Faculty Directory

Patricia Garin

Bio

Patricia Garin is co-director of the law school’s Prisoners’ Rights Clinic and of counsel at Shapiro & Teitelbaum. She is a national leader in complex criminal defense and civil rights litigation, with particular expertise in parole and sentencing issues and in representing individuals with mental disabilities in both civil and criminal matters. Professor Garin is especially known for her in-depth investigations and her dogged efforts to obtain favorable results for her clients. She has negotiated advantageous settlements and plea agreements through a solid mastery of the facts and law and an ability to know the best way to approach opposing counsel and prosecutors. She has served as an adjunct professor and co-director of the Prisoners’ Rights Clinic since 1994, supervising and mentoring students who represent inmates at Parole Board hearings and prison disciplinary hearings.

Professor Garin is the president of the board of directors of Prisoners Legal Services. She was a member of the Boston Bar Association Task Force on Parole and Community Reintegration and the legislatively created Special Commission on Criminal Justice. In May of 2000, Ms. Garin received the prestigious Thurgood Marshall Award from the Committee for Public Counsel Services for her outstanding and extensive representation of indigent persons in both civil and criminal cases. In 2003, she was honored by the Massachusetts chapter of the National Lawyers Guild for her outstanding achievements in achieving political and social justice, and in 2016, the Massachusetts Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers presented her with the President’s Award in recognition of her exceptional dedication and commitment to the pursuit of justice. She is also a member of  the Harvard Roundtable on Racial Disparities in the Massachusetts Criminal System.