Margaret Strickland is an experienced and skilled trial lawyer. She represents clients in both civil rights case and criminal cases in both state and federal courts in New Mexico. Ms. Strickland is a graduate of New York University’s School of Law, one of the top law schools in the country. She has represented clients in more than 70 criminal jury trials, including high profile cases, and she has also argued several times before the New Mexico Supreme Court and New Mexico Court of Appeals. In 2017 she obtained a $1.6 million-dollar verdict in Beck v Baker, a federal civil rights case against several Las Cruces Police Department officers. The verdict is one of the largest federal civil rights verdicts in Southern New Mexico.

Ms. Strickland’s legal practice is focused on representing clients who have been victimized by law enforcement agencies, jails and prisons, including excessive force, solitary confinement, failure to protect, and sexual assault civil rights cases. Ms. Strickland strongly believes in representing people whose rights were violated by law enforcement and those accused of committing a crime. She believes that strong advocacy for everyday citizens against the state and government helps keep the government’s inherent power under control, and makes a better society and justice system.

In 2016 Ms. Strickland was elected president of the New Mexico Criminal Defense Lawyers Association (NMCDLA). Prior to serving as President, she had served in various elected positions for NMCDLA since 2007. In addition to being president, she is the Chair of the NMCDLA legislative committee. Ms. Strickland has presented at numerous continuing legal education seminars on various criminal defense and civil rights topics.