Marking one year of Max Pines Law means celebrating both the people the firm serves and the growth that has come with stepping into private practice. This anniversary blog reflects on that first year—what has stayed constant from a decade in public defense, what has changed, and why experience across New Mexico’s courts matters for clients.​

From Public Defense To A New Firm

Before opening Max Pines Law, a decade at the New Mexico Public Defender’s Office meant representing some of the most vulnerable people in Albuquerque, often facing the most serious violent charges in the system. That work built deep experience in serious felony and homicide litigation, and it taught the importance of seeing each client as a whole person, not just a file or a police report.​

Launching Max Pines Law allowed that experience to grow into a practice focused on criminal defense and civil rights across New Mexico. The shift into plaintiff‑side civil rights work—bringing cases instead of just defending them—has been energizing, creating opportunities to challenge misconduct, elevate clients’ stories, and seek justice in a new way.​

Holistic Representation With An In‑House Social Worker

A defining feature of this first year has been teaming up with Janeth Nuñez del Prado, a bilingual, trauma‑informed Licensed Clinical Social Worker, as part of the core team. Together, the firm integrates mitigation, trauma‑informed mental health insight, and life‑planning into defense and civil rights cases—preparing clients for sentencing hearings, depositions, and testimony so they are ready not just legally, but emotionally, to tell the truth about what happened to them.​

This model looks beyond a single court date. It focuses on long‑term stability, healing, and dignity, so that clients leave the process with as much of their life intact as possible, even when the system has already done them harm.​

Learning Business, Finance, And Marketing

Opening a firm has also meant a year‑long crash course in business and leadership. Beyond litigation, this first year has involved learning how to:​

• Build and follow a budget and understand firm financials.​

• Develop a marketing presence—on the web, in the community, and on platforms like LinkedIn and Instagram.​

• Design client‑centered systems for communication, intake, and follow‑through.​

That growth has expanded the mindset from “trial lawyer only” to trial lawyer, business owner, and community partner. It has also underscored that a mission‑driven practice can only succeed when the business side is strong enough to sustain the work clients depend on.​

Taking Cases Across New Mexico’s Courts

In this first year, Max Pines Law has appeared not only in Albuquerque, but also in courts across the state—including important criminal matters in Valencia County, Socorro County, Torrance County, and Cibola County. These counties sit within different judicial districts, each with its own judges, clerks, local practices, and scheduling rhythms.

Max Pines has handled murder cases in many of these jurisdictions, including Socorro and Valencia counties. As a public defender, I would only find myself in these counties when there was an extremely serious case charged, and I was appointed to work them up. But now, with my own practice, I have the flexibility to bring my education, skills and experience to these places where many fewer attorneys practice. ​This is especially crucial on civil rights matters where fewer attorneys are willing to stick their necks out to protect the people from the powers that be. 

Experience in these smaller jurisdictions matters because each court has its own unwritten rules and culture—how motions are heard, how plea negotiations tend to work, how juries are drawn, and how quickly cases move. Knowing those characteristics is crucial for great representation: it helps set realistic expectations, tailor strategy to the venue, and avoid surprises that can hurt a client’s case.​

Gratitude And The Road Ahead

Reaching this one‑year milestone is the result of many people and institutions. The opportunity to open Max Pines Law rests on the foundation built at the New Mexico Public Defender’s Office, the support of friends and family, and loan‑forgiveness programs that made a mission‑driven, client‑focused practice financially possible.​

Most of all, this anniversary belongs to the clients and communities who have trusted the firm with their freedom, their rights, and often their most painful stories. As year two begins, the commitment remains the same: fierce criminal defense, meaningful civil rights advocacy, and thoughtful, trauma‑informed representation for people across New Mexico—whether in Albuquerque, Valencia, Socorro, Torrance, Cibola, or beyond.