K. Alexandra McClure

K. Alexandra McClure is a state and federal criminal defense lawyer who has been practicing in the Bay Area for over twenty years. She began her career as a Law Clerk for the Honorable Susan Illston in the United States District Court in San Francisco. Ms. McClure then worked as an associate at Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe in Silicon Valley where she litigated business and intellectual property cases, including patent, copyright, trademark and trade secret theft cases. She also litigated complex habeas corpus and immigration pro bono matters. Ms. McClure joined the Office of the Federal Public Defender in San Francisco in 1999, where she represented hundreds of clients charged with federal criminal offenses. As an Assistant Federal Public Defender, Ms. McClure represented her clients through all stages of the proceedings, trial and on appeal to Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

Ms. McClure has worked extensively within the federal court system. In addition to her experience with Judge Illston, she served as an Extern for the Honorable D. Lowell Jensen, United States District Court Judge, and also clerked for United States Magistrate Judge Joseph C. Spero.

Ms. McClure fights each case to win it. To her, aggressive representation is essential for people who are faced with the full weight, force, and resources of the government. In vigorously defending the rights of the accused at every stage of the case, she is able to achieve the best results for her clients. She has represented clients in complex federal criminal jury trials, on appeal to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, and in the Supreme Court. She has succeeded for her clients pretrial by obtaining pretrial dismissals and convincing the government to decline to file charges or to offer them diversion. While some cases are ultimately resolved through plea bargaining, an excellent and vigorous defense is always the path to the best possible plea if that is what is best for the client.

Ms. McClure cares about the people she represents. While Ms. McClure’s practice has included very serious cases including those with possible life sentences, she recognizes that someone who has been accused of any crime, no matter how small, is experiencing a crisis. A case is never “small” to a client. Ms. McClure has a client-centered practice, which ensures the best possible representation. She understands that early and thorough investigation is critical not just for keeping a client out of jail, but in cases where charges have not yet been filed, in order to take control of the case immediately and prevent prosecution. Ms. McClure works hard to understand the person – not just the case – and can be much more effective in negotiations where a deeper understanding of the client and his or her unique personal circumstances can make all the difference to the outcome.

Ms. McClure specializes in complex criminal defense, representing both entities and individuals in state and federal court. She has litigated a variety of white collar matters including tax fraud, money laundering, wire fraud, trade secrets theft and health care fraud. Additional practice areas include: internal corporate investigations, government investigations, public corruption, drug trafficking, weapons offenses, immigration crimes, and racketeering. Ms. McClure has been appointed as trial counsel on five federal capital RICO cases.