Natalie Amato
Attorney
“For years, many survivors of sexual abuse have suffered in silence or been convinced they didn’t have the right to have their stories told. I am passionate about providing a voice for those who have never had a chance to be heard and obtaining fair and just compensation for survivors.”
Natalie Amato, Esq., is an Attorney at The Yost Legal Group. Before joining The Yost Legal Group, Natalie was a Chief Solicitor at the Baltimore City Law Department, litigating complex, high-liability, and high-exposure cases primarily in federal court.
Natalie also was the lead attorney for the Law Department in the area of Sexual Assault Investigations under the federal Consent Decree. In that capacity, Natalie guided the Baltimore Police Department in reforming its policies, practices, and procedures to ensure the Department engaged in legally-sound, trauma-informed, victim-centered, and offender-focused sexual assault investigations.
The Consent Decree, which is ongoing, requires the Baltimore Police Department to comply with the law, engage in best practices for sexual assault investigations, and actively avoid gender bias.
Natalie has always had a passion for advocating for some of society’s most vulnerable and underrepresented individuals, especially victims of violence and children.
She served as a prosecutor in Baltimore City and handled a high-volume caseload, including cases involving charges of domestic violence, physical and sexual child abuse, sexual assault, and homicide. Her successes include:
- The conviction after trial and jail sentence of a Baltimore City school teacher who abused numerous students during school hours. Natalie also worked with federal authorities on the teacher’s federal child pornography charges.
- A 60-year jail sentence in a rape and incest case where the victim became impregnated with the abuser’s child.
- A jail sentence of Life + 60 in a rape/shooting home invasion.
- The conviction after trial and jail sentence of 30 years of a man who sexually assaulted a Baltimore City woman.
- The conviction and jail sentence of a man who raped his 12-year-old stepdaughter.
- The conviction after trial and jail sentence of a man who strangled his pregnant girlfriend.
- The resolution of thousands of cases involving vulnerable individuals in the Baltimore City criminal justice system.
Natalie has worked with victims of sexual and interpersonal violence in various capacities since 2002. Prior to becoming a prosecutor, Natalie was trained as a certified rape crisis counselor and advocate with the Boston Area Rape Crisis Center (2006 through 2008). She then went on to work as a crisis volunteer on the Rape, Abuse, & Incest National Network (RAINN) hotline from 2012 through 2013.
Natalie brings her extensive knowledge of sexual assault investigations to bear in her representation of individuals who have suffered sexual abuse at the hands of those who were responsible for their protection and safety.
EDUCATION
- Dual B.A. Boston University – summa cum laude
- J.D. University of Maryland School of Law – cum laude
- Rose Zetzer Women, Leadership, & Equality Fellow
BAR ADMISSIONS
- Maryland Bar
- New York Bar
- U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland
PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS
- American Association for Justice, 2024 – Present
- Maryland Association for Justice, 2024 – Present
- Women’s Law Center of Maryland, Judicial Selections Committee, 2022 – Present
- Baltimore City Bar Association, 2015 – Present
- University of Maryland School of Law, Alumni Board, 2016 – 2022
AWARDS
- Sustained Leadership Award, Baltimore City Bar Association, Young Lawyer’s Division, 2021
- Leadership in Law, Generation J.D. Award, The Daily Record, 2020
- Women’s Bar Association of Maryland Scholarship Recipient, 2009
PUBLICATIONS
- Black v. Simms: A Lost Opportunity to Benefit Children by Preserving Sibling Relationships When Same-Sex Families Dissolve, Family Law Quarterly (45 Fam. L.Q. 377 (2011)
- Government on ‘High Alert’ For Patriot Act Revisions, Boston University Pre-Law Review (9 B.U. Pre-L. Rev. 10 (2004))