investigation and advocacy, succeeded in convincing law enforcement authorities that the sexual activity was consensual, that the client did not commit any crimes, and that he should not be charged. The young man has now returned to school to continue pursuing his studies and striving toward his future promising career. (Please visit NiaLena's profile on Avvo.com in order to read the full client review entitled "Best Lawyer Possible" in which the client explains that "during the first weeks of having been squeezed by the long arm of the law, NiaLena kept me updated about my case by the hour daily" and "left no stone unturned.")
• Successfully represented a client in a high-profile case that received nationwide media exposure, wherein the client was charged federally with using the U.S. mail to send threatening communications to the head coach of an NFL team.  Following an aggressive exploration of “diminished capacity,” succeeded in winning a variance from the prison term recommended by the federal sentencing guidelines and obtaining a probationary sentence for the client.
• Successfully represented a client accused of being the shooter in a first degree murder case in which the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania sought the death penalty.  Following intensely aggressive advocacy in an effort to suppress two alleged confessions, succeeded in defeating the charge of first degree murder.  The client, who had previously been raised in a ghetto environment and had dropped out of school, has since learned to read and write, passed his GED exam, and was accepted to a local university where he has been on the Dean’s List every semester.
• Successfully represented a client in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania in two federal criminal drug trafficking and firearms trials (The defendant was first acquitted of multiple counts alleging the possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense and the possession of firearms by a convicted felon. After 8 months of arguments, NiaLena then succeeded in reversing the drug distribution counts for which the defendant had been convicted, and subsequently won a new trial for her client).
• Succeeded in reversing a 22-year-old first degree murder conviction following three years of evidentiary hearings in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas and winning a new trial for the defendant who had been serving a life sentence without parole.
• Successfully represented a client in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas in a trial involving alleged child sexual assaults upon two minor male complainants (At trial, the defendant was acquitted of multiple sex charges, including involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, sexual assault, statutory sexual assault, and sexual abuse of children).
• Successfully represented a fellow attorney in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania during a federal criminal Grand Jury investigation involving allegations of possession of child pornography that had allegedly been acquired through the Internet (All charges were eventually dropped against the client, and all computer equipment that had been seized by the government was later returned to him).
• Successfully represented a client charged with homosexual sex offenses in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas (Following aggressive advocacy on behalf of her client, all charges were dropped against him on the morning of trial).
• Successfully represented a client in a capital homicide trial which lasted one month in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas (Despite a lifelong criminal history which involved 30 violent felony convictions, and the fact that the defendant had allegedly killed a government witness in order to prevent that individual from testifying against him, the defendant did not receive the death penalty).
• Successfully represented a client in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania in two federal criminal drug trafficking and firearms trials (In the first instance, the jury hung and a mistrial was declared. At the retrial, the defendant was acquitted of multiple counts involving crack cocaine distribution as well as multiple counts alleging the possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense and the possession of firearms by a convicted felon).
• Successfully represented a client against methamphetamine distribution charges (The case had been described in the press as the "largest meth bust ever in the city of Philadelphia". Following aggressive pretrial representation over the course of almost 1 1/2 years, all charges against the client were dismissed on the morning of trial).
• Significant victory in the highly publicized federal organized crime case entitled, "United States v. Joseph Merlino, et al." (At the conclusion of a federal trial in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania which lasted almost five months, the jury acquitted her client, Frank Gambino, of attempted murder and racketeering charges. The Philadelphia Daily News described NiaLena as an "extremely thorough" and "tireless advocate [who] allows no legal issue to escape her attention" as well as the "youngest and lone female attorney" who is "a thorough advocate with courtroom poise beyond her years," Mob On Trial: For The Defense ... The Greatest Lawyers On The East Coast).

Representative Clients:

• NiaLena's federal criminal clients vary and have ranged from a Washington D.C. senior executive of a Fortune 500 financial company, to medical doctors from various states in the U.S., to a powerful Senator, to the alleged kingpins of major drug trafficking organization, to an alleged made member of La Cosa Nostra (LCN), to Arab Americans and Russian-Ukranian Americans and other ethnic backgrounds, to the Chairman and CEO of an out-of-state mortgage company, to fellow lawyers, to the principal of a nationwide advertising agency, to an Olympic boxing hopeful, to a world-touring musician, to university students, and to many other fellow citizens of our community.  Please visit NiaLena's profile on Avvo.com to read various reviews posted by former clients

Other Outstanding Achievements:

• Closing argument on behalf of Frank Gambino in four-month organized crime racketeering federal criminal trial of United States v. Joseph Merlino was subsequently selected among nationwide submissions and spotlighted as featured defense advocate by Center for Criminal Justice Advocacy in Houston and is also being used to this day (as recently as 2011) as a teaching tool by professors nationwide.  To read excerpts from the closing argument, please visit http://juryargument.homestead.com/GuestContribution1.html.

Video:

• News coverage from the the federal mob RICO trial of United States v. Joseph Merlino et al. as well as from the political corruption trial of United States v. Vincent Fumo. Video clips can be viewed at http://www.nialenacaravasos.com/linksnewsvideos.html.
• "AV Preeminent Lawyer" rating by Martindale-Hubbell. Video clip can be viewed at http://www.nialenacaravasos.com/linksnewsvideos.html.

Educational Background:

• The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, B.S. in Economics , May (Cum Laude), Dual Major in Multinational Management and Marketing, 1988