Attorneys

Tom Nolan has been certified as a criminal law specialist by the State Bar of California for more than thirty years. He is a fellow of the International Academy of Trial Lawyers and the American College of Trial Lawyers. For more than 25 years, Mr. Nolan has been listed in The Best Lawyers in America. In 2010, he was designated by Best Lawyers as "Lawyer of the Year" in the San Francisco area for criminal defense. Mr. Nolan is AV rated by Martindale-Hubbell and is listed in the Pre-Eminent Edition of Martindale-Hubbell.

He also has been selected as one of the 100 Most Influential Lawyers in California by the Daily Journal. Since 2004, he has been selected every year as a Northern California Super Lawyer by Super Lawyers. He is also listed as one of the Best Lawyers in Silicon Valley.

A past President for the California Attorney's for Criminal Justice, Mr. Nolan is also active in the state and local bar associations and has been a Lawyer Representative for the Ninth Circuit Judicial Conference. Mr. Nolan is active in both federal and state jurisdictions. He has represented individuals in criminal cases in California, Nevada, Arizona, Washington, D.C., Tennessee, Ohio, Oklahoma, Idaho, Utah, and Paris.

In addition to presenting many lectures throughout the country, Mr. Nolan has been teaching at Stanford University’s School of Law since 1987 as a lecturer and consulting professor in the field of criminal law.

Mr. Nolan has frequently testified as an expert witness at hearings and in trials regarding the competency of counsel, the function of defense counsel and the reasonableness of attorneys’ fees. Recently, Mr. Nolan was appointed “learned counsel” in a death penalty case in the Northern District of California.

Mr. Nolan is experienced in highly complex criminal cases. He has successfully tried criminal trade secret cases for several high tech company officers and employees in Silicon Valley. His recent cases include economic espionage, SEC insider trading, wire fraud, accounting fraud, tax fraud, trade secret theft, mortgage fraud, export violations, extradition and other white collar crimes, including internet related crimes. He has successfully defended CEO’s of public companies in criminal matters as well as their families. Mr. Nolan often consults with civil firms and individuals on the complex problem solving of potential criminal liability issues. Mr. Nolan has successfully tried numerous homicide cases, including death penalty cases, to verdict.

Mike Armstrong graduated from Stanford University in 1970. He lived and worked in Florence, Italy, for five years before returning to the United States to attend Northwestern University School of Law in Chicago.

Upon graduation, Mr. Armstrong worked in private practice for three years and as a deputy public defender for two years before joining the firm in 1984. Mr. Armstrong is a criminal law specialist, certified by the California State Bar Board of Legal Specialization. He has served as a Judge Pro Tem in a felony jury trial in San Mateo County Superior Court. He has also served on the Board of Trustees for both the Santa Clara County Bar Association and the Palo Alto Area Bar Association. Each year since they began the survey, San Jose Magazine has chosen Mr. Armstrong as one of a handful of criminal defense attorneys listed among the Best Lawyers in the Silicon Valley. He has been named a Super Lawyer by Super Lawyers and included as one of the Best Lawyers in America in criminal defense and white collar criminal defense.

Actively involved in the community, Mr. Armstrong is a member of Grace Lutheran Church in Palo Alto, has served as President of the Board of Trustees at the Trinity School in Menlo Park, and has been an advisor to fraternities at Stanford University. For several years, he has served on the Board of Community Legal Services in East Palo Alto.

Mr. Armstrong is fluent in Italian.

Dan Barton has practiced criminal defense in the mid-peninsula since 1988. He received his A.B., magna cum laude, in 1983 from Brown University, where he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa and awarded the Prize for Academic Excellence in Latin American Studies. Mr. Barton received his J.D. from Stanford Law School in 1988, where his honors included induction into the Order of the Coif. While pursuing his legal education, Mr. Barton traveled to Barcelona, Spain, to research Spanish constitutional law as a Fulbright Scholar.  He is fluent in the Spanish language, and has studied the legal systems of Spain, Cuba and the International Criminal Court.

Mr. Barton has been teaching at Stanford University’s School of Law since 2010 as a lecturer in the field of criminal law. He is a criminal law specialist certified by the California State Bar, Board of Legal Specialization and a specialist member of California DUI Lawyers Association. He has been listed in the Best Lawyers in America and designated as a Super Lawyer by SuperLawyers.com.

