Fraud Charges

• Local counsel for large financial institution accused of engaging in fraudulent rate-setting activity that inflated borrowing costs for a type of municipal bond known as Variable Rate Demand Obligations (“VRDO’s”)
• Representation of a financial adviser in a federal criminal case accused of violations of The Investment Advisers Act, Bank Fraud and Conspiracy
• Representation of senior executive and senior personnel in federal criminal investigation of Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (“DBE”) Fraud
• Representation of a law firm and principal shareholder under federal investigation for obtaining and causing kickbacks and unearned fees in connection with an alleged mortgage fraud scheme.
• Representation of executive in defense of allegations of bank fraud of over $20 million dollars.
• Representation of family members victimized by the Madoff Ponzi scheme.
• Representation of business executives and their companies in defense of civil racketeering charges, successfully obtaining a directed verdict at trial.
• Representation of attorneys before the Board of Bar Overseers in disciplinary proceedings.
• Representation of attorneys and law firms in defense of legal malpractice and fraudulent misrepresentation charges.
• Representation of an individual who was the subject of federal anti-kickback investigation involving pharmaceutical company and clinic.
• Representation of individual accountant for Bank accused of accounting errors and material wrongdoing.
• Representation of employees of company accused of federal tax fraud.

State / Federal Investigations

• Representation of high school basketball coach in a Title IX investigation
• Representation of an executive and senior scientist in a federal criminal False Claims Act investigation into scientific company
• Representation of Trustee and related trusts in connection with a federal criminal fraud investigation
• Representation of an individual targeted for insider trading and alleged obstruction of justice, successfully keeping client from indictment.
• Representation of senior health care executive against federal allegations of false claims and health care fraud, successfully keeping client from indictment.
• Representation of employees in mail fraud, racketeering and drug safety violations matter, successfully obtaining immunity for clients and keeping them from indictment.
• Representation of parent dialysis company in state and federal multi-district litigation alleging products liability and wrongful death in thousands of cases across the country.
• Representation of individual charged with vehicular homicide.
• Representation of health care providers, including medical doctors, nurses, dentists, and pharmacists, before Boards of Registration and Professional Licensure.
• Representation of senior scientist in False Claims Act investigation.
• Representation of union members in The Fight for Fifteen protests for raising the minimum wage.
• Representation of Senior Company Executive in federal False Claims import/export investigation.
• Representation of individual in appeal and new trial motion after sex offense convictions.
• Representation of individuals accused of felony assault and reckless endangerment through use of a car.
• Representation of individual charged with identity fraud, computer violations, and wiretap and privacy violations.
• Representation of companies, conducting complex internal investigations into allegations of workplace misconduct, fraud, and false billing schemes.

Wage and Hour Charges

• Representation of an individual charged with larceny and workers’ compensation fraud, obtaining an order withdrawing all criminal indictments prior to trial.
• Representation of a roofing company and its owners on charges they allegedly failed to disclose millions of dollars in misclassified subcontractor payroll, committed workers’ compensation fraud, and failed to pay the prevailing wage to employees.
• Representation of construction company and its owners on charges that the company allegedly failed to pay over wages to employees and committed workers’ compensation fraud.
• Representation of a telephone solicitation company and its owner on charges they allegedly misclassified employees and failed to pay an employee for working overtime.
• Representation of a farming business on charges that it allegedly committed larceny and workers’ compensation fraud when failing to disclose earned wages of employees and misclassifying employees.

