Alan L. Yatvin, a partner and chair of the firm’s civil rights practice, is a preeminent police misconduct and civil rights litigators. His practice focuses on civil rights litigation, criminal defense in state, federal, and international tribunals, as well as the representation of students with special needs.
With a successful career spanning 37 years, Alan has tried cases ranging from death penalty homicides to complex municipal liability police misconduct cases. He has also briefed and/or argued appellate matters before the United States Supreme Court, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court, the Pennsylvania Superior Court, and the United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in The Hague.
Alan has successfully litigated over 15 police shooting cases, recovering substantial compensation for victims and their families. On three separate occasions, he has also obtained federal jury verdicts against the City of Philadelphia on so-called Monell claims by showing a pattern and practice of police misconduct and the City’s failure to properly train or discipline its officers, placing him among the most successful attorneys in Philadelphia on these challenging claims.
In addition to his US clients, Alan also practices at the international criminal courts, where he has represented accused persons before the ICTY and the International Criminal Court (ICC), both in The Hague, and the Extraordinary Chambers in the Court of Cambodia (ECCC) in Phnom Penh, also known as the Khmer Rouge Tribunal.
After graduating from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law in New York City in 1983, Alan served as an Assistant Philadelphia and Federal Defender before entering private practice. He was managing partner of Popper & Yatvin from its founding in 1988 through 2020. A frequent lecturer on police misconduct litigation and trial advocacy skills, he is the recipient of the 2012 Thurgood Marshall Criminal Justice Award from the Philadelphia Bar Association, where he has been a member since 1987. The Court of Common Pleas for the First Judicial District of Pennsylvania (Philadelphia) presented Alan with the 2010 Pro Bono Publico Award. Alan has been selected to the Pennsylvania Super Lawyers List every year since 2004. Alan is also a member of the Pennsylvania Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers.
Alan was a member of the National Board of Directors of the American Diabetes Association from 2015-2017 and continues to represent special needs students and their parents, with a concentration on the rights of students with diabetes. He is a resident of Philadelphia.