Biography
Sara Azari is a practicing Criminal Defense Attorney and Media Personality, based in Los Angeles, who provides legal commentary and expert analysis as a contributor and host on a variety of television programs, talk shows and news broadcasts. As of 2023, she can be seen as the resident Legal Analyst on News Nation (2020) and co-host of The Presumption crime podcast. She is multi-lingual, speaking French, Portuguese Spanish & Farsi and English, and known for her unfiltered, unbiased, informative and entertaining legal point of view.
Since 2017, Sara has been one of the CNN's preferred legal experts and go-to legal commentators. She is a regular contributor on CNN Newsroom (1989) and has also appeared on Cuomo Prime Time (2017), The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer and Pamela Brown (2005) and a majority of programs on CNN's subsidiary - the HLN Network. Sara is a familiar face on Good Morning America (1975), E! News (1991), Good Day L.A. (1993), and The Doctors (2008), weighing in on breaking news stories and celebrity scandals, as a legal analyst. From 2017-2018, she contributed criminal defense analysis as recurring guest co-host on season 3 of Crime Watch Daily (2015), and she previously appeared alongside Dr. Drew Pinksy as a panelist on the Dr. Drew on Call (2011), from 2015-2017. Other notable television credits include: MSNBC, PoliticKING with Larry King (2012), Dateline NBC (1992), Daily Mail TV (2015), Fox 11, and more.
After graduating from Southwestern University School of Law in 1999, Sara Azari joined the international law firm of Baker & McKenzie in their Rio de Janeiro offices where she was an associate in the firm's Merger & Acquisitions department, participating in multi-million dollar transactions, as well as multiple due-diligence and Foreign Corrupt Practices Act matters.
As of 2001, Azari has devoted her career to defending individuals accused of criminal wrongdoing. After spending a number of years working alongside the best lawyers in the Los Angeles area, she established the Law Office of Sara Azari in 2005, on the famous Sunset Strip in the West Hollywood area of Los Angeles and has successfully defended major criminal cases in state and federal courts throughout Southern California and the United States.
Sara Azari is a member of multiple legal associations, including the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, the American Health Lawyers Association, the Federal Bar Association, and the L.A. County, Beverly Hills and Criminal Courts Bar Associations. From 2009 to present, she has been consistently designated a Super Lawyer, a recognition that is received by a very small number of strictly vetted lawyers across the country. Super Lawyers® are nominated by their peers upon a rigorous evaluation in a number of areas, including proper licensing, peer recognition, and professional achievements. In 2013, Azari was also recognized as one of the top 50 Women Lawyers in California and in 2017, she was featured as a "Power Player" by Angelino Magazine.
In addition to her outstanding trial record, Azari has negotiated successful resolutions and dispositions in criminal, regulatory, and administrative matters. She also gives her time and knowledge as a volunteer within her community. She helps host free clinics and self-assistance workshops to both educate and assist low-income families and the general public with legal documents and other issues.
