Nancy Kardon is the founder of Kardon Law, Inc, a Criminal Defense practice. After 4 years as an associate at Paul Hastings Nancy moved to the U.S. Attorney’s Office and in July 2006 and established herself as a defense law force by taking on a high profile child molestation case in Los Angeles County. Nancy’s defense strategies resulted in two hung juries and, ultimately, a dismissal of all charges against her client. She quickly solidified herself as one of California’s premier defense attorneys.

Nancy Kardon specializes in Criminal Domestic Violence cases of which she is uniquely qualified. During her 11 years as a Federal Prosecutor she spent 6 of those years coordinating all prosecutions under the Violence Against Women Act. This included lecturing to law enforcement and to local, State and Federal prosecuting agencies. She also led the Sexual Assault Felony Enforcement (SAFE) Team, which prosecutes all child exploitation crimes. These experiences help her enormously to better serve her clients as a Criminal Defense Attorney because not only does she understands how the prosecutors think but she is a trusted and highly respected women in this field.

She serves as an Advisor for the Executive Committee of the State Bar of California, Criminal Law Section and is a member of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, the California Attorneys for Criminal Justice, the Los Angeles County Bar Association and the South Bay Bar Association. She is also an attorney for the Federal Indigent Defense Panel for the Central District of California. As a member of the Juvenile Courts Task Force Committee of the Los Angeles County Bar, Nancy created the Bar’s acclaimed mentorship program for emancipating foster youth.

Since Nancy founded Kardon Law, Inc.:

• 100% of her misdemeanor and felony cases have resulted in charge reductions
• 100% of her cases have resulted in sentence reductions
• 100% of her trial cases resulted in no conviction, with one federal case resulting in acquittal
• 98% of her cases have resulted in sentences without jail time

Her most recent high-profile victory came in August 2008, through her representation of a client charged with drug-trafficking and firearm possession as part of a complex wiretap investigation. She defied all odds by proving the innocence of her client charged who, if convicted, would have served a mandatory minimum 15-year prison sentence and possibly a life sentence. With her client in custody for two years, Nancy gathered the evidence and prepared a defense worthy of an acquittal. After a lengthy trial, Nancy’s client was acquitted, freed from custody and reunited with his wife, mother and children.

As A Federal Prosecutor

At the U.S. Attorneys Office, Nancy prosecuted a broad range of offenses including fraud, computer crimes, violent crimes (such as murder-for-hire, threats-to-kill, arson and kidnapping), large-scale drug trafficking, child exploitation, international contraband and human smuggling and immigration. Her work on a landmark federal case earned her a U.S. Attorney General’s Award for Excellence in Prosecution nomination.

As a federal prosecutor, Nancy received over a dozen commendations, certificates of appreciation and other service awards relative to her outstanding performance as a prosecutor, including one from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) which acknowledged that her actions “were in the highest traditions of the Department of Justice,” and one from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms which recognized her ”dedication and professionalism to the undercover investigation.”

EDUCATION

Nancy received her undergraduate degree at the University of Pennsylvania where she was a member of the University’s varsity lacrosse team. During her sophomore year at Penn, Nancy interned with the Philadelphia District Attorney’s office, and worked directly with the District Attorney (Edward G. Rendell – the current Governor of Pennsylvania), researching and examining the overcrowding of Pennsylvania prisons. With an ignited interest in criminology, she took as many classes as possible on the subject.

After graduating with honors and a double degree in Classical Studies (Latin and Greek) and Italian, Nancy headed west to study law at UCLA. After her first year in law school, she worked as a summer clerk for the prestigious Los Angeles firm Hughes, Hubbard and Reed. During her second year, she worked as a clerk for United States District Court Judge William Matthew Byrne, Jr., and the summer after her second year led to an internship at the office of Paul Hastings, Janofsky and Walker – one of the premier employment discrimination law firms in the nation. This resulted in Nancy’s permanent hire at the high-profile firm in the labor and employment law department.