Overview
Nina Spizer is a distinguished criminal defense attorney with a career spanning almost 25 years. Nina previously served as the Chief of the Trial Unit of the Federal Community Defender for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, where she oversaw complex litigation with national impact. Her role involved supervising every criminal case assigned to the Federal Community Defender, granting her an unparalleled understanding of the charging practices of the United States Attorney’s Office and the nuances of the Federal judiciary. While holding this role she also carried a varied case load in federal court and represented clients in some of the most high profile cases in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. With extensive experience in crisis management, public relations and high profile cases, Nina is known for handling complex cases for clients with varying needs, including high publicity public relations and beyond. She also has extensive experience in regulatory violations and government investigations.
Prior to her federal work, Nina practiced in in the Court of Common Pleas trying more than 30 jury cases to verdict in only criminal matters. She has successfully handled a wide range of cases, from misdemeanors and violent offenses to complex white-collar cases, complex fraud investigations, tax evasion, wire and mail fraud, embezzlement, money laundering, SEC violations, environmental offenses, cybercrimes, terrorism offenses, immigration violations, drug trafficking, gun trafficking, public corruption, sexual offenses and more. Her experience spans from preliminary investigations and civil inquiries prior to indictment, to pre-trial motions, trials, and sentencing. Notably, Nina holds extensive experience in cooperation and sentencing mitigation and has an impressive understanding of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines. She is known for handling high profile cases where crisis management and complex public relations issues are paramount. She also focuses her practice on regulatory investigation and corporate compliance.
Beyond her work as a litigator, Nina has been a Clinical Professor at the Beasley School of Law of Temple University and has taught extensively in the areas of evidence, trial advocacy, forensics, pre-trial motions, sentencing and more. She served as the Federal Defender liaison to the Criminal Justice Panel, creating and implementing training programs for the federal court appointed panel for the last ten years. She is a member the American Bar Association, The Philadelphia Bar Association, and the Federal Criminal Law Committee for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
Professional & Community Activities
- American Bar Association
- Philadelphia Bar Association
- Federal Criminal Law Committee
- President, Wonderspring Early Education