Carl Lietz has been practicing law in federal court for his entire legal career. After graduating from Vermont Law School in 1995 with a J.D. degree and a Master of Studies in Environmental Law, cum laude, Carl clerked for two federal judges: the Honorable Sharon Lovelace Blackburn, Chief United States District Judge for the Northern District of Alabama, and the Honorable Orinda D. Evans, United States District Judge for the Northern District of Georgia. Upon the completion of his second federal clerkship, Carl worked for a number of years at a highly regarded Atlanta law firm that specializes in the defense of white collar matters.

Before forming Kish & Lietz, Carl served as Sentencing Resource Counsel at the Federal Defender Office in Atlanta, Georgia. During his five year tenure in an office that many regard as one of the premier training arenas for federal criminal attorneys, Carl tried a significant number of federal jury trials, litigated hundreds of evidentiary and sentencing hearings, and argued cases before the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. While working in the Federal Defender Office, Carl was counsel of record in the Olympic Park bombing case of United States v. Eric Robert Rudolph. In that capacity, Carl was drafted by the Birmingham defense team in the Rudolph matter to author the motions that challenged the searches conducted by the Government shortly after Mr. Rudolph was identified as a material witness in connection with the Birmingham bombing.

Since forming Kish and Lietz, Carl has continued to devote his career to the defense of individuals facing federal charges. Carl is an aggressive and creative advocate, and for this reason, other lawyers routinely seek Carl's advice and assistance on complex legal issues. In 2007 and 2008, Carl was selected as one of Georgia Trend magazine's "Legal Elite." The Legal Elite were selected as the "best" in the state in 10 different practice areas based on a survey of several thousand Georgia lawyers.  Carl enjoys working with and learning from other lawyers.  He is a frequent lecturer at both national and regional seminars pertaining to federal criminal law.  In addition, Carl is a member of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, the Federal Bar Association, and the Lawyer¹s Club of Atlanta.