Wayne Bodden is a Brooklyn native who has devoted his career to representing the rights of New York State residents. As a Brooklyn Technical High School graduate, Mr. Bodden chose early to devote his career path to the practice of law in Kings County.
Having obtained his Bachelor of Arts from Adelphi University in 1983 he decided to attend Hofstra Law School. In 1987 he obtained his Juris Doctor degree and immediately became employed with The Legal Aid Society Criminal Defense Division in Kings County. As a staff attorney he represented clients in all stages of criminal prosecution, including but not limited to arrest, arraignment, grand jury investigation, pre-trial discovery, motion practice, and trial.
During his first year at the Legal Aid Society, Mr. Bodden showed outstanding potential as a litigator. Consequently, he was accelerated to senior trial attorney status in less than six months. As a senior trial attorney, Mr. Bodden tried over forty cases to verdict. Based on his exemplary performance he was promoted to a supervisory position in less than six (6) years.
Mr. Bodden’s initial supervisory position was that of Arraignment Supervisor. In that position he worked with the Criminal Court Arraignment Coordinator, the Supervising Criminal Court Judge, the Department of Corrections and other New York City officials to ensure that arrestees were arraigned within twenty-four (24) hours of their arrest time. Additionally, he supervised all Legal Aid staff working an arraignment. This included assigning cases, managing conflicts, and handling the more difficult cases. In assigning cases he made determinations about the attorneys’ ability and case load management.
In 1994, Mr. Bodden was promoted to a cluster supervisor. In this capacity he was responsible for training staff attorneys in the areas of trial practice and updates in criminal law. He provided trial support which included in court supervision, instruction and conducted simulations with new attorneys. Case management and control remained one of his primary responsibilities. In addition, Mr. Bodden held weekly staff meetings and case reviews for attorneys assigned to his cluster.
On behalf of the Legal Aid Society, Mr. Bodden was selected to travel nationally to interview and recruit new attorneys. He was awarded a scholarship to the National Institute of Trial Advocacy (Manager’s Program) in Berkeley, California.
In 1995, Mr. Bodden entered the private sector by establishing his own law practice. In addition to criminal law, his areas of practice expanded to include Real Estate, Family Law, Matrimonial, Immigration, and Estate and Trust Law. He is a member of the 18-B felony and homicide panels. He’s certified to the Article 10 Panel to handle post-prison confinement of sex offenders. Mr. Bodden has been appointed in Kings County to numerous cases with a high degree of complexity and notoriety. Most notably, he represented a former New York City police officer charged with taking the life of a civilian.
Served as President of The New York State Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers , 2015,(NYSACDL) and has been a board member of the Kings County Criminal Bar Association. He’s also a member of the Brooklyn Bar Association, Brooklyn Women’s Bar Association and the 18-B screening committee in Kings County. Mr. Bodden has served multiple terms on the Kings County Democratic Judicial Screening Committee. Mr. Bodden is admitted to practice in New York State Courts and the United States District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York.