Biography
Catalina L.C. Goodwin is a senior associate at Ritchie, Johnson & Stovall, P.C. Ms. Goodwin is a state and federal criminal defense trial and appellate attorney with substantial experience in complex motions practice. She has written appellate briefs for the Tennessee Court of Appeals, the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals, and the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, and presented oral argument. Ms. Goodwin also lectures regularly on criminal defense matters and teaches in the Wrongful Convictions Clinic at the University of Tennessee Winston College of Law.
A native of Mount Pleasant, Texas, Ms. Goodwin graduated from Mississippi State University in 2017 with a Bachelor of Arts in Spanish and minors in Political Science, International Studies, and Pre-Law. She graduated from Vanderbilt Law School in 2020. At Vanderbilt, Ms. Goodwin was an authorities editor for the Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law, Vice President of the Federalist Society, and a member of the Mock Trial team. Ms. Goodwin clerked for Ritchie, Johnson & Stovall, P.C. beginning in May 2019 and joined the firm as an attorney in January 2021. She and her husband, John, live in the county with their two dogs, Davy and Dolly.
News
Selected Publications & Presentations
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Suspicious Minds: Investigating and Litigating Mental Health in Complex Cases, Kentucky Department of Public Advocacy, June 4, 2025
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Sex, Lies, and Social Media: Defense Subpoenas and the Stored Communications Act, Kentucky Department of Public Advocacy, June 4, 2025
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Leverage: Creating a Position of Strength in Negotiations, Federal Criminal Defenders Officers for the Western and Middle Districts of North Carolina, August 25, 2025
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Impeachment, Hamilton Burnett American Inns of Court, December 10, 2024
- The Value of Membership: The Wise Fool, Hamilton Burnett American Inns of Court, October 10, 2023
- Competency and Professionalism, Hamilton Burnett American Inns of Court, April 11, 2023
Practice Areas
- Financial Crimes
- Corporate Crisis Management
- Homicide
- Sexual Assault
- Controlled Substances
Admissions
- United States Supreme Court
- United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
- United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee
- United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee
- Tennessee Supreme Court
Involvement
- National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers
- Tennessee Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers
- Hamilton Burnett Chapter of the American Inns of Court
- Federalist Society
- Knoxville Bar Association
Education
- Vanderbilt Law School, Doctor of Jurisprudence (2020)
- Mississippi State University, Bachelor of Arts (2017)