J. William "Bill" Codinha

Moving between the public and private sectors, Bill Codinha has led some of the highest profile governmental investigations conducted in the past 20 years and now defends corporations and individuals caught up in similar investigations. Bill brings his unique and effective experience to the defense of all of his clients.

What do you focus on?

I leverage my 30+ years of experience defending individuals and corporations who are the subject of government investigations. As a prosecutor, I tried jury trials in all of the courts in Massachusetts and ran major investigations for the federal government in Washington, DC. Currently, I focus on the defense of investigations and cases brought by myriad federal agencies and United States Attorneys’ offices as well as investigations and cases brought by the various state attorneys general offices.

Federal Investigations

I’ve successfully defended clients against False Claims Act (FCA), civil and criminal securities fraud, RICO as well as numerous other civil and criminal charges. I have defended domestic and international Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) cases, including foreign companies alleged to have committed U.S. securities fraud violations. I also recently defended a foreign citizen alleged to have committed U.S. Arms Export Control Act violations.

State Investigations

As the federal government has ramped up its investigations, the various state attorneys general offices have also become much more aggressive, routinely issuing Civil Investigative Demands requiring extensive discovery of potential wrongdoing. I recently defended a Fortune 75 company, located in Minnesota, against alleged bid rigging and false claims allegations. The risk assessment of potential damages to this multinational company could have run well into the billions of dollars had a prosecution and debarment occurred. The case was successfully resolved with no admission of liability.

Trials

Fundamentally, I remain a trial lawyer, having tried over 100 jury trials during the course of my career, from organized crime cases as a prosecutor, to civil trials obtaining multi-million dollar verdicts for my clients. I have taught trial tactics and trial strategy locally and at the national level.