Relentless Advocacy

Creativity. Compassion. Results.

About Lauren

A Career Built on
Results That Endure

  • Stanford Law School — J.D.
  • Nevada State Bar
  • U.S. District Court of Nevada
  • Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals
  • Published Decisions — Nevada Courts

Lauren Gorman is a nationally recognized attorney and Stanford Law School graduate practicing in Reno, Nevada. She is a seasoned trial lawyer and creative litigator whose advocacy has resulted in numerous wins and published decisions — a body of work that reflects not only legal skill, but the capacity to persuade judges and juries on contested facts and difficult law.

She mentors and consults on issues ranging from constitutional law to complex sentencing and statutory construction. She is passionate about humanizing clients through media and is a pioneer in using documentary filmmaking to bring a client’s world into a sterile courtroom.

Her practice spans criminal defense, family law, civil rights litigation, and protection orders, with a focus on cases where the personal, professional, and reputational stakes are highest. She is available for consultations with individuals who require the counsel of a seasoned, nationally recognized advocate.

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Practice Areas

Meticulous Preparation.
Durable Outcomes.

Lauren’s practice addresses legal matters where the consequences — personal, financial, and reputational — are most significant. Each area is approached with the same analytical rigor and strategic creativity that have defined her career.

Lauren brings to criminal defense the analytical depth of a Stanford Law graduate, a record of published decisions, and a distinctive approach to humanizing clients through narrative and media. Her practice encompasses the full range of felony and serious misdemeanor matters in Nevada’s state and federal courts, with particular focus on constitutional challenges and cases where the stakes are highest.

Her pre-trial practice is systematic and exhaustive — Fourth Amendment suppression litigation, Brady compliance enforcement, Miranda challenges, and the construction of an affirmative defense theory capable of generating reasonable doubt. For cases that proceed to trial, she is a seasoned courtroom advocate who has produced verdicts and published decisions across Nevada’s courts.

Full Criminal Defense Page →

Matters resolved

  • Violent felonies & homicide
  • Drug offenses — state & federal
  • White collar & financial crimes
  • Sex offenses
  • Domestic violence
  • Weapons charges
  • DUI with significant exposure
  • Professional license defense

Lauren’s family law practice focuses on high-stakes dissolution proceedings, complex property and asset division, and contested custody matters. The decisions made in a dissolution such as the division of significant assets, the allocation of parental rights, or the determination of spousal support carry implications that can define a person’s circumstances for decades.

In high-net-worth matters, she analyzes and litigates closely held business interests, executive compensation structures, QDROs, investment portfolios, and the tracing of separate property through years of commingling. She works with forensic accountants and business valuation experts to develop valuations that reflect economic reality.

Full Family Law Page →

Matters resolved

  • High-asset dissolution
  • Complex property division
  • Business interest valuation
  • Executive compensation & RSUs
  • QDROs & retirement assets
  • Spousal support
  • Child custody & relocation
  • Child support
  • Prenuptial agreements
  • Post-decree modifications

Protection orders under NRS Chapter 33 are issued ex parte, without notice, on the basis of one party’s sworn allegations and they take effect immediately upon service. The consequences are immediate and serious: forced removal from the family home, restriction of contact with children, mandatory firearm surrender. Lauren provides representation on both sides of protection order proceedings, preparing for extended order hearings with the same disciplined methodology she brings to trial.

Full Protection Orders Page →

Matters resolved

  • Domestic violence orders
  • Stalking & harassment orders
  • Contesting temporary orders
  • Extended order hearings
  • Obtaining orders for petitioners
  • Collateral proceeding strategy

Lauren’s civil rights practice represents individuals whose constitutional rights have been violated by government actors, bringing the same analytical depth she applies to criminal defense to the distinct domain of federal civil rights enforcement under 42 U.S.C. Section 1983 and Bivens. She litigates excessive force claims, unlawful arrest and detention, unconstitutional searches, racial profiling, and Monell municipal liability claims in the U.S. District Court of Nevada and the Ninth Circuit.

Full Civil Rights Page →

Matters resolved

  • Excessive force
  • Unlawful arrest & detention
  • Unconstitutional searches
  • Racial profiling
  • Malicious prosecution
  • First Amendment retaliation
  • Monell & municipal liability
  • Bivens — federal officers

Notable Court Wins

State Court Wins

  • All counts dismissed mid-trial in case charging Category A kidnapping, assault with a deadly weapon, felon in possession of a firearm.

