In October 2011, she was honored as a Top Woman of Law by Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly. Attorney DeFranco is also a National Award Winner, receiving the National Legal Aid & Defenders Association’s Beacon of Justice Award for her Pro Bono Service in October 2010. In July 2011, Attorney DeFranco was published as a writer in the ABA’s book, The Road to Independence: 101 Women's Journeys to Starting Their Own Law Firms, and her scholarly article, Gender Asylum: Bringing the Law into the 21st Century, was published in the Massachusetts Bar Association’s Section Review. Ms. DeFranco was a candidate for U.S. Senate in 2012. Attorney DeFranco is a political analyst on CBS Nightside with Dan Rea, is a frequent contributor to WGBH and is a published opinion writer in the Boston Herald.