LaDonna Falvey

Overview

LaDonna Falvey serves as Lead Paralegal and Firm Administrator at Elizabeth Franklin-Best, P.C. As lead paralegal, she supports the document-intensive work of our federal appellate and post-conviction practice under attorney supervision; as firm administrator, she manages the systems and schedules that keep complex federal matters organized and on time. She is a paralegal and administrator, not an attorney, and she does not give legal advice or represent clients — our principal attorney, Elizabeth Franklin-Best, provides all legal representation.

Background and Experience

LaDonna Falvey brings an unusual and valuable background to our firm. Before her paralegal career, she spent more than fifteen years as an award-winning investigative journalist — work that built exactly the skills federal appellate and post-conviction practice depends on: careful research, close reading of records, and the discipline to assemble a complete and accurate factual picture. She combines that experience with formal paralegal training.

Role at Our Firm

As Lead Paralegal, LaDonna Falvey supports the preparation of appellate briefs, post-conviction motions, and compassionate release petitions — the document-intensive work at the heart of our practice. As Firm Administrator, she keeps our operations and case workflow running on schedule. All of this work is performed under the supervision of Elizabeth Franklin-Best, who directs strategy and provides all legal advice and representation; LaDonna does not advise clients on the law or appear in court.

Within those boundaries, her day-to-day support typically includes:

• Organizing and indexing voluminous records, transcripts, and exhibits so the trial record can be reviewed closely
• Tracking the strict deadlines that govern federal appeals and post-conviction motions
• Assembling and formatting briefs, motions, and supporting exhibits for attorney review and filing
• Supporting electronic filing in federal district and appellate courts at the direction of the supervising attorney
• Coordinating the logistics of client and family communication, consistent with the firm’s confidentiality obligations
• Managing case files, internal workflow, and firm operations so matters move forward without administrative delay

The practice she supports carries 2026 recognition on two national platforms: Chambers USA ranks the firm in Litigation: White-Collar Crime & Government Investigations, and Best Lawyers in America lists it for Appellate Practice. Disciplined paralegal and administrative support is part of how that work gets done well.