About The Firm

About DP Law

DP Law has earned the trust of businesses, organizations and educational institutions throughout the northeastern United States for its expertise in analyzing sexual misconduct and discrimination allegations with sensitivity and compassion for all parties and minimal disruption to the organization.

At DP Law, we understand the reputational, psychological, emotional and financial harm caused by sexual misconduct and discrimination allegations and we work extremely hard to devise investigation plans to achieve trauma-informed, thorough and fair outcomes that withstand judicial scrutiny and leave all parties feeling heard and respected.

Our work is all about the institutions and the parties involved in our investigations. We care about keeping our clients and the parties comfortable and informed in stressful circumstances and completing investigations efficiently.

Djuna Perkins

PRINCIPAL

Djuna Perkins opened DP Law in 2012 after working for twenty years as a prosecutor and litigator. She served for ten years as a Massachusetts assistant attorney general and assistant district attorney in Boston, and then joined the Boston firm of Brody, Hardoon, Perkins & Kesten, LLP, in 2003, where she represented individuals, businesses and schools in discrimination, personal injury, criminal and insurance defense litigation as well as in labor contract negotiations and employee grievances.

Djuna’s work with DP Law quickly earned her acclaim as she became one of the most sought-after sexual misconduct and discrimination investigators in Massachusetts.

Today, Djuna is nationally recognized as a leader in sexual misconduct investigations, and has commented on the subject for media outlets including Fox 25, NPR, the Boston Globe, Al-Jazeera and NHK Japan. She has been featured on NPR’s All Things Considered and in The Chronicle of Higher Education, and has published articles in the Boston Bar Journal and the Massachusetts Law Review.

Djuna is a United Educators Pro Response provider, and she is a member of the American Arbitration Association’s Investigator Panel. Djuna has been named a Massachusetts Super Lawyer since 2018.

Full Biography

DP Law principal Djuna Perkins spent most of the first half of her career as a prosecutor, first as a Massachusetts assistant attorney general working in Appeals, the Safe Neighborhood Initiative and the Narcotics Unit, and then as an Assistant District Attorney in Boston, where she served as Chief of the Domestic Violence Unit.

After leaving the District Attorney’s office, Djuna joined Brody, Hardoon, Perkins & Kesten, LLP, where she represented individuals, business and schools in employment discrimination, personal injury, criminal and insurance defense litigation as well as labor contract negotiations and grievance disputes. She has tried dozens of cases to juries in the District and Superior Courts of Massachusetts and has appeared before the Massachusetts Appeals Court and the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court.

In 2012, Djuna left Brody, Hardoon to open DP Law and quickly became one of the most sought-out sexual misconduct and discrimination investigators in Massachusetts for her investigative and analytical skills as well as her obvious pleasure in working with young people and her ability to establish rapport with individuals of all ages and backgrounds. Djuna is nationally recognized as a thought leader in the area of sexual misconduct investigations, and has commented on the subject for media outlets including Fox 25, NPR, the Boston Globe, Al-Jazeera and NHK Japan. She has been featured on NPR’s All Things Considered and in The Chronicle of Higher Education, and has published articles in the Boston Bar Journal and the Massachusetts Law Review. Djuna is a graduate of Smith College and Boston University School of Law.

Key Facts

Over one hundred OCR-compliant investigations completed for colleges, universities and secondary schools throughout New England.
Trained in the new regulations issued by OCR and effective August 14, 2020
United Educators Pro Response preferred provider
Panelist, American Arbitration Association Workplace Investigation Panel
2013 graduate of Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination’s “Investigating Internal Complaints of Discrimination” and “Train-the-Trainer” courses
Co-founder, Walk the Line: Protecting Our Relationships with Students, a training program about maintaining safe boundaries with students
Co-founder, Association of Sexual Misconduct and Discrimination Investigators of New England

Education

Boston University School of Law
Smith College

Work

DP Law (2012 – present)
Brody, Hardoon, Perkins and Kesten (2003-2012)
Suffolk County District Attorney (1997-2002)
Office of the Attorney General (1993-1997)

Community

Chair, Board of Directors, Brookview House (2014-2018)
- Chair-elect, 2013-14
- Member, 2011-2018
Hearing Officer, Board of Bar Overseers (2006-2012)
Member, School Site Council, Joyce Kilmer K-8 School, Boston (2005-2008)
Trustee, Women’s Bar Foundation (2007-2010)
Member, Governor’s Commission on Sexual and Domestic Violence, Justice and Accountability Committee (2004-2006)

Teaching

Adjunct Professor, Employee Rights and Employer Obligations, College of Professional Studies, Northeastern University (2013 – 2018)
Adjunct Professor, Criminal Law and Procedure, Northeastern University College of Criminal Justice, graduate program (Summer 2005)
Numerous trainings and presentations about sexual harassment, sexual misconduct, Title IX, trial advocacy, domestic violence and the criminal and civil justice system to students, faculty and staff of colleges and universities, police officers, lawyers and community groups.

Publications

“Quest Into Judge’s Past Helps Lawyer Find Meaning, Sustainability in Practice of Law,” Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly (March 21, 2019)
“Behind the Headlines: An Insider’s Guide to Title IX and the Student Discipline Process for Campus Sexual Assaults,” Boston Bar Journal (Summer 2015, Vol. 59, No. 13)
”Rethinking the Fresh Complaint Rule in Sexual Assault Cases: A Response to Commonwealth v. Montanez,”
89 Mass. L. Rev. 2 (2004)

Attorney Perkins provides professional and thorough investigative services. She creates a comfortable environment for students as they participate in difficult conversations. Her reports are clear, thorough, logical, and instructive. She consistently provides sage and sensible guidance.”

If all Title IX investigations were conducted the way Djuna describes doing them, I would be happy.

Attorney Perkins is an expert investigator and understands both Title IX and Title VII….She is flexible and comfortable interviewing all levels of faculty, staff and [students]. She conveys confidence in her fact finding skills. Her report[s] are thorough and detailed and her training skills are exemplary.

Djuna’s demeanor, experience, and thoroughness bring great comfort to students [and result in] high quality testimony. She is a strong communicator, appreciative of institutions’ timelines, and responsive to pivots that adjudication participants sometimes effect without notice–leading to confident, professional results.

Perkins cares passionately about justice. Because of her brilliant detective work, her intellectual and psychological gifts…my advisee was exonerated. I cannot imagine a more outstanding investigator.