You won the criminal case. Now they’re suing you.
Most people think a self-defense incident ends with an acquittal. It doesn’t. The civil lawsuit is the third battle — and until now, it was the one AOR members faced without in-house counsel. That changes with Susan Euteneuer.
The Three Battles
Self-Defense Has Three Fights. Most People Only Prepare for One.
Every self-defense case has three distinct legal battles. Most people are prepared for the first. Very few are prepared for all three.
Battle 1 — The Street
The physical incident itself. Surviving the threat. This is what most people train for.
Battle 2 — The Criminal Case
The prosecution. Criminal charges. The fight to stay out of prison. This is where AOR has always excelled.
Battle 3 — The Civil Lawsuit [NOW COVERED IN-HOUSE]
The attacker — or their estate — files a civil suit. An acquittal doesn’t stop it. This is the third battle. This is what Susan handles.
“If that man can be sued — a client who defended a Jewish preschool in what every attorney agreed was a clear, justified shoot — the answer to ‘who can be sued after a self-defense incident’ is: anyone.”
-Andy Marcantel
Meet Your Chief Civil Counsel
She Wasn’t Available. We Poached Her.
Susan Euteneuer is now the Chief Civil Counsel for Attorneys On Retainer and General Counsel for The Attorneys For Freedom Law Firm. She brings decades of experience in complex, high-stakes litigation and multi-state matters — and a track record that makes her the last attorney any plaintiff’s lawyer wants to see across the table.
“If I was a plaintiff’s lawyer, Susan would probably be the last lawyer I’d want on the other side of the case. She knows every pain point for plaintiff’s lawyers. She knows how to make it miserable, how to drag it out.”
-Marc J. Victor, The Attorneys For Freedom Law Firm
AOR didn’t post a job listing. The firm identified who they wanted, went and got her, and brought her in-house. As an AOR member, your civil defense is now handled by an attorney who was specifically recruited to be the best possible adversary to anyone trying to take your money after you’ve defended yourself.
Learn more about Susan at AttorneysForFreedom.com under Meet the Team.
Why In-House Changes Everything
The Problem with Outsourced Civil Defense
Most programs that offer civil coverage hand the case to a different firm after the criminal case resolves. That transition has a cost — and it falls entirely on the client.
Other Programs — Start from Scratch
- Criminal case closes, new civil attorney assigned
- The new attorney has never touched your case
- Client re-explains everything from the beginning
- Transition cost falls on you — financially and mentally
- Outside attorney billed by the hour, incentivized to drag it out
- No coordination between criminal and civil strategy
- Civil attorney doesn’t know your experts, your evidence, or your jurisdiction
Attorneys On Retainer — Involved from Minute One
- Susan receives every Strike Force email from day one
- Participates in significant criminal hearings in person or remotely
- Works with your experts and evidence throughout the criminal case
- Civil strategy coordinated with criminal strategy in real time
- No billing incentive — Susan’s job is your outcome, not her hours
- Screens and selects local co-counsel in your jurisdiction
- Ready to try the case — which changes what plaintiff’s attorneys demand
“Imagine explaining your entire case from the beginning — after you’ve already been through a criminal trial — to a lawyer who says, ‘What’s your name again?’ That, times a thousand.” -Andy Marcantel, The Attorneys For Freedom Law Firm
How Susan’s Role Works
Civil Defense That Starts Before the Civil Case
The civil case may not start until years after the criminal case resolves. Susan doesn’t wait.
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Step 1: You call AOR’s 24/7 Strike Force line Susan receives every Strike Force email. From that first call, she’s part of your defense — not someone who gets looped in later.
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Step 2: Susan works alongside the criminal team Criminal and civil law operate under different rules. Decisions that look neutral from a criminal defense standpoint can have significant civil implications. Susan watches for those moments and flags them in real time.
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Step 3: Local co-counsel is selected and screened You need an attorney who knows your local court, local jury, and local rules. Susan selects and screens that attorney — so you’re not trying to find a civil litigator while already in crisis.
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Step 4: Civil case ready before it’s filed By the time a plaintiff files a civil suit, Susan knows your case inside out. The evidence. The experts. The jurisdiction. The defense is already built.
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Step 5: Ready to go to trial — and plaintiff’s attorneys know it A plaintiff’s attorney working on contingency wants a quick settlement. Susan’s posture — fully prepared, no billing incentive, happy to try the case — changes the entire negotiating dynamic.
The fight doesn’t end when the criminal case does.
Civil cases can last years. Sometimes a decade. You need someone who’s been in your corner from the beginning.
Key Takeaways
What every AOR member — and every prospective member — should understand about the third battle and what AOR’s in-house civil coverage means in practice.
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An acquittal does not end your legal exposure
Criminal and civil cases operate independently. You can be fully acquitted in criminal court and still face a civil lawsuit from the attacker or their estate. The standard of proof is lower in civil court, and the damages can be enormous.
Your criminal defense is not your civil defense. Both require dedicated representation.
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The transition cost of outsourced civil counsel falls on you
When a new civil attorney takes over after your criminal case, you start from scratch. Everything you explained to your criminal team has to be re-explained. At the worst possible moment, after the worst possible experience.
Continuity of counsel is not a luxury. It is a structural advantage that changes outcomes.
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Criminal and civil strategy must be coordinated from the start
Decisions made during the criminal case can affect the civil case in ways that aren’t obvious to a criminal defense attorney focused on keeping you out of prison. Having a civil attorney in the room during criminal proceedings protects you on both fronts.
AOR is now the only program where this coordination happens in-house, from day one.
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An attorney ready to go to trial changes what plaintiff’s attorneys demand
Plaintiff’s attorneys working on contingency don’t want expensive, drawn-out trials. When they know your civil counsel is prepared, experienced, and has no financial incentive to settle quickly, the entire negotiating dynamic shifts in your favor.
The best civil defense doesn’t just fight cases. It deters weak ones from being filed at all.
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Your civil counsel is now part of the Justice League
Susan wasn’t outsourced or referred. She was recruited — specifically because the firm wanted the best possible civil defense attorney on the team. As an AOR member, she is your attorney. Not an outside contractor. Not someone who gets a file handed to them after the fact.
Go to AttorneysForFreedom.com, Meet the Team, and get to know Susan before you ever need her.
