In Memoriam. Dan Conaway, founding partner. 1962-2019
Dan Conaway founded his firm in 1994 and over 25 years built it into a successful boutique criminal defense firm. Although Dan began his legal career as a prosecutor, he found his passion in criminal defense. In 2011, Newsweek Magazine named Conaway & Strickler, PC one of America’s top criminal defense firms and in 2013, Dan was named a “Leader in Criminal Defense” by Time magazine. In 2016, Dan was invited to join the prestigious National Academy of Criminal Defense Attorneys and was named one of the Top Ten Attorneys in the nation for his excellence in criminal defense.
He represented clients on a wide variety of criminal matters, including cases and investigations involving the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) defending financial advisors, brokerage firms, and registered representatives in disputes. He successfully tried hundreds of criminal cases nationwide. In transnational and international cases, Dan advised local counsel in over a dozen countries.
Dan’s success for defending his clients was based on his unique focus of thoroughly investigating his clients’ cases early on. “I want to make sure law enforcement and prosecutors get the whole story of ‘what happened’ before they make the decision to arrest my client or prosecute them in open court,” said Dan. “By investigating the case and negotiation with the prosecutors early in the process, I can many times convince law enforcement and prosecution to not arrest or prosecute my client. In those cases I can’t resolve through negotiation, my own forensic investigation has already prepared me to try the case in court long before my client walks into the courtroom for trial.”
In 2017, Dan published the second edition of his critically acclaimed book, “Arrested, Battling America’s Criminal Justice System” (Amazon.com). In 2018, Dan hosted a radio show named after his bestselling book, “Arrested”, with Mike Brooks on 106.7FM in Atlanta, published on the “Arrested” Podcast.
In 2006, Dan joined the International Bar Association and lectured annually at conferences. In 2010, he was elected Co-Chair of the Criminal Law Committee. In June of 2012, Dan Co-Chaired the Criminal Law Committee’s annual conference on criminal law and business crime in São Paulo, Brazil. In October 2017, he spoke on cyber security at the IBA Annual Conference in Sydney, Australia. In October 2018, Dan participated in a mock trial in the Italian Supreme Court in Rome, Italy at the IBA Annual Conference. The mock trial is meant to teach younger lawyers litigation skills for complex transnational white-collar fraud cases. Mr. Conaway also participated in IBA mock trials in Ireland, Australia, Japan and Canada. He chaired and lectured on a variety of transnational and international legal panels at legal seminars around the world concerning anti-corruption, business crime, human rights, and international criminal law. Through his work with the IBA, Dan developed a worldwide network of legal professionals to assist his clients facing transnational or international legal issues.
In addition to his legal work, Dan regularly appeared as an expert legal commentator on Fox News, Fox Radio, 106.7, CNN, CNN International, CBS, MSNBC, BBC, Al Jazeera and HLN. He also appeared on various local television news programs to discuss a variety of legal issues.
Dan was also a former adjunct professor for Emory Law School’s Kessler-Eidson Institute for Trial Advocacy, where he instructed law students in the art of case preparation and trial advocacy. Dan also taught ethics to first year Emory Law students through a three-day round table discussion group comprised of practicing attorneys, first year law students, and Emory Law School faculty.