
Rikki Klieman
Television Anchor, Legal Analyst, Trial Attorney, Actor & Best-Selling Author. Married to William Bratton, former chief of the LA Police Department and NYC Police Department
Television anchor, legal analyst, trial attorney, actor and best-selling author, Rikki Klieman has earned a sterling reputation as one of the nation’s most celebrated lawyers and legal authorities. A dynamic and versatile communicator, Klieman found success in multiple fields, including television journalism, the courtroom, academia and public speaking. Rikki is now a Contributor/Legal Analyst for…
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Full Bio
Television anchor, legal analyst, trial attorney, actor and best-selling author, Rikki Klieman has earned a sterling reputation as one of the nation’s most celebrated lawyers and legal authorities. A dynamic and versatile communicator, Klieman found success in multiple fields, including television journalism, the courtroom, academia and public speaking. Rikki is now a Contributor/Legal Analyst for CBS News.
She was an Anchor at the Courtroom Television Network from 1994-2010 and a Contributor for the CBS Early Show, the NBC Today Show as well as the E! Network. She has also appeared as a legal analyst on NBC’s Nightly News, CBS Evening News, ABC, CNN, CNBC and MSNBC. In addition, Rikki continues to inspire the lives of others with her autobiography, “Fairy Tales Can Come True – How a Driven Woman Changed Her Destiny,” which reached the L.A. Times Best Seller List.
She remains Of Counsel to the Boston, Massachusetts law firm of Klieman & Lyons, where she specialized in criminal trial and appellate practice as well as civil litigation. She received her J.D. from Boston University School of Law. Prior to her legal career, she was a theater major at Northwestern University who became a professional actress. Following law school, she served as a law clerk for the Honorable Walter Jay Skinner of the United States District Court of Massachusetts, and as a prosecutor with both the Middlesex and Norfolk County District Attorney’s offices.
She was named one of the five most outstanding women trial lawyers in the country by TIME magazine. She is often the subject of magazine and newspaper articles and was profiled by CNN. She has been interviewed on countless radio and television programs about various aspects of criminal and civil law and procedure, including, among others, “60 minutes,” “20/20”, “The McLaughlin Group” and a “Nightline Special Report” on rape hosted by the late Peter Jennings.
Ms. Klieman was a member of the Adjunct Faculty at Columbia Law School, teaching a course on Trial Strategies in Major Current Cases. She was an Adjunct Professor at Boston University School of Law teaching trial practice. She lectures across the country on the legal system and taught trial advocacy at the Intensive Trial Advocacy Program at Harvard, the University of Virginia Trial Advocacy Institute, Northwestern University’s Short Course for Criminal Defense Lawyers, the National Criminal Defense College, the Western Trial Advocacy Institute and Gerry Spence’s Trial Lawyers College.
She has published numerous articles on criminal law and contributed to a book, “Women Trial Lawyers.” She was featured in a chapter of “Good Will Toward Men” by Jack Kammer and in the national best seller, “A Civil Action” by Jonathan Harr. She writes the bi-annual supplement for “Representing Witnesses Before Federal Grand Juries.” She was the co-editor of a book on cross examination called “Take the Witness.” In addition, she was a columnist about legal issues for the popular LA Confidential Magazine. She currently writes for The Daily Beast.
Ms. Klieman served on the Advisory Committee to the U.S. Supreme Court on the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, the Board of Directors of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and the Board of Visitors for Boston University School of Law. She was a member of the American Bar Association’s National Conference of Lawyers and Representatives of the Media. She currently serves on the Council of 100, a mentoring organization of outstanding alumnae for the benefit of collegiate women and young graduates at Northwestern University.
Ms. Klieman lectures to various business and bar associations as well as charitable and school groups on topics including “Law, Politics and the Media,” “Achieving a Life of Significance,” “Magnificent Motivation,” “Powerful Communication from the Courtroom to the Boardroom,” “Theatre in the Courtroom,” “Visionary Leadership,” and “You Can Have it All, But Not All At The Same Time.”
Returning to acting, Klieman portrayed James Caan’s attorney, Cathy Burson, on NBC’s “Las Vegas” for four seasons and Judge Dana Pearlman on CBS’s “Shark” with James Woods. She appeared as a guest star in “Blue Bloods,” “NYPD Blue,” “90210,” and “Dr. Vegas.” She portrayed herself on “The Closer,” “Boston Legal” and in the films “Cable Guy” and “American Tragedy.” In movies, she has performed in “A Civil Action” and “The Fighter.” She is a member of SAG-AFTRA and Actors Equity.
Rikki is the wife of William Bratton, Former NYPD Police Commissioner, which creates new opportunities to give back to the community. She is now serving on the Board of Directors of the Police Athletic League (PAL), dedicated to creating a safe place for kids…a passion throughout her life.
From early days of raising funds for City of Hope to later years for City Meals on Wheels, she believes in helping those most often in need – children, families and the elderly. Her great joys have been working as a mentor at Northwestern University and at Court TV and serving as a member of the Board of Directors of Shepherd House, a Boston women’s halfway house for those who suffered from substance abuse problems and were on the road to recovery. She also served on the Executive Board of the ADL (Anti Defamation League) in both New England and New York.
When she and her husband lived in Los Angeles during his tenure as Chief of Police, she pursued her interests of mentoring young people and joining the fight against sexual assault and domestic violence – work in which she has been active for decades. She was a member of the Board of Directors of the Rape Treatment Center of UCLA-Santa Monica and the Board of Directors of LA’s Best, an after school enrichment program for disadvantaged elementary school children. For these community endeavors, she was the recipient of various public service awards.
Rikki and her husband now live in New York City where she also serves on the Board of Directors and the Membership Committee of the Women’s Forum.
Testimonials
Ernie was perfect for our Elders Conference at Little River Casino Resort in Manistee, Michigan. We will definitely be using PDA again!

