Ethan P. Meaney has been practicing in the area of DWI defense since 2001. Prior to that he prosecuted hundreds of DWIs in Hennepin and Goodhue Counties. Meaney has represented hundreds of DWI cases and his recent victories in the Minnesota Court of Appeals cases State of Minnesota v. David John Sundrum, State of Minnesota v. Paul Scott Demars, and Tracey Ernest Wiberg v. Commissioner of Public Safety are just examples of his commitment to quality DWI representation. Meaney graduated magna cum laude from Northern State University in 1996 and graduated in 1999 from the University of South Dakota School of Law in the top quarter of his class. Immediately out of law school Meaney was a judicial clerk for the Honorable Richard C. Perkins, Minnesota First Judicial District Court Judge. He then joined the firm of Hoff, Barry & Kuderer in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, where he was the sole criminal prosecutor. From his time prosecuting, Meaney has developed a unique understanding of DWI law from a prosecutor’s point of view and has utilized that in successfully representing his DWI clients. In 2001 he joined the criminal defense firm of Gerald Miller & Associates, where he defended hundreds of DWI clients throughout Minnesota. During this time he has tried countless license revocation (Implied Consent), DWI vehicle forfeiture, criminal DWI, and appellate DWI cases. In 2005 he co-founded Meaney & Patrin with law partner Derek Patrin, and throughout the years they have come to be known as Minnesota’s “DWI Guys.” Meaney loves practicing in the area of criminal DWI defense because it gives him the opportunity to assist clients in an area of law that has become too harsh on Minnesota drivers, especially with regard to loss of license privileges, loss of vehicle and mandatory jail time. His goal is to make sure drivers have a voice against an increasingly unsympathetic criminal justice system.
Education:
- University of South Dakota School of Law, Vermillion, South Dakota J.D. – 1999
- Northern State University, Aberdeen, South Dakota B.S. – 1996; Honors: magna cum laude; Major: Criminal Justice; Major: Political Science
Bar Admissions:
- Minnesota, 1999
Honors:
- Top 100 Lawyers- American Society of Legal Advocates
- Top 100 Trial Lawyers- National Trial Lawyers
Professional Associations:
- Minnesota State Bar Association, member, 06/1999 to Present
- Hennepin County Bar Association, member, 06/2001 to Present
- National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, member, 06/2010 to Present
- Minnesota Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers , member, 06/2010 to Present
- National College of DUI Defense, member, 06/2012 to Present