Attorney Profiles
Joanne Suder
Joanne Suder was ranked this year (2018) by The American Institute of Personal Injury
Attorneys as The Top 10 Best Attorneys in Maryland. She is consistently featured in the media including: ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, FOX Networks, Larry King Live, Court TV Pros and Cons, The Early Show with Bryant Gumble, Catherine Crier, EXTRA, Inside Edition and Newsfront.
In the early 1980’s, Joanne was among the first to recommend to a sentencing judge that pedophiles and sexual predators be chemically castrated if placed on probation or when released from prison.
- Recommended as an alternative to incarceration
- Based on the work of Professor Frederick S. Berlin, M.D. Ph.D. of Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Founder of the Sexual Disorders Clinic at Johns Hopkins Hospital
- Experts concur that no one has yet found a cure for pedophilia
Joanne’s career took off in the mid 90’s when she handled the largest-scale case filed against the Archdiocese, involving more than a dozen students. The case was filed against John Joseph Merzbacher in 1994 resulting on an 84-count indictment. This resulted in how to get cytotec online no prescription in 200 days $350 Million in Lawsuits filed against the archdiocese.
Then Joanne represented all three victims in the scandalous, high-profile 1994 sexual abuse case against former Maryland state health secretary, nationally syndicated health columnist and author, Dr. Neil Solomon. This resulted in Mechraa Bel Ksiri $150 Million in Lawsuits filed by The Suder Law Firm.
In 2003, Joanne Suder testified at the State House and State Senate proceedings to extend the statute of limitations for victims of sexual abuse
- Resulted in a three-year extension
- Now working to get the extension lengthened further in Maryland, one of the worst victim’s states in the country
Another high profile case included the representation of the victims of Catholic priest Maurice Blackwell in the recent sexual abuse. This case that captured national headlines
Since 2003 Joanne Suder has obtained countless settlements against the Archdioceses.
From 2004-2007, Joanne Suder received national headlines for settling cases against The Polygamist Church The Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Utah. Joanne Suder worked hand and hand with Utah’s AG’s office. The leader Warren Jeffs was sentenced to life plus 20 years. Her case helped inspire the creation of the HBO series Big Love.
As of 2018, Joanne Suder is the nation’s leading authority on pedophile and sexual abuse cases as she is hailed as a legal warrior who champions the rights of children and adults exploited by people entrusted with their well-being.
Her legal areas of expertise include the following: Medical Malpractice, Brain Injury, Birth Injury, Wrongful Death, Anesthesia Errors, Personal Injury, Car Accident, Construction Injury, Spinal Cord Injury, Lead Paint, Misdiagnosis, Nursing Home Negligence, Premises Liability, Truck Accidents
Joanne Suder and her law firm are AV rated by Martindale & Hubbell
(highest rating for litigation attorneys)
Member of the bar in Washington D.C. and Maryland
Past President of the Women’s Bar Association
Former Master Examiner in the Circuit Court of Baltimore City
Teresa Fidelis Lancaster
Teresa Fidelis Lancaster, Esquire is an Attorney and advocate for victims of sexual abuse who was recently featured in The Keepers, a seven-part documentary currently on Netflix. As an adult, mother, survivor and widow, Teresa returned to school to obtain her BA in Social Work from University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC) with Cum Laude. She worked as a Social Work Intern at the Baltimore Public Defender’s Office in the Juvenile Division where she advocated for juvenile offenders. Teresa left Social Work to pursue law, her true passion. Her passion for law began much earlier. As a young girl she admired her father and the work he did as an Attorney to bring about justice to those unable to attain it for themselves. Teresa went on to earn her JD from The University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law with honors and a Health Law Certificate in 2002. Amongst many other achievements she received the 2002 Excellence Award in Clinical Services, Geriatrics and Gerontology Education and Research Program, was a standing member of Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society as well as Phi Delta Phi International Legal Fraternity. Teresa’s research articles, Battered Women Syndrome, A License to Kill? And Employment Discrimination Based on Genetic Predisposition to Disease were published in the Medical Trial Technique Quarterly (MTTQ) in 2004. (MTTQ Vol. 50, No. 4, pp.121-162, Thomson West, 2004; Vol.50, No.3 pp.199-223, Thomson West, 2004) In 2008, Teresa was featured in The Daily Record for winning a Jury award for $82K for a young client who suffered lead paint exposure. Teresa joined the Suder Law Firm, P.A. to represent the survivors of child sexual abuse in their struggle to seek justice.