LITTLE RIVER BAND OF OTTAWA INDIANS
Our speaker was great and the crowd enjoyed her! She was very engaging. Thank you again PDA for the great list of suggestions!

MEDTRONIC
Everything went great! and our speaker was wonderful! Thank you so much for all your help PDA! Looking forward to the next one.

UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI – KANSAS CITY
I hope that this message finds you well. We had a phenomenal time with Atsuko this past Thursday. We wanted to just let you know how amazing she was. All those that were in attendance thoroughly enjoyed her and had nothing but amazing things to say about her. Thank you for working with us to make sure this happened!

BAYLOR UNIVERSITY CAMPUS
We had a fantastic day with Inge! She was very engaging with all those that attended. Her personal stories about the holocaust were very special and we were moved that she was willing to share them with everyone. Thank you again, PDA for all your hard work and dedication to make this program such a success!

SALT LAKE COMMUNITY COLLEGE
Dear PDA Group, Thank you so much for your hard work in scheduling our speaker! From the moment we reached out to you the first time, you worked with us on all details and logistics and kept us up-to-date on the progress. Thank you for all your hard work on making our event such a success! We couldn't have done it without you and your team!

SAP COMPANY
Thank you again, Dr. Kimbrough, for a great presentation, our attendees are still talking about it!

CAMPUS LABS
Dr. Henry Lee's presentation was entertaining, insightful and wise. I, and everyone at Pfizer, especially appreciate the remarks you directed about following your passion and preparing yourself to excel. Thank you, everyone, at PDA for helping to make this happen!

PFIZER
The event was successful! I received many messages expressing how awesome, outstanding and inspiring Ms. Webb-Christburg's speech was."

DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. MEMORIAL BREAKFAST, BOSTON, MLK SPEAKER
Everything went well. Atsuko was very easy to work with and the students enjoyed her performance! Thank you again for your recommendation and I hope to work with you again in the future!

CENTRAL MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY
Dr. Novello left this morning after a very successful event on our campus! Thank you PDA Group for your help from the first phone to the last you were with us every step of the way.

GRAND VALLEY STATE UNIVERSITY
Jordan Carlos was very very entertaining! A majority of students who answered the event survey indicated they really enjoyed Jordan and definitely will bring him back!

WESTERN CAROLINA UNIVERSITY
On behalf of myself and my organization Entertainment Unlimited the Campus Programming Board of Ferris State University, we thank you PDA and Dan for a successful event!! Dan was magnificent! Students really enjoyed the presentation. I know I did. Can't wait to bring in more programs with PDA Group.

FERRIS STATE UNIVERSITY
It was a great pleasure to work with PDA Group! The communication was always prompt, friendly and helpful. We loved the speakers and events we booked through Mr. Peter Walker (PDA Group).

WESTERN MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY
Thank you, Peter, for all your help, you'll be happy to know that the event went incredibly well! Aneesa Ferreira was by far one of the best speakers we've ever had!

FURMAN UNIVERSITY
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