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Biography

Paul Thomas, ESQ is a seasoned criminal trial attorney with extensive experience in state and federal courts where he has dedicated his career to defending clients in need of zealous, thoughtful and sensitive representation and advice. As a young lawyer he was privileged to work for (and later become a partner of) Jacob D. Zeldes, widely regarded for decades as the “dean of the Connecticut defense bar.” For the past 18 years, he served as an Assistant Federal Defender representing clients across the state.

Paul is a graduate of Wesleyan University and the University of Connecticut School of Law. He was privileged to serve as law clerk to the U.S. District Judge Ellen Bree Burns (1981-83), and then to work with Zeldes, Needle & Cooper (1983-97), which he left to follow his passion for criminal defense work with the Office of the Federal Defender.

and mail fraud, larceny and embezzlement, corruption, civil rights violations by public officials, RICO, arson, drugs and firearms, pornography and sex crimes. Prior to his appointment as an Assistant Federal Defender, Paul successfully defended a corporation charged with negligent homicide.

Paul is also an experienced civil trial attorney and has obtained substantial jury verdicts for persons whose rights had been violated by either the police or by their employers. In 2016, Attorney Thomas represented a plaintiff in a race discrimination case that resulted in a jury verdict against the defendant employer and other employees of over $1.5 million, one of the largest jury awards that year in Connecticut.

Paul has been honored with the “Champion of Liberty Award” by the Connecticut Criminal Defense Lawyers Association and is a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers.

BACKGROUND
Paul is a graduate of Wesleyan University and the University of Connecticut School of Law. He was privileged to serve as law clerk to the U.S. District Judge Ellen Bree Burns (1981-83), and then to work with Zeldes, Needle & Cooper (1983-97), which he left to follow his passion for criminal defense work with the Office of the Federal Defender.

Paul is a member of the faculty at the Yale School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, where he has been a lecturer since 1996 in the Law & Psychiatry Program. Before leaving private practice, he served as an attorney trial referee in Superior Court and during his tenure as a public defender he served on the Grievance and Magistrate Selection Committees.

LEGAL EXPERIENCE
Office of the Federal Defender
Zeldes, Needle & Cooper PC, Bridgeport, Connecticut Partner
United States District Court, District of Connecticut, Law Clerk to the Honorable Ellen Bree

ADMISSIONS
State of Connecticut
United States District Court, District of Connecticut
United States District Court, Southern District of New York
United States District Court, Eastern District of New York
Second Circuit Court of Appeals

ASSOCIATIONS:
American College of Trial Lawyers
Connecticut Bar Association
CT Criminal Defense Lawyers Association

RECOGNITION
Champion of Liberty Award, Connecticut Criminal Defense Lawyers Association

TEACHING
Faculty, Yale School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry; Lecturer in Law and Psychiatry

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Areas of Law and Practice

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Jurisdictions

• Connecticut

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Employment History

• Connecticut Criminal Defense Lawyer | Duffy Law, LLC

  2015 -

  New Haven Criminal Defense Attorney Felice Duffy and her team zealously use every resource and explore every option to defend your rights and your reputation. They fight with tenacity, commitment, creativity and a deep understanding of the judicial process to get every one of their clients the very best possible outcome.
  
  As a seasoned criminal trial lawyer with a background in competitive athletics, Felice Duffy combines the work ethic, strategy and skill necessary to successfully defend your rights.
  
  Call our office today to learn how our team can help you with:
  
  Federal criminal defense – Defending against serious allegations on the federal level involving white collar fraud, drugs, weapons, and other charges
  
  State criminal defense – Handling a wide range of state-level cases from fraud to serious sex offenses and violent crimes
  
  College conduct code defense – Protecting college students accused of violating their school's conduct code against serious charges such as sexual assault, hazing and drug distribution
  
  Title IX actions – Standing up for the rights of students and employees at educational institutions who have suffered unlawful gender discrimination, harassment, or retaliation.
  
  OUR COMBINED CAPABILITY
  With one of us having served as a federal prosecutor, one of us as a federal defender, and the other as a criminal defense investigator-turned defense attorney, we bring to every client’s case a 360-degree, highly disciplined process of analysis, strategy development, and tactical execution.
  
  Our collective experience includes having handled many hundreds of criminal matters and thousands of court proceedings, ranging from detention hearings to plea proceedings and trials at all levels of complexity, all of which have made us familiar with many of the law enforcement personnel, prosecutors, judges, courthouse personnel, and unique procedures in each judicial venue.
  
  OUR PARTNERSHIP OF VALUES
  Felice joined forces with Paul and Justin after serving on opposite sides of multiple cases over the course of a decade. We recognized in each other many of the same values, ranging from an intense work ethic to an unquenchable passion for fairness and justice. We all take with the utmost seriousness the position that every single citizen is entitled to legal representation that diligently forces the government to prove its charges by following the law in every way and at every step of the process no matter how seemingly insignificant. We believe that our democratic society requires the government to be held accountable for its actions, especially when an individual’s liberty is at stake.
  
  OUR PHILOSOPHY OF CASE PREPARATION
  We approach each defense we undertake, whether the charge is illegal gun possession, multi-million-dollar white collar fraud, or college campus sexual assault with the assumption that we may be going all the way to trial to defend our clients. We review and develop evidence from that perspective to inform every decision along the way. In keeping with our approach to rigorous preparation, we use only the most highly respected and experienced investigators and experts to neutralize claims against our clients.
  
  We know firsthand how law enforcement, from local police departments to federal investigative agencies, typically work their cases, including the tactics used by some to pressure defendants to cooperate and/or take plea deals. We understand the politics and processes of the college disciplinary process. We know when the nuances of a case call for moving quickly or being patient. And we also understand how important it is to know and apply the subtle technicalities of each relevant statute to guide the actions we take as the case unfolds.
  
  OUR COMMITMENT TO CLIENT COMMUNICATION
  We know how difficult it is to be under investigation or facing charges and we communicate with our clients at every step of the process. We help them fully understand the strengths and weaknesses of their case, and we explain both the direct and collateral consequences (both short-term and long-term) of each decision and action we take as a team, together, in order to minimize their uncertainty and stress, and to choose options that are in their best interest.

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Education

• JD | University of Connecticut School of Law

  1981 - 1983

  Law

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Attorney Rating and Feedback

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Publications and Presentations

No Publications

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