David Apfel is a partner of the firm. He is an experienced trial lawyer who defends individuals and entities in criminal and complex civil litigation. His areas of expertise are white collar crime, including insider trading and money laundering; government investigations, especially Department of Justice, U.S. Attorneys Offices, SEC and NASD investigations; the federal False Claims Act; the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO); and multi-dimensional business litigation. He also specializes in land use litigation.

Work for Clients

Most recently, Mr. Apfel has defended entities and individuals accused of False Claims Act and civil RICO violations, as well as individuals and companies in insider trading, unlawful political contributions, embezzlement and fraud cases. Within the last several years he has also been lead counsel, and has successfully tried land use, breach of fiduciary duty, and complex business disputes.

Professional Activities

Mr. Apfel is a founding member of the firm's White Collar Crime & Government Investigations Practice. In addition, he is a member of two panels from which attorneys are selected to defend indigents in serious criminal cases: the Massachusetts State “Murder List” and the U.S. District Court's “CJA Panel.” Mr. Apfel is also a member of the Boston, Massachusetts and American Bar Associations. He has been selected for inclusion in Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business.

Professional Experience

Prior to law school, Mr. Apfel was a high school English, history and social studies teacher for 10 years (1975-1984) at Lincoln Sudbury Regional High School in Sudbury, Massachusetts. After graduating from law school, Mr. Apfel served as a law clerk for U.S. District Judge Douglas P. Woodlock (1987-1988). From 1988-1994, he was a litigation associate at Goodwin Procter. In 1994, he joined the Criminal Division of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Boston where he prosecuted public corruption, securities fraud and other federal crimes until 1999 at which point he rejoined Goodwin Procter as a partner in the Litigation Department.

Bar and Court Admissions

Mr. Apfel is admitted to practice in Massachusetts, and before the U.S. District Court of Massachusetts and the U.S. Court of Appeals, First Circuit.

Honors and Awards

While serving as an Assistant United States Attorney, Mr. Apfel received the 1997 John Marshall Award for the trial of litigation, the U.S. Department of Justice’s highest award for trial work. He received this honor for his work on a successful investigation of Merrill Lynch and Lazard Freres, and his victory in a three and one-half month criminal trial of Lazard Freres investment banker and nationally renowned municipal financial adviser Mark Ferber.

Education

J.D., Northeastern University School of Law, 1987
B.A., Swarthmore College, 1974