Securities Fraud

• Representation of a business owner accused of alleged market manipulation by the SEC
• Representation of a financial advisor and owner of am RIA in an internal investigation and a FINRA arbitration
• Representation of a registered adviser in connection with an audit by the secretary of state securities enforcement section
• Representation of financial executive accused of Insider Trading.
• Representation of financial advisor facing SEC and fraud allegations.
• Representation of employees and witnesses in alleged investment scheme involving hedge fund managers.
• Representation of individual in administration hearing before the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Public Corruption

• Representation of an individual in a federal public corruption case involving the Zoning Board of Appeals and the related internal investigation ordered by City Hall
• Representation of senior union officials in federal labor and racketeering investigations.
• Representation of state agency employee charged with public corruption and larceny charges.
• Representation of a director of a state retirement board relating to allegations of fraud, public corruption, awarding improper contracts, and violating conflict of interest rules.
• Representation of law enforcement officer against allegations of misconduct and conflict of interest rules.

During her government career, Carol handled some of the most complex white-collar crime and public corruption cases occurring within the Commonwealth. Those matters included:

• Prosecuted charges against state treasury officials for public corruption and larceny of $9.4 million dollars from the Massachusetts treasury accounts, resulting in 6 co-defendants’ guilty pleas.
• Prosecuted charges against the Chief of Cardiology from Children’s Hospital and former Professor of Harvard Medical School for larceny and fiduciary embezzlement, resulting in conviction after trial.
• Prosecuted charges against the leader of an insurance fraud ring spanning to Lagos, Nigeria, resulting in conviction after trial.
• Prosecuted charges against a broker for investment/ securities fraud and larceny for more than $6 million dollars from clients, resulting in guilty plea.

Bar Admissions

• Massachusetts

Court Admissions

• Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts
• United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts
• United States Supreme Court

Education

• Suffolk University Law School, J.D. (1988)
• University of Colorado at Boulder, B.A. (1984)

Awards & Recognition

• Hall of Fame inductee, 2023 by Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly
• Best Lawyers in America® (2016-2024), Specialties for 2023-2024: Commercial Litigation, Criminal Defense: White-Collar, Litigation – Labor and Employment
• Designated as “Top Lawyers” 2021-2022 by Boston magazine, under Criminal Defense/White Collar
• Massachusetts Super Lawyer in Criminal Defense: White Collar, Business Litigation, General Litigation (2004-2022)
• Recognized as “Top 100 Super Lawyer” in Massachusetts (2014-2018, 2022) and in New England (2014)
• Recognized as “Top 50 Women New England Super Lawyer” (2012, 2014-2019)
• Recognized as “Top 50 Women Massachusetts Super Lawyer”  (2010-2012, 2014-2022)
• Selected as Circle of Excellence Honoree by Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly (2017)
• Selected as Top Women in the Law Honoree by Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly (2012)
• Awarded President’s Award on behalf of the Boston Bar Association’s (BBA) Mentoring Program (2011)
• Awarded Fraud Fighter of the Year by the Boston Chapter of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (2002)
• Awarded Outstanding and Invaluable Prosecution by the Insurance Fraud Bureau of Massachusetts (2001)
• Received an AV Peer Review Rating, the highest rating in The Martindale-Hubbell Lawyers Directory

• Appointed by the governing Council of the Boston Bar Association (BBA) and the American Bar Association (ABA), for a two-year term as a member of the House of Delegates of the ABA, representing the BBA’s 13,000 members at the National Association (2022-2024 )
• Appointed by the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts to the Board of Directors of the Massachusetts Legal Assistance Corporation, as the representative of the Boston Bar Association (2021-2026)
• Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly Board of Editors, Member (2018 – present)
• Boston Bar Association, Member
  • President (2016 – 2017)
  • President-Elect (2015 – 2016)
  • Vice President (2014 – 2015)
  • Finance Committee Chair (2014)
  • Treasurer (2012 – 2014)
  • Secretary (2011 – 2012)
  • Strategic Communications Committee
  • Boston Bar Association Law Day Dinner, Co-Chair (2012)
  • Council Member (2004 – 2007, 2011 – 2012)
  • Diversity & Inclusion Section, Member
  • Mentoring Program, Co-Chair
  • Criminal Law Section Steering Committee, Co-Chair
• Appointed Committee Member by Governor Deval Patrick to the Gubernatorial Commission to study compensation of Assistant District Attorneys and Public Defenders, pursuant to Executive Order No. 551. (2014)
• Massachusetts Bar Association, Member
  • Criminal Section, Member
• Vice-Chair, White Collar Investigations and Defense Committee, International Association of Defense Counsel (IADC)
• Chair of the Joint Bar Committee (JBC) for Judicial Appointments
• Committee member for the National Association of Women Judges Annual Leadership Conference in Boston, Massachusetts (2008)
• Appointed to head and facilitate The Organized Theft Task Force by the Attorney General (2000)
• Appointed Committee Member by the Honorable Chief Justice Wilkins of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court for the Supreme Judicial Court Committee On Lawyer Advertising. Findings and recommendations published in report dated October (1999)
• Appointed to head and facilitate The White Collar Crime Initiative by the Attorney General (1997)
• Massachusetts Lawyers Hall of Fame, inducted 2023 https://www.connkavanaugh.com/news/carol-starkey-inducted-into-the-massachusetts-lawyers-hall-of-fame-inaugural-class/

