Brendan Keller

Brendan Keller joined ILS’s Hurrell-Harring implementation team as Counsel at First Appearance Attorney in June of 2020. Prior to starting with ILS, Brendan spent most of his career providing mandated representation to criminal defendants. Most recently, he served as Deputy Chief Assistant Public Defender at the Schenectady County Public Defender’s Office.

Brendan is a native of the Capital District, having grown up in Niskayuna, New York. He went on to study philosophy at the University of Glasgow in Scotland where he earned an MA(Hons) in Philosophy. Upon returning to the United States, Brendan attended law school at the University of Pittsburgh, where he earned a JD with a certificate of advanced study in international and comparative law.

Brendan belongs to several professional organizations, including the New York State Bar Association, New York State Defender’s Association and the National Legal Aid and Defender’s Association. He has planned and participated in several training events, most recently presenting a CLE to the Schenectady County Bar Association on the 2020 changes to the Criminal Procedure Law. He has also spoken internationally, delivering a series of talks on the American criminal justice system to college students in Beijing, China in 2016. For the past three years, Brendan has enjoyed co-coaching Niskayuna High School’s New York State High School Mock Trial team.