About Us

 

Mission

The Consulting Project (CP) is a defense advocacy firm that provides forensic mitigation services and advocates on the behalf of the defendant. CP’s main goal is to provide forensic services to the Court community and to the societies that benefit from creative and long-standing solutions. CP takes into consideration the myriad of issues that affect all citizens such as mental health, physical health, substance abuse, domestic violence, legal issues, as well as matters impacted by community/cultural issues and socio-economic status. CP’s services are primarily focused on disadvantaged groups such as the indigent and adolescents. CP also considers all parties involved in providing options that are accessible, sustainable and reduce recidivism by providing alternative sentencing solutions with the interest of the client and the safety of the community-at-large.

 

Expertise

Since its inception, 23 years ago, the Consulting Project has become one of the most progressive and successful forensic mitigation consulting firms in New York City. The Consulting Project has worked with over three hundred private attorneys, Federal and State prosecutors offices, and many court communities including New Jersey, Connecticut, Maryland and Florida. In addition, the firm has presented memoranda to aid in sentencing and plea negotiations in Federal, State, and Family Court jurisdictions, and has been instrumental in collaborating with various treatment courts throughout the country.

 

Mitigating factors frequently address the defendant’s background, including a history of mental illness or intellectual disability, previous trauma suffered by the defendant, or the absence of a prior criminal record. A defendant who has faced life with physical or emotional handicaps may be deemed less fully responsible for his criminal actions.

 

Through clinical evaluation and various informal and formal assessments, the Consulting Project’s experts can aid in the multi-disciplinary process of gathering information to understand an individual’s behavior. Experts assess the sociological, psychological and clinical factors, the impact on their current legal situation, define the mitigating factors, prepare and provide referrals for treatment, monitoring, home visits, and program placement. Ancillary services may include basic therapy, or specific treatments such as behavior modification, dialectical behavioral therapy, structured supervision, intensive probation supervision or referrals.

 

Unique Structure

The Consulting Project’s unique structure of retained experts allows the flexibility to pair the right specialist to the referring attorney and client’s specific needs. We continously bring together a range of experts from various diverse backgrounds, including Psychiatrists, Psychologists, Forensic Social Workers, Certified Alcohol Substance Abuse Counselors, Mental Health Counselors, Case Managers and Academic/Research Specialists. Many of our experts are also bilingual.

 

Quick statistics

·         5,400 cases to date (Private, Federal, Assigned Counsel cases)

·         85% success rate on negotiating a favorable disposition or an alternative to incarceration

·         Average number of collaborations with City, State, Federal and private attorneys: 500

·         Average number of partner health/mental health/treatment organizations: 200

 

Memberships and Affiliations

·         National Association of Social Workers

·         National Organization of Forensic Social Work

·         National Alliance of Sentecing Advocates and Mitigation Specialists

·         National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers

·         New York State Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers

·         Hispanic National Bar Association

·         Queens County Bar Association

·         Puerto Rican Bar Association

·         Latino Lawyers Association of Queens County