Richard E. Brody is a founding partner at BHPK Law. In his 40+ year career, Rick has represented thousands of clients and tried over 100 jury trials with an exceptional record of success. His advocacy has been recognized repeatedly by his peers and the legal community at the highest levels, and his innumerable successes have often resulted in high-profile outcomes, garnering national and local media attention.
With decades of trial experience as lead counsel, Rick has litigated cases in both state and federal courts, and has appeared before the First Circuit Court of Appeals, the Supreme Judicial Court, and the Massachusetts Appeals Court. In addition, he has represented parties before the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination and other administrative agencies in the Commonwealth. Rick’s depth of experience as a litigator and his affable nature have not only made him a sought-after plaintiff’s lawyer, but also a high-profile defense attorney. He has obtained seven-figure jury verdicts on behalf of plaintiffs, as well as countless verdicts in favor of his defense clients.
At BHPK, Rick leads the firm’s insurance defense practice, where he is largely considered one of the most knowledgeable and experienced attorneys in the state. Rick’s also devotes a significant amount of his practice to plaintiffs’ work, including in such areas as personal injury, child abuse and sexual assault, and employment discrimination. He also serves as outside litigation counsel to a number of prestigious higher education institutions.
Rick is a fierce advocate on behalf of his clients. In 2014, he was named Lawyer of the Year by Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly (along with BHPK Partner Lenny Kesten) for his work on a personal injury lawsuit that resulted in a $7.3 million Superior Court judgment under the Massachusetts Consumer Protection Statute.
Rick is a trained mediator who has worked with the Massachusetts Bar Association Mediation and Arbitration Forums and the Multi-Door Courthouse. He has mediated hundreds of cases and is known for his unique approach, which brings both empathy and levity to mediating complex matters. