Attorney Richard Samdperil has been trying cases in New Hampshire courts for more than 30 years.
He has tried and won cases in almost every court in southern New Hampshire, and has briefed and argued dozens of cases at the New Hampshire Supreme Court.
Richard’s practice includes criminal defense, DUI defense, appellate litigation, and certain civil and personal injury litigation. Richard’s clients come from all different backgrounds, and include professionals, craftsmen, laborers, business owners, and students.
An Experienced Trial and Appellate Lawyer
Over the past decades, Richard Samdperil has represented clients in some of New Hampshire’s most serious criminal cases. He has tried and won cases in the circuit and superior courts of Cheshire, Grafton, Hillsborough, Rockingham, Strafford and Sullivan counties. He estimates that he has tried close to 200 cases before either a judge or jury. His superior court cases typically include homicides, serious assaults, fraud and theft allegations, drug offenses, and other felonies. His practice in circuit and district courts includes DUI and other motor vehicle charges, assaults, restraining orders, and other criminal matters. He has also represented businesses, business owners, and government entities in civil matters.
Prior to entering private practice in 2006, Richard spent 11 years with the New Hampshire Public Defender program as a trial attorney in four different counties, and from 1999-2000 managed the Manchester office, the state’s largest public defender office.
From 2000-2002, Richard worked as part of a select group of criminal appeals lawyers at the Appellate Defender Program, then based at the Franklin Pierce Law Center in Concord, New Hampshire (now the University of New Hampshire Franklin Pierce School of Law). Richard maintains an active appellate practice and has briefed and/or argued more than 60 cases before the New Hampshire Supreme Court, many of which have resulted in published opinions.
Teacher and Author
Richard Samdperil has authored materials and taught other lawyers on topics including criminal law and procedure, New Hampshire constitutional law, ethics and professional responsibility, law and forensic sciences, evidence, and practical trial skills.
Richard is an adjunct faculty member of the University of New Hampshire Franklin Pierce School of Law in Concord, New Hampshire, where he has taught courses in Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure, Fundamentals of Law Practice, and Trial Advocacy. From January 2019 to August 2020, Richard also served as the Interim Director of the law school’s Criminal Practice Clinic. As the Clinic’s Director, Richard taught and supervised law students representing indigent defendants in actual court proceedings.
In August of 2024, Richard was a scholar-in-residence at Symbiosis Law School in Pune, India, where he taught Indian law students legal writing and advocacy skills, and also presented lectures on U.S. legal process and comparative criminal law.
From 2007-08, Richard was an adjunct faculty member in the Criminal Justice Department at Saint Anselm College in Manchester, New Hampshire where he taught Criminal Law to undergraduates.
Richard is also a contributing author to A Practical Guide to Evidence in New Hampshire (first published in 2010 and now in its 3rd edition), Utilizing Forensic Evidence in Criminal Cases (2012-2013 edition), and has revised and updated the New Hampshire Practice Guide chapter on Ethics & Professionalism (2022).
Associations and Recognition
Richard is a member of both the National and New Hampshire Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, and he has been affiliated with both organizations for the past twenty years. Richard is also a member of the National College for DUI Defense. From 2013-2016 and 2024-2026, Richard co-chaired the New Hampshire Bar Association’s Criminal Justice Section.
In 2020, Richard was appointed by the Chief Justice of the N.H. Supreme Court to serve as a member of the New Hampshire Judicial Council and was re-appointed to another term in 2024. He currently serves as the Council’s vice-chair, and was appointed to act as the agency’s temporary executive director from December 2022 through November 2023.
Richard is a past member of the New Hampshire Bar Association’s Ethics and Professionalism committees, and is a past president of the Rockingham County Bar Association. Richard is also a past chair and member of the Board of Directors for the Seacoast Science Center.
Richard maintains a top rating with Avvo and has been listed among Thompson Reuter’s Super Lawyers for seven consecutive years.
Selected Presentations and Publications
August 20, 2024 – Mumbai, India
BITS Law School
Fundamentals of Legal Writing
April 12, 2024 – Concord, New Hampshire
New Hampshire Bar Association
Evidence: Hitting All the Right Notes to Win Your Case
Practical Evidence in Superior Court
Contributing Author – MCLE New England: A Practical Guide to Evidence in New Hampshire (3d ed. 2024)
March 26-27 & 28-29, 2024 – Skopje, North Macedonia
National Center for State Courts
Trial Advocacy from a U.S. Defense Attorney Perspective
Trial Advocacy Skills for Defense Lawyers in North Macedonia
December 13, 14 & 15, 2023 – Skopje, North Macedonia
National Center for State Courts
Attorney Ethics from a U.S. Defense Attorney Perspective
Ethics for Defense Lawyers in North Macedonia
December 5, 2023 – Concord, New Hampshire
New Hampshire Bar Association
NHBA’s Practical Skills Program for New Admittees
Ethics Workshop
May 15, 2014 – Concord, New Hampshire
New Hampshire Bar Association
DWI Litigation: Keeping Pace with a Rapidly Changing Landscape
Recent Case of Interest to DWI Litigators
September 25, 2013 – Concord, New Hampshire
New Hampshire Bar Association
Voir Dire Techniques for Civil Practice
November 9, 2012 – Concord, New Hampshire
New Hampshire Bar Association
Sentencing Law and Practice from All Perspectives
Contributing Author – Utilizing Forensic Science in Criminal Cases (Aspatore (Thomson Reuters) 2012 ed.)
November 5, 2010 – Concord, New Hampshire
New Hampshire Bar Association
Anatomy of a Criminal Jury Trial
May 21, 2010 – Manchester, New Hampshire
New Hampshire Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers
Challenging Fingerprint Evidence
March 24, 2010 – Weeks Public Library, Greenland, New Hampshire
The Big Read: NH Reads To Kill a Mockingbird
The Role of the Defense Attorney in the Criminal Justice System
November 12, 2009 – Freeport, Maine
International Association for Identification, New England Division
Panelist, Discussion of National Academy of Science Report