John H. Cunha Jr.
800-530-6777 (Toll Free)
John H. Cunha Jr. focuses on litigation, trial and appellate, civil and criminal. He is a former clinical instructor at Suffolk and Harvard Law Schools. He is admitted to practice in Massachusetts, New York, The U.S. District Court for Massachusetts, the U.S. First Circuit Court of Appeals, and the U.S. Supreme Court.
Jack represents clients charged with a broad variety of offenses, including homicide trials and federal complex federal crimes. In a RICO case in which he prevailed, U.S. v. Green, his Daubert challenge to so-called ballistics testimony precluded government "experts" from testifying that they had determined crucial evidence from a shooting scene matched a handgun linked to his client. Mr. Cunha also litigated Com. v. Patterson in the trial and appellate courts, in which a Daubert challenge led to exclusion of "simultaneous" fingerprints, the key evidence against his client charged with the murder of a Boston police detective.
He lectures nationally, for example, the National Institute of Justice, Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education, the National Association of Criminal Defense Attorneys, Federal Defenders national training seminars, Harvard Law School, and various CLE programs, on criminal defense in general and forensic evidence in particular.
Jack served as President of the Massachusetts Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers from 2009-2011, and has been a member of its Board of Directors since 1995.
Areas of Practice
- Criminal Defense
- Federal & White Collar Crimes
- Murder & Crimes of Violence
- Drug & Weapon Possession
- Domestic Violence
- Appeals
- Personal Injury -- Plaintiff
Litigation Percentage
- 100% of Practice Devoted to Litigation
Bar Admissions
- Massachusetts, 1977
- New York, 1986
- U.S. Supreme Court, 1998
- U.S. District Court District of Massachusetts, 1982
- U.S. Court of Appeals 1st Circuit, 1983
Education
- Boston College Law School, Boston, Massachusetts
- J.D. - 1977
- Boston College
- A.B. (Magna Cum Laude) - 1973
Professional Associations and Memberships
- Massachusetts Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Immediate Past President; Member, Board of Directors; current Secretary, 1995 - Present
- Boston Bar Association, Member
Past Employment Positions
- Massachusetts Defenders Committee, Staff Attorney, September 1, 1977 - September 30, 1979
- Massachusetts State Ethics Commission, Prosecuting Attorney, October 1, 1979 - August 31, 1981
- Harvard Law School, Clinical Instructor, September 1, 1985 - June 30, 1995
- Suffolk Law School, Clinical Instructor, September 1, 1982 - June 30, 1985
Previous Names
- Jack Cunha
Languages
- French