Mr. Barton serves on the Board of Governors of the California Attorneys for Criminal Justice and on the California State Bar, Criminal Law Advisory Commission. He is experienced in the defense of intellectual property offenses and is an expert in the complex area of driving under the influence law. Mr. Barton has represented individuals arrested at political actions on issues of reproductive rights, homelessness, affirmative action, and U.S. military policies.  Mr. Barton has successfully advocated for many clients charged under the California Three Strikes law.

Working with the Palo Alto Area Bar Association, Mr. Barton set up the Lawyers in the Classroom project, which brought discussions of constitutional law issues to 10th grade students at Palo Alto and Gunn High Schools and local cable television

Mr. Barton has achieved verdicts of acquittal at trial in cases of homicide, theft of trade secrets, conspiracy, possession, sale and manufacturing of drugs, child pornography, child molestation, theft, burglary, domestic violence, assault, battery, resisting arrest and driving under the influence of alcohol.

Emma Bradford has been an associate at Nolan, Armstrong & Barton since 2005. She has handled a wide variety of cases, and represented individuals accused of murder, manslaughter, sex crimes, and drug offenses, including medical marijuana patients.  Ms. Bradford specializes in cases involving mental health issues and defenses.  Ms. Bradford also represents individuals on appeal and in ancillary proceedings including restraining order petitions.

Ms. Bradford graduated from Trinity College, Ireland in 1999 with a B.A. in English Literature. She received her J.D. from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law in 2004, where she was awarded the Percy C. Towne Scholarship and the Robert Blackfield Memorial Scholarship for academic excellence and leadership.

While at Hastings, Ms. Bradford clerked for both the Federal Public Defender and the San Francisco Public Defender and coordinated the Pacific Juvenile Defender Center. She is a member of California Attorneys for Criminal Justice and Women Defenders.

Daniel Olmos first joined Nolan, Armstrong & Barton in 2007 after beginning his legal career at the Contra Costa County Public Defender’s Office.  From 2007 to 2010, Mr. Olmos tried cases to verdict involving a wide range of charges in state and federal court, including economic espionage, trade secret theft, murder, attempted murder, and sexual assault.  He also argued before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and represented individuals at parole hearings and in other post-conviction proceedings.  Mr. Olmos was named a Northern California “Rising Star” in 2010 by Super Lawyers.

In 2010, Mr. Olmos accepted an appointment in the Administration of President Barack Obama as Senior Counsel at the Access to Justice Initiative at the U.S. Department of Justice.  At DOJ, Mr. Olmos’s work focused on improving access to quality legal representation in criminal cases and high-stakes civil proceedings, as well as on improving tribal court systems.  In 2012, he received the Attorney General’s Annual Award for Distinguished Service.  In June 2012, Mr. Olmos accepted a position as Senior Policy Advisor at the White House Domestic Policy Council, where he helped develop Administration policy in the areas of criminal justice, civil rights, and immigration.

Mr. Olmos returned to Nolan, Armstrong & Barton in March 2013.  His practice focuses on complex criminal cases in state and federal court, as well as on government investigations.  He graduated from Harvard University and Boalt Hall School of Law at UC Berkeley.  Following law school, Mr. Olmos clerked for District Judge Claudia Wilken on the Northern District of California and Circuit Judge Stephen Reinhardt on the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

Diane de Seve has been practicing criminal defense for over 15 years. She joined Nolan, Armstrong & Barton in 2001. She has handled a wide range of state and federal cases including securities fraud, Worker’s Compensation fraud, insurance fraud, domestic violence, assault and battery, embezzlement, theft, burglary, forgery, resisting arrest, sex offenses, DUI, drug offenses and child endangerment. Ms. de Seve also has extensive experience handling juvenile matters and suspension/expulsion hearings before school boards. Her practice also includes representing clients before the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Ms. de Seve graduated cum laude from the State University of New York at Plattsburgh, in 1979. She received her J.D. from Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law in New York City where she graduated magna cum laude, in 1986. Her honors included membership on the Moot Court Board, where she qualified as a quarter-finalist in the National Robert F. Wagner Sr. Labor Moot Court Competition. She was also selected to participate in the Cardozo Criminal Law Clinic, directed by Professor Barry Scheck, for which she received the highest rating in her class.

