American lawyer
Kathleen Zellner
is an American attorney who has worked extensively in wrongful conviction advocacy. Notable clients Zellner has represented include
Steven Avery
(who was the subject of the 2015 and 2018
Netflix
series
Making a Murderer
), Kevin Fox (who was falsely accused of
murdering his daughter
),
Ryan W. Ferguson
,
Larry Eyler
, and 19 exonerees who are listed in the
National Registry of Exonerations
.
Early life and education
[
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]
Kathleen Zellner was born in
Midland, Texas
, the second of seven children.
[1]
[2]
Her father Owen Thomas was a geologist, and her mother Winifred was a chemist who became a nurse.
[3]
[4]
[2]
[5]
When she was nine years old, she and her family moved to
Bartlesville, Oklahoma
.
[6]
[7]
[8]
She attended
Marquette University
in Wisconsin, and then the
University of Missouri
, before graduating with a B.A. from
Concordia University
in
Montreal
, Canada.
[9]
[2]
[10]
She received her
Juris Doctor
from the
Northern Illinois University College of Law
in 1981, where she was Editor-in-Chief of the
Law Review
, and clerked for
2nd District Illinois Appellate Court
justice
George W. Lindberg
.
[11]
[8]
Career
[
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]
She opened her firm, Kathleen T. Zellner & Associates in
Downers Grove
,
Illinois
, in 1991. Her firm handles wrongful conviction cases,
civil rights
violations,
medical malpractice
, and
prisoner abuse
cases.
[2]
Zellner had achieved 19 exonerations as of October 2018, and now 20 exonerations for clients.
[10]
[12]
[13]
Notable clients Zellner has represented include
Steven Avery
(who was the subject of the 2015 and 2018
Netflix
series
Making a Murderer
), Kevin Fox (who was falsely accused of murdering his three-year-old daughter), and 19 exonerees who are listed in the National Registry of Exonerations.
Newsweek
reported that a lawyer said that facing her at trial was "worse than my divorce."
[12]
As of March 2016, she had won almost $90 million from wrongful conviction and medical malpractice lawsuits.
[12]
In 2000,
The National Law Journal
named Zellner a top ten trial lawyer in the United States for a suicide malpractice verdict of $13 million.
[14]
She also won a $15.5 million verdict for the violation of Kevin Fox's civil rights in 2007, an $11 million verdict for
Ryan W. Ferguson
in Missouri who had served 10 years in jail, and a $9 million civil rights verdict for Ray Spencer in Washington in 2014.
[14]
[15]
In 2012, she won the
American Bar Association
"Pursuit of Justice" Award.
[9]
In 2022, Zellner served as a consultant to
Johnny Depp
on the
Depp vs Heard
defamation trial.
[16]
Personal life
[
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]
Her husband Robert Zellner is a commodities and bond trader with a doctorate in economics. They have a daughter, Anne, who is also an attorney.
[15]
Filmography
[
edit
]
Television
[
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]
References
[
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]
- ^
"Hotshot Lawyer; Meet Making a Murder's Kathleen Zellner,"
The Daily Telegraph
, November 13, 2018.
- ^
a
b
c
d
Minutaglio, Rose (October 31, 2018).
"Who Is Steven Avery's Attorney Kathleen Zellner?"
.
Esquire
. Retrieved
March 13,
2020
.
- ^
Chris Harvey (November 18, 2018).
"'If you're rich, you can get away with murder' - Making a Murderer lawyer Kathleen Zellner,"
Independent
.
- ^
Julie-Anne Barnes (November 25, 2018).
"Making a Murderer lawyer Kathleen Zellner reveals incredible links to Scotland,"
Daily Record
.
- ^
McGreal, Chris (October 28, 2018).
"Kathleen Zellner: the Making a Murderer lawyer you want on your side"
.
The Guardian
. Retrieved
March 13,
2020
.
- ^
"Attorney keeps winning freedom for wrongfully convicted; Millionaire medical malpractice lawyer has time, money to defend clients"
. nwitimes.com. December 9, 2001
. Retrieved
March 14,
2020
.
- ^
Alex Rodriguez (December 9, 2001).
"Lawyer in Roscetti case offers forgotten a lifeline,"
Chicago Tribune
.
- ^
a
b
Stephanie Francis Cahill (March 2002).
"Attorney for the Damned"
.
ABA Journal
. Retrieved
March 14,
2020
.
- ^
a
b
"Kathleen T. Zellner,"
Martindale.
- ^
a
b
Tracy Swartz (October 18, 2018).
"5 things about Chicago-area lawyer Kathleen Zellner as she makes her 'Making a Murderer' debut"
,
Chicago Tribune
.
- ^
John Flynn Rooney (April 22, 2014).
"Zellner a champion of exonerations"
.
Chicago Law Bulletin
. Retrieved
March 13,
2020
.
- ^
a
b
c
Saul, Josh (March 29, 2016).
"Steve Avery's New Attorney Is Going Hard After the Cops She Says Framed Him"
.
Newsweek
. Retrieved
March 13,
2020
.
- ^
"Browse the National Registry of Exonerations"
.
Law.umich.edu
.
- ^
a
b
"Top Rated Downers Grove, IL Civil Rights Attorney | Kathleen Zellner | Super Lawyers"
. Profiles.superlawyers.com
. Retrieved
March 14,
2020
.
- ^
a
b
Emma Ledger.
"Why Making a Murderer’s Kathleen Zellner is going to be your next TV obsession,"
Stylist
.
- ^
"EXCLUSIVE: Johnny Depp Team's Legal Consultant, of 'Making a Murderer' Fame, Reacts to Verdict"
.
YouTube
.
External links
[
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]