Richard M. Steingard has been practicing criminal defense for his entire career, now over 40 years. Mr. Steingard has tried over sixty cases to a jury, argued over twenty cases before the U.S. Court of Appeals in numerous jurisdictions, and appeared pro hac vice in matters throughout the United States.
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He represents individuals and corporations before regulatory agencies and state and federal courts.
Mr. Steingard began his career as an Orange County and Los Angeles County Public Defender, and later served as a Federal Public Defender. He then practiced federal criminal defense with boutique firms in Connecticut and New York before returning to Los Angeles where he had his own law firm for over fifteen years. In 2007, Mr. Steingard was asked to head the White Collar and Civil Fraud Defense Practice Group at the Los Angeles flagship office of Sheppard Mullin Richter and Hampton LLP, an international law firm with over 600 attorneys.
In 2010, Mr. Steingard left Sheppard Mullin to partner with his former law school professor, Michael J. Lightfoot. Mr. Lightfoot was long recognized as one of the “deans” of the California criminal defense community. They started their own firm, Lightfoot & Steingard, and were soon joined by another titan of the criminal defense bar, Stephen B. Sadowsky, to form Lightfoot, Steingard & Sadowsky. LSS focused exclusively on criminal and civil rights matters, maintaining Mr. Steingard’s singular interest and commitment to these areas of law.
With Messrs. Lightfoot and Sadowsky’s retirements in 2017, Mr. Steingard re-established his solo practice as the Law Offices of Richard M. Steingard. Once again, his focus is on criminal defense, particularly in federal courts.
In 2018, Mr. Steingard was named a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers. The ACTL is an invitation only fellowship of trial lawyers from the United States and Canada. ACTL is recognized as the preeminent organization of trial lawyers in North America, dedicated to maintaining and improving the standards of trial practice, professionalism, ethics, and the administration of justice. Mr. Steingard was asked to sit on ACTL’s “Problems in the Administration of Justice (U.S.)” Committee, where he has served for several years. He has also served on the Board of Directors of the Los Angeles and California criminal law organizations, and has lectured on a wide variety of criminal law topics, including the government’s use of electronic surveillance and wiretaps.
EDUCATION
University of California, Los Angeles, B.A., 1979
Loyola Law School, Los Angeles, J.D., 1982
BAR ADMISSIONS
California, 1982
New York, 1987
Connecticut, 1986 (provisionally)
United States Court of Appeals – Second, Fourth, Sixth and Ninth Circuits
United States District Courts – Central, Southern, Eastern, and Northern Districts of California
United States District Courts – Eastern and Southern Districts of New York
AFFILIATIONS
- Former Co-Chair, Lawyer Representative to the United States District Court for Central District of California
- Ex Officio Member, Lawyer Representatives Coordinating Committee to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
- Former Board Member, California Attorneys for Criminal Justice
- Former Board Member, Los Angeles Criminal Courts Bar Association
- Member, National Association of Criminal Defense Attorneys
- Member, ABA White Collar Criminal Justice Section
- Fellow, American College of Trial Lawyers
SAMPLING OF PRESENTATIONS
- 2010: Lecturer, U.S. Department of Justice, Wiretap Suppression Law
- 2009: Lecturer, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Advanced Criminal Law Seminar, Innovative Trial Techniques
- 2008: Moderator, Panel Discussion of Federal Sentencing and Prison, United States District Court Judges Conference