  • Not Guilty in Category A sexual assault.

  • Mistrial declared following Hung Jury in case charging assault with a deadly weapon. Case resolved as a Misdemeanor.

  • Multiple domestic battery cases dismissed following extensive investigation and negotiations.

  • Cheating at gambling case dismissed on statute of limitations ground following severance of co-defendant.

  • Drug case dismissed following motion to vacate the judgment of conviction under NRS 176.165.

  • Drug trafficking charges reduced and probation granted after extensive mitigation investigation and negotiations.

  • Drug trafficking charges reduced to a misdemeanor following extensive investigation of suppression issues and negotiations.

  • Stalking prosecution reduced to disturbing the peace following challenge to the constitutionality of NRS 200.575(1)(a) on the grounds that the statute is facially unconstitutional and unconstitutional as applied to the alleged conduct.

  • Felony failure to support or maintain a child case dismissed following extensive investigation and negotiations.

  • Weapons charge reduced to simple misdemeanor with a time served sentence following extensive investigation and negotiations.

  • Animal cruelty prosecution under NRS 574.100 and related civil matter voluntarily dismissed following investigation of accusations that uncovered irrefutable proof of client’s innocence.

  • Burglary case voluntarily dismissed following investigation that uncovered evidence of client’s innocence.

  • Appeal of temporary order of protection granted.

Illegal Reentry

  • Case dismissed following litigation at the district court level, affirmed by the Ninth Circuit

  • Case dismissed following Fifth Amendment challenge to the statute on equal protection grounds, reversed by the Ninth Circuit

  • Case dismissed following hung jury

  • Case dismissed following threat of litigation

  • Case dismissed following collateral attack on underlying removal and evidentiary hearing

Robbery Cases

  • Life case dismissed following extensive investigation and litigation

  • Favorable sentence representing a variance of approximately five years following presentation of sentencing mitigation film

  • Bank robbery sentence vacated and remanded by the Ninth Circuit following litigation at the district court level regarding whether career offender enhancement should apply

Sex Cases

  • Aggravated sexual assault reduced to misdemeanor battery following extensive investigation and litigation

  • Child pornography case dismissed following filing of motion to suppress

  • Dark Web Child Pornography case dismissed following filing of Franks motion

  • Charge reduced and client received time served sentence in child pornography case following extensive litigation regarding law enforcement’s use of proprietary software

  • Charge reduced and client received favorable sentence in child pornography case following litigation of novel issue regarding facial recognition technology

  • Charge reduced and client received favorable sentence in child pornography case following mitigation investigation and sentencing presentation

Civil Rights Cases

  • Civil rights case resolved with favorable financial settlement to two victims of police misconduct.

Murder

  • Jury acquitted client of First Degree Murder and convicted of lesser included Manslaughter

Gun Cases

  • Dismissed following suppression of evidence

  • Dismissed following suppression of evidence

  • Dismissed following filing of Franks motion challenging search warrant

  • Dismissed following filing of motions to dismiss and suppress arguing, inter alia, law enforcement engaged in racially selective enforcement

  • Client found Not Guilty after jury trial

  • Case resolved in binding plea to time served following the filing of a motion to suppress

  • Case resolved in binding plea to time served following the filing of a motion to suppress

  • One count dismissed pretrial following motion to dismiss and following jury trial client received nominal sentence

Guns and Drugs Cases

  • Life case reduced to simple misdemeanor following extensive litigation and investigation

  • Life case dismissed following extensive investigation and investigation

White Collar

  • Embezzlement case dismissed following extensive litigation and investigation

  • Client received favorable sentence following multiple week jury trial against the Department of Justice Tax Division

  • Client received favorable sentence following extensive negotiations and investigation

Compassionate Release

  • Eight clients released following litigating compassionate release

Consultations

An Honest Assessment.
A Clear Strategy.

The decisions made in the first days of a legal matter can define what options remain available. Lauren Gorman is available to provide an honest assessment of your position and a clear-eyed strategy for the road ahead — for individuals, families, and professionals confronting matters of consequence in Nevada.
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