Amy is an attorney in the firm’s Litigation Practice Group. Amy practices primarily in federal and state criminal defense, complex civil litigation, juvenile and education matters, healthcare matters, and civil rights litigation, including election law matters. She is also Co-Chair of the firm’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee.
Amy has achieved positive outcomes for her clients in cases spanning the spectrum of her practice.
In a federal criminal case, Amy convinced the First Circuit Court of Appeals to overturn a guilty verdict for her client on the basis that the Government had failed to prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt. By vigorously investigating each case, Amy has frequently convinced prosecutors not to charge clients under investigation, to dismiss charges prior to trial based on legal or factual defenses she identified and brought to the prosecutor’s attention, or to significantly reduce the charges facing her clients in juvenile matters, drug cases, stalking cases, sex crimes cases, theft and fraud cases, and assault cases.
Amy also represents businesses and individuals involved in regulatory investigations and commercial disputes. She conducts internal investigations and has assisted her clients in navigating through federal and state regulatory investigations without facing civil or criminal charges.
Amy has successfully negotiated on behalf of her clients the settlement of numerous coordinated cases pending in state and federal courts across the country, including many cases consolidated in a nationwide multidistrict litigation.
Additionally, Amy represents students and other actors in Title IX and other education matters and works to vindicate clients’ due process and voting rights, including working on a team that preliminarily enjoined Senate Bill 3, a law that amended the New Hampshire voter registration process, as unconstitutional.
Amy joined Shaheen & Gordon’s Concord office after serving as a judicial clerk to the Honorable Steven J. McAuliffe of the United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire.
Before settling in New Hampshire, Amy practiced in New York where she was a litigation associate at Latham & Watkins LLP and McGuireWoods LLP. Her practice there focused on white collar criminal defense, government and regulatory investigations, complex commercial and securities litigation, employment litigation, and civil rights litigation.
Before entering private practice, Amy served as a judicial clerk to the Honorable Carolyn Dineen King of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, the Honorable John E. Sprizzo of the United Stated District Court for the Southern District of New York , and the Honorable Kevin Thomas Duffy of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.
Prior to law school, Amy served as Department Chair and taught middle school English in Long Beach, California. Before that, she was the public relations director for the Long Beach Ice Dogs of the International Hockey League.
Amy earned her B.A. in English from Columbia College of Columbia University and graduated first in her class, summa cum laude, from Loyola Law School, Los Angeles.
Amy currently serves as the Vice Chair of the Federal Practice Section of the New Hampshire Bar Association.
Admissions
- Member of the Bar – New Hampshire
- Member of the Bar – Massachusetts
- Member of the Bar – New York
- Member of the Bar – California
- United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire
- United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
- United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
- United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York
- United States District Court for the Western District of Texas
Education and Career
- B.A., Columbia College of Columbia University, 1999
- J.D., Loyola Law School, Los Angeles, summa cum laude; Order of the Coif; William T. Aggeler Award recipient; Chief Symposium Editor, Loyola of Los Angeles Law Review, 2007
- Judicial Clerk, Honorable Carolyn Dineen King of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
- Judicial Clerk, Honorable John E. Sprizzo of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
- Judicial Clerk, Honorable Kevin Thomas Duffy of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
- Associate Attorney, Latham & Watkins LLP
- Associate Attorney, McGuireWoods LLP
- Judicial Clerk, Honorable Steven J. McAuliffe of the United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire
- Associate Attorney, Shaheen & Gordon, P.A.
- Partner, Shaheen & Gordon, P.A.
- Co-Chair of the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee
Professional and Community Involvement
- New Hampshire Bar Association, Chair of the Federal Practice Section
- New Hampshire Women’s Bar Association
- Criminal Defense Lawyers of New Hampshire
- New York State Bar Association
- California Bar Association
- The Bar Association of The Fifth Federal Circuit
- Massachusetts Board of Bar Overseers
- World Academy PTO
Publications
- Once More into the Breach Dear Friends: The Case for Congressional Revision of the Mass Action Provisions in the Class Action Fairness Act of 2005, 39 LOY. L.A. L. REV. 1067–1102 (2007).
