Leonard Goodman

​Leonard Goodman is a Chicago criminal defense lawyer, representing persons charged with serious crimes in state and federal courts, at trial and on appeal. Since graduating Northwestern University School of Law, Goodman has earned a reputation for taking on and winning the most difficult cases. He represents both high-profile and indigent defendants with equal vigor, and has the distinction of having won criminal cases at every level of state and federal courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court and Illinois Supreme Court. He has won awards for his work on behalf of the wrongfully convicted, including an Afghani man detained twelve years at Guantanamo Bay without charges before his release in December 2014.

He is an adjunct professor at DePaul University College of Law, where he teaches federal criminal law, and is a member of the Advisory Board of the Center on Wrongful Convictions at Northwestern University College of Law. Goodman is also a supporter of independent journalism. He founded the Leonard C. Goodman Institute for Investigative Reporting, which provides editorial and financial support to independent journalists pursuing in-depth investigative projects. He also helped save the Chicago Sun Times and the Chicago Reader from bankruptcy and is a regular contributor to the Reader where he writes about the law and politics.
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