Ellen Medlin Richmond is Defenders' General Counsel. 

She counsels Defenders' leadership on nonprofit corporate and commercial issues, including governance matters, contract issues, and risk management. Her advice draws on years of experience in private practice advising corporations on a wide variety of commercial matters. Early in her career, Ellen clerked for the Honorable Raymond C. Fisher on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. She holds a J.D. from Stanford Law School, an M.S. from the Stanford Interdisciplinary Program on Environment and Resources, and a B.A. from Brown University.