About Katie
Katie Bourassa built a practice informed by time in the public defender system and a stint in appellate defense. She earned her J.D. from Oklahoma City University School of Law in 2017 after beginning law school in 2014. That classroom training was followed quickly by work in the trenches of criminal defense.
Straight out of law school she joined the Oklahoma County Public Defender's Office as an Assistant Public Defender in 2017. The job placed her in front of judges and juries. It required fast case assessment, frequent client contact and steady courtroom preparation. She handled arraignments, motions, plea negotiations and trials, gaining practical experience on many stages of criminal practice.
In 2019 she moved to the Oklahoma Indigent Defense System as Appellate Defense Counsel. That role shifted the emphasis from trial-level advocacy to legal research and appellate briefing. She wrote briefs, prepared records on appeal and argued legal issues in a higher court context. The position demanded concise legal writing and careful attention to procedural posture.
Those consecutive roles — trial work followed by appellate practice — have shaped how she approaches cases. She is comfortable in courtrooms and in the research-intensive environment of appeals. Her background gives her perspective on both fact development at trial and legal argument on appeal.
At present she operates Bourassa Law Office, P.L.L.C. The firm handles criminal defense matters and related appellate proceedings. She represents clients in state court and navigates post-conviction processes when appropriate. Her clients include individuals facing a range of criminal charges, and she assists them through pretrial strategy, plea options and trial preparation when cases proceed that far.
Her transition from public employment to private practice reflects a continuity of subject matter rather than a sharp change of direction. The skills she developed in public defense — client interviewing, evidence preparation, motion practice and oral advocacy — carry over directly. Equally, the appellate work taught tighter brief writing and an eye for preserving issues for review.
She is licensed to practice in Oklahoma and maintains an active practice in the state. Her office handles both trial-level representation and appeals, and she continues to represent clients in criminal cases and appellate matters.
