Keeley Blanchard is the new MAACS Administrator

The State Appellate Defender Office is pleased to announce that Keeley Blanchard has been hired as the Administrator of the Michigan Appellate Assigned Counsel System (MAACS). MAACS administers the system for appointing criminal appellate counsel from a roster of private attorneys and SADO. Approximately 75% of indigent felony appeals are assigned to the MAACS roster, while approximately 25% of cases are assigned to SADO.

Ms. Blanchard has significant experience as a trial attorney and as a trainer. In her trial practice, Ms. Blanchard focused on criminal defense, youth defense, and civil rights cases. She has tried dozens of cases in counties throughout the state of Michigan and across the country. As a trainer, Ms. Blanchard has given presentations for SADO and MAACS, the Michigan Indigent Defense Commission, Criminal Defense Attorneys of Michigan, the State Bar of Michigan, the Missouri State Public Defender, the Ohio Public Defender, the Ingham County Bar Association Criminal Defense Law Section, the National Association for Public Defense, the Grand Rapids Bar Association, the New Jersey Office of Law Guardian, the Bob Chaloupka Trial Skills Seminar in Nebraska, and the Trial Lawyers College. Most recently, Ms. Blanchard founded LawStory—a trial consultation company that teaches lawyers about creative and compelling storytelling.

Ms. Blanchard looks forward to finding new ways to expand the resources available to MAACS attorneys, and to help them provide the best possible appellate representation to their clients. She can be contacted at kblanchard@sado.org.