Ryan McCartney has practiced as a criminal defense attorney since graduating from Harvard Law School in 2018. She brings her passion for standing with clients as they navigate the most difficult moments of their lives to Bozorgi Law, PLLC.

Ryan began her career as an assistant public defender at the Hillsborough County Public Defender’s Office and later joined the Miami Dade Public Defender’s Office in January 2021. As an assistant public defender Ryan was responsible for a wide variety of cases ranging from misdemeanors to homicides and tried more than twenty (20) cases to verdict. She also handled post-conviction matters; most notably, she successfully secured the release of a Miller-Graham re-sentencing recipient at his 25-year review pursuant to Section 921.1402(2)(b) of the Florida Statutes.

Ryan’s work was recognized by the Miami Chapter of the Florida Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (FACDL) in 2022 when she was awarded the Gregg Wenzel Outstanding Young Lawyer’s Award. Ryan was also one of four lawyers selected to travel to the country of Georgia on temporary deployment with the United States Department of State as part of an ongoing project to strengthen the Georgian criminal defense bar and support the country’s transition to a jury system. While in Georgia, she collaborated with other facilitators on intensive trial skills trainings for attorneys in Tbilisi and Batumi.

While attending Harvard Law School, Ryan served as a student attorney at the Veterans Law and Disability Benefits Clinic helping low-income veterans appeal the improper denial of benefits. Her work led to a favorable ruling in the Massachusetts Superior Court for three named plaintiffs and a proposed class of approximately 4,000 Massachusetts combat veterans that had been previously denied benefits based on an agency interpretation the court described as “erroneous as a matter of law, arbitrary and capricious.”

EDUCATION

• B.A., Summa Cum Laude, Simmons University (2015)

• J.D., Harvard Law School (2018)

ADMISSIONS

• Florida

• U.S. District Court, Southern District of Florida

• Mentee, Criminal Justice Act (CJA), Southern District of Florida

• Private Court Appointed Counsel (PCAC), Eleventh Judicial Circuit of Florida

ASSOCIATIONS

• Florida Bar, Criminal Law Section

• American Bar Association (ABA), Criminal Justice Section

• Women’s White Collar Defense Association (WWCDA), Member

• National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL), Member

• Florida Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (FACDL), Member