Articles & Publications

• Author, 4th Edition of Massachusetts Courtroom Advocacy, “Direct Examination”
• Author, 3rd Edition of Massachusetts Courtroom Advocacy, Chapter 7, “Direct Examination,” 2017
• Author, 1-3rd Editions of MCLE Publication, “Using Social Media to Win Cases.”
• Author, “Federal Leaders Need To Know How Costly It Would Be To Cut Legal Aid“, The Boston Globe, June 2017
• Contributor to the Women’s Bar Association of the District of Columbia, Raising the Bar, “Bar Associations Speak Out”, November/December 2016 issue

Speaking Engagements

In addition to the many programs at which Carol spoke as BBA President, she regularly lectured on various topics throughout the years, including:

• Panelist, Prideful Pathways hosted by Suffolk Outlaws at Suffolk Law School, November 14, 2023
• Faculty, MCLE How to Manage Multi-Practice Area and Multi-Court Law Practices, November 8, 2023
• Panelist, “When should companies self-disclose misconduct?,” Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, May 15, 2023 Webinar Registration – Zoom OR https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_aXUmiMxpQDimw5JzaU0MEA#/registration
• Panelist, “Civil Litigators: Your Clients Could be Risking Criminal Liability” Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, April 12, 2022
• Speaker, Suffolk University All Rise, March, 2022
• Presenter, Boston Bar Association’s Law Day in the Schools, May 10, 2019
• Panelist, “The Perks and Pitfalls of Law Firm Partnership,” Boston Bar Association CLE, February 26, 2019
• Event Chair, “All Rise: Uniting to Advance Women and the Future of Law,” and Moderator, “Rising Up: A Dialogue Through the Generations Law Alumnae Panel,” Suffolk University Law School, November 15, 2018
• Faculty, “Win Cases by Exploiting Social Media & Utilizing the Internet,” MCLE, October 30, 2018
• Panelist and Moderator, The Boston Bar Association’s Women’s Leadership Forum, “The Reward of Taking Professional Risks,” at the BBA, June 7, 2018
• Panelist and Moderator, WBA three-part series entitled, “Paths to First Chair Litigation: How to Take the Lead in Criminal Litigation,” at Suffolk University Law School, March 5, 2018
• Panelist and Moderator, BBA White Collar Crime Conference, on Public Corruption and Government Prosecutions, January 18, 2018
• Panelist at an MCLE on ethics and trial practice entitled, MCLE, “Using Social Media to Win Cases,” 2017, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012
• Speaker at 2016 ABA Day in Washington DC, April 19 – 21, 2016
• Speaker, Boston Inn of Courts, “Trial Ethics and Social Media,” September 29, 2015
• Panelist Speaker for NE White Collar Women’s Defense Group Meeting at Ropes & Gray, February 23, 2015
• Speaker & Trainer for the SEIU on Handling Police During Civil Disobedience Event, September 3, 2014
• Panelist Speaker, Massachusetts Academy of Trial Lawyers and the Massachusetts Defense Lawyers Association, “Introducing Social Media as Evidence at Trial, “March 27, 2014
• Panelist, Boston Bar Association’s Continuing Legal Education program entitled “Health Care Fraud 2013: There Are New Sheriffs in Town,” May 22, 2013
• Speaker, International Association of Defense Counsel (IADC) Annual Meeting, How the False Claims Act Threatens Your Client’s Business, July 10, 2011