Upon graduating from law school, Ms. de Seve worked at the Legal Aid Society Criminal Appeals Bureau in New York City. Thereafter, she worked at a New York City law firm representing clients in a variety of complex civil and white-collar criminal defense matters involving RICO, securities, and trade secret law.

Ms. Ryan joined Nolan, Armstrong & Barton in 2000. Her areas of practice include driving under the influence, controlled substances and Proposition 36 cases, theft offenses, domestic violence, assault and battery, minor in possession, juvenile proceedings, and all other vehicle code violations and Department of Motor Vehicle proceedings. Ms. Ryan received her J.D. from Santa Clara University School of Law in 1998.

While at Santa Clara, Ms. Ryan interned in the Santa Clara Public Defender's Office and the East San Jose Law Clinic. She competed in the Honors Moot Court Competition and served on the Honors Moot Court Board. She continues to volunteer with Community Legal Services, East Palo Alto, and serve on the Board of Directors for the Palo Alto Bar Association. She is a member of the California Attorneys for Criminal Justice and Women Defenders.

Ms. Ryan graduated from Cornell University in 1991. She was named a Cornell National Scholar and played defense for the varsity women's ice hockey team.

Shira Kieval joined Nolan, Armstrong & Barton as an associate in 2011.  In addition to defending clients accused of misdemeanors and felonies in state and federal court, she helps the firm’s partners wrestle with thorny legal issues and develop complex constitutional arguments.

Shira received an Alexander Hamilton fellowship to attend law school at Columbia University.  At Columbia, Shira externed with the Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem, and with the Center for Appellate Litigation, which files criminal appeals on behalf of Manhattan’s indigent.  During the summers, she interned at the Association for Civil Rights in Israel and the Defender Association in Seattle.  She published the Note "Discerning Discrimination in State Treatment of American Indians Going Beyond Reservation Boundaries" in the Columbia Law Review, where she was an articles editor.

After graduating from law school in 2009, Shira clerked for Judge Sidney Thomas of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in Billings, Montana.  Shira moved to San Francisco in 2010 to clerk for Judge Susan Illston of the Northern District of California, at which time she fell in love with the Bay Area.

Shira graduated from Harvard College in 2004 with a joint concentrate in History and Literature and in Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations.  Before attending law school, Shira worked for a Member of Congress in Washington, D.C., and studied legal history and anthropology at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.  Shira is fluent in Hebrew and has reading and conversational skills in Arabic.

Jenny Brandt graduated from UCLA in 2005 with a B.A. in Sociology and double minors in Chicano/a Studies and African-American Studies.  She was elected to Phi Beta Kappa.  Ms. Brandt graduated from UCLA School of Law in 2009 with a specialization in Critical Race Studies.  She graduated in the top 10% of her class and was inducted into the Order of the Coif.

During law school, Ms. Brandt interned for public defender offices in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Alameda Counties.  She also externed for Judge Stephen Reinhardt of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and worked with the Federal Public Defender of Los Angeles as part of a criminal defense clinic.  In 2009, the Criminal Law Bulletin published an article she wrote entitled "Should Police Misconduct Files be Public Record? Why Internal Affairs Investigations and Citizen Complaints Should Be Open to Public Scrutiny."

After law school, Ms. Brandt worked as post-bar law clerk and as an associate deputy public defender at the Alameda County Public Defender Office.  She defended indigent clients accused of misdemeanors and felonies, through and including jury trial.

In 2012, Ms. Brandt joined Nolan, Armstrong & Barton, LLP, as an associate and legal assistant to Thomas J. Nolan.  She continues to vigorously defend the constitution and those accused of crimes both in federal and state court.

Jill is the Office Manager at Nolan, Armstrong & Barton and legal assistant to Michael Armstrong and Daniel Barton. Jill graduated from Boise State University and has worked in the legal field for over 13 years. She is the Continuing Education Coordinator for the Santa Clara County Legal Professionals Association and the Criminal Law Section Leader-elect for the statewide organization Legal Secretaries, Inc. (LSI). Jill is also a Notary Public for the State of California.