- Authored four chapters of The Ultimate Bad Boys 9, Stan Fischler,The Ultimate Bad Boys 9, 70–76, 130–135, 151–157, 158–163 (Warwick Publishing 1999)
Recognition and Honors
- William T. Aggeler Award, Loyola Law School Los Angeles, graduated first in class
Representative Cases
Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Each case is different and case results referred to in this website are not intended to be, nor should they be understood as, a representation that equivalent results will be achieved in any given case.
- United States v. Pothier, 919 F.3d 143 (1st Cir. 2019) – First Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the jury's guilty verdict on the basis that the government failed to present sufficient evidence from which a reasonable jury could find the client guilty beyond a reasonable doubt
- National Counsel in Nationwide MDL – Serving as national counsel for an individual named in cases across the country arising out of the marketing and sale of opioids; tasks include advising the client in media and professional matters, coordinating discovery, locating retaining, and coordinating local counsel, and drafting agreements and pleadings.
- Felony Possession of a Controlled Substance – Merrimack County - secured conditional dismissal pending successful completion of a drug diversion program at which time the state will drop the charges despite a previous felony drug conviction.
- Secured a non-prosecution agreement for a life insurance finance company – served as the lead associate in a fast-moving internal investigation of a life insurance premium finance company that was under investigation by the U.S. Attorney’s office for the District of New Hampshire; conducted extensive witness interviews and supervised the review of over 3 terabytes of data; helped to negotiate a non-prosecution agreement for the client.
- Obtained Non-Prosecution Agreement for Small Business Owner - successfully defended small business owner against state fraud charges involving federal benefits
- No Criminal Charges Against Condo Board Member - successfully defended a condominium board member and reached a civil settlement with the New Hampshire Department of Justice. After an extensive investigation, the state brought no criminal charges.
- Dismissal in Juvenile Matter – successfully negotiated a conditional dismissal of a delinquency petition alleging accomplice liability for participating in theft and criminal mischief.
- Pre-Law Enforcement Resolution of a Juvenile School Matter – Successfully negotiated an agreement among a prominent high school and two juveniles with allegations including stalking and sexting.
- Pre-Law Enforcement Resolution of a Juvenile Matter – reached an agreement prior to the involvement of law enforcement between the juvenile and his academic institution in an underaged possession of alcohol matter that satisfied law enforcement such that law enforcement did not see the need to be involved.
- No-Jail Time Resolution for Possession of Heroin – secured a fully suspended sentence for possession of heroin, negotiated down from possession with intent to sell heroin.
- Protected a Client’s NH CDL with a Pending Massachusetts DUI Matter – the Department of Safety agreed that the Massachusetts’ administrative suspension was not sufficient to constitute a violation under New Hampshire law subjecting the client’s CDL to revocation because it lacked the required due process protections afforded in New Hampshire administrative proceedings.
- Secured Dismissal of a Stalking Petition – successfully defended against the allegations in a stalking petition filed against a college student by another college student, with the Court finding that the allegations were either not established or would not have caused the fear alleged necessary to grant the petition.
- Favorable Settlement of a Defamation Case – negotiated a favorable settlement in a defamation case representing the party accused of violating public policy and federal law.
- Dismissal of a Complaint by the Board of Nursing – successfully convinced the Board of Nursing to dismiss a complaint against a nurse for improper documentation of a controlled substance with a Confidential Letter of Concern.
- Check fraud matter for a major financial institution – represented a major financial institution victimized by a fraudulent endorsement by individual in ring of check fraud scheme – full payment by the bank on which the check was drawn to the financial institution.
- Breach of contract matter for a Fortune 500 company – served as the lead associate on this multi-million-dollar matter bound for trial in federal court; drafted successful opposition to motion to amend; led associate in drafting motion for summary judgment papers; participated in successful mediation.
- Regulatory complaints dismissed against leading wireless communications services provider – drafted briefs that succeeded in getting two separate regulatory complaints against a leading U.S. wireless provider for allegedly violating the second-hand dealer law in New York City by arguing that the regulation is preempted by the federal Stored Communications Act.