• Speaker and lecturer on Mentoring and Issues of Diversity & Inclusion for new lawyers, Boston Bar Association’s Mentoring Program event, 2009
• Speaker on Criminal Law and Procedure at the John Adams Courthouse for the Supreme Judicial Court, 2007
• Panelist on training participants and teacher at Boston Public Schools for Law Day on Separation of Powers, 2006
• Speaker, Women’s Bar Association, “Women in the Law,” 2005
• Speaker, Boston Bar Association’s Leadership Retreat in Newport, RI, 2004
• Panelist and Moderator, First Boston Municipal Court Conference on hot topics of criminal and civil practice before the newly consolidated BMC, 2003
• Moderator and Panelist, BBA’s Sixth Annual Bench/Bar Conference & Reception covering topics on dispositional advocacy, the Circuit System of the Superior Court, jury voir dire issues, and the state of the courts, 2003
• Guest on New England News Channel’s “NewsNight,” with Chet Curtis, to discuss the Kobe Bryant case, 2003
• Moderator and Panelist, BBA’s Fifth Annual Bench/Bar Conference & Reception covering topics on trial advocacy, statute of limitations on sexual offenses, technology in the courtroom, and corporate fraud, 2002
• Speaker, National White Collar Fraud Conference on the topic of, “Conducting White Collar Criminal Investigations,” 2002
• Speaker, High Technology Crime Investigation Association, New England Chapter, 2002
• Speaker, National Convention of Certified Fraud Examiners on the topic of, “White-collar Crime: The Change In Approach To Prosecution Utilizing New Technology,” 2002
• Reviewer, Supreme Judicial Court on the Report from the Visiting Committee on Management in the Courts, also known as the “Monan Report,” hosted by Justice Ireland, 2002

As an Assistant Attorney General, Carol was an instructor for the Attorney General’s Office Trial Training Program.  She also was the Coordinator for the Criminal Bureau’s Summer Intern Program for two years, at which she regularly gave lectures on criminal procedure. Finally, she was a speaker throughout the Commonwealth on prevention and prosecution of white collar crime, financial exploitation, elder abuse, and domestic and family violence. (1993-2002)

Press Exposure

• Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly,  “Duo Brings Text Message Privacy Case to the Supreme Court,” December 29, 2021
• BBA News Release, Statement from BBA President Carol Starkey on the President’s Ban on Transgender Troops in the Military, July 2017
  
• BBA News Release, BBA President Carol A. Starkey to the Trump Administration and Congress: Don’t Eliminate the Legal Services Corporation, March 2017
• BBA News Release, Statement from BBA President Carol Starkey on Judicial Independence and the Rule of Law, February 2017
• BBA News Release, Statement by BBA President Carol Starkey on the Outcome of ACLU Challenge To Travel Ban, February 2017
• BBA News Release, Statements from Boston Bar Association President Carol Starkey on Governor Baker’s Proposed FY18 Budget, January 2017
• Quoted in BBA News Release, “Boston Bar Association Reacts to SJC Decision in Bridgeman v. District Attorney”, January 2017
• BBA News Release, Statement by BBA President Carol Starkey Regarding Death Sentence for Gary Lee Sampson, January 2017
• BBA News Release, “The work of the Boston Bar Association, and its mission, have rarely been more relevant” A Letter from BBA President Carol Starkey to All Members, November 2016