Wendy Holton
Attorney Profile
Top Rated DUI-DWI Attorney in Helena, MT
- Criminal Defense: DUI/DWI (50%),
- Criminal Defense (40%),
- Criminal Defense: White Collar (10%)
Attorney Wendy Holton is the founder and owner of Wendy Holton, Attorney at Law, in Helena, Montana. Nationally regarded as one of the top trial attorneys in the country, Ms. Holton devotes her practice exclusively to criminal law, and she provides invaluable and effective criminal defense counsel to clients across the state who stand accused of or are under investigation for any type of felony or misdemeanor offense.
A veteran of more than 50 jury trials in state and federal courts, Ms. Holton has the extensive skills and resources necessary to help her clients fight the charges they face, and achieve the favorable outcomes they expect and deserve efficiently and cost-effectively. She also has significant experience handling appeals, and she has successfully argued dozens of cases before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, the Montana Supreme Court and other appellate courts in her region.
A leader in her field, Ms. Holton has served as president of the Montana Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, and she is a current member of the selection committee for the Montana Criminal Justice Act Panel. She has also accepted appointments to serve on the Montana Evidence Commission and the Montana Criminal Jury Instructions Commission, and she has been an invaluable member of the Montana Public Defender Commission as well as the Public Defender Task Force.
In addition, Ms. Holton has served as president of the Federal Bar Association's Montana Chapter, and she has served as lawyer representative and conference executive committee member for the 9th Circuit Judicial Conference as well as member of the 9th Circuit Advisory Rules Committee. She also has several publications to her credit, and she has conducted a number of lectures and continuing legal education seminars throughout her region on a variety of legal topics.
Recognized for her impeccable professionalism and exceptional legal abilities, Ms. Holton holds an AV-Preeminent peer-review rating* from Martindale-Hubbell, and she has received many other top rankings from her peers. She also received the John Adams Award in 2016 for her outstanding contributions to the CJA Panel, and she received the Lawyer of the Year award from the Montana Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers in 2015.
Ms. Holton was the recipient of the 2013 Defender of Justice Award from the Montana Innocence Project, and in 2014, the Montana Justice Foundation recognized her as a Champion of Justice. She obtained her Juris Doctor, with honors, from the University of Montana's Alexander Blewett III School of Law in 1984 and her Master of Laws in advocacy from Georgetown University Law Center in 1988, where she was an E. Barrett Prettyman Fellow.
*AV®, AV Preeminent®, Martindale-Hubbell Distinguished and Martindale-Hubbell Notable are certification marks used under license in accordance with the Martindale-Hubbell certification procedures, standards and policies. Martindale-Hubbell® is the facilitator of a peer review rating process. Ratings reflect the anonymous opinions of members of the bar and the judiciary. Martindale-Hubbell® Peer Review Rating™ fall into two categories – legal ability and general ethical standards.
- 50%Criminal Defense: DUI/DWI
- 40%Criminal Defense
- 10%Criminal Defense: White Collar
DUI/DWI, Criminal Law, Felony, Misdemeanor, Criminal Law - Federal
Selections
Super Lawyers: 2013 - 2020
To: Wendy Holton
Super Lawyers: Potential Client Inquiry
Additional Sources of Information About Wendy Holton
About Wendy Holton
Admitted: 1984, Montana
Honors/Awards:
- John Adams Award (service to the CJA panel) --2016, Montana Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Lawyer of the Year --2015, Montana Innocence Project, Defender of Justice Awarded - 2013; Montana Justice Foundation, Champion of Justice - 2013; The National Trial Lawyers -- Top 100 Trial Lawyers in Montana. Law School: AmJur Award for Excellence in Labor Law. College: Outstanding Accounting Major 1978; Phi Kappa Phi; Advanced Honor Scholarship; President Tau Pi Phi (Business Honorary); Spurs (Service Honorary)
Special Licenses/Certifications:
- Certified Public Accountant (Inactive Status), 1980
Bar/Professional Activity:
- Public Defender Task Force to study the operations of the Office of the State Public Defender, 2015 – 2016, appointed by Governor Steve BullockNinth Circuit Attorney Admission Fund Advisory Committee, 2015 – present, appointed by Chief Ninth Circuit Judge Sidney ThomasCJA Panel Selection Committee for the District of Montana, 2014 – present, appointed by Chief U.S. District Court Judge Dana ChristensenNinth Circuit Judicial Conference – Conference Executive Committee, 2006 – 2009 Montana Public Defender Commission, 2005 – 2008, appointed by Governor Brian SchweitzerAdvisory Committee on Rules of Practice and Internal Operating Procedures for the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, 2004 – 2007Lawyer Representative to the Ninth Circuit Judicial Conference, 2003 – 2006, appointed by Chief U.S. District Court Judge Donald MolloyMontana Criminal Jury Instruction Commission, 1988 – 2012, appointed by the Montana Supreme CourtMontana Commission on Evidence, 2001 – 2012, appointed by the Montana Supreme CourtSubstitute Justice of the Peace, Jefferson County, Montana, 2002 – present
Scholarly Lectures/Writings:
- DUISFST: Alphabet Soup -- Defending the Drinking Driver (Presentation to Montana Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, March 2015); New Lawyer Workshop (State Bar of Montana, June 2014); Cross-Examination of the Expert in a DUI Case (Presentation to Montana Public Defenders, October 2014); Evidence and Evidentiary Foundations (Presentation for the United States Attorney's Office/Montana Attorney General's Office, June 2014); Jury Instructions (Presentation to Montana Public Defenders, October 2013); Defending DUI Cases in Montana -- Voir Dire (Presentation to Montana State Public Defenders, August, 2012); DUI Cases: From Stop to Appeal -- the Defense Perspective (CLE Presented by the Montana Bar Association, May 2012); Rookie Camp Instructor (Presented by the Montana Bar Association, October 2009); Anatomy of a Criminal Case (Presentation by the Montana Judicial Institute to high school teachers, February 2008); The Art and Science of DUI Defense in Montana (Presentation to State Public Defenders, July 2007); How to Keep Your State Court Client Out of Federal Court (Presentation to Montana Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, March 2007); What State Defenders Need to Know About Federal Criminal Law (Presentation to State Public Defenders, February 2007); Ethics (Minnesota Society for Criminal Justice, Twentieth Annual Seminar, February 2005); Montana Bar Association Rookie Camp (2005, 2009); Federal Sentencing Guidelines Panel (Montana Bar Association Annual Meeting, September 2004); Admissibility of the Preliminary Breath Test in Montana (Panel Discussion, Montana County Attorney’s Association Summer Training Conference, July 2004); Ethics 101 for the DUI Practitioner (Minnesota Society for Criminal Justice, Annual Seminar, February 2004); Preparing and Conducting Criminal Litigation in Federal Court, Panel Discussion (United States District Court, Montana Chapter Federal Bar Association, and the Federal Practice Section of the Montana State Bar, Federal Practice Program, September 2003); Appellate Practice – The Montana Perspective (State Bar of Montana CLE Institute – Criminal Defense CLE, June 2002); Finding the Truth Through the Use of Pretrial Motions and Jury Instructions (State Bar of Montana CLE Institute – Criminal Defense CLE, March 1997); Montana Law Enforcement Academy (Presentations on courtroom demeanor and moot court exercises for trainees); Law Day (Presentations at area junior high and high schools in recognition of Law Day)
Educational Background:
- Montana State University, 1975-79, B.S. Accounting - with highest honors; Georgetown University Law Center, 1984-86, L.L.M. Advocacy (degree received in 1988)
Wendy Holton:
Last Updated: 3/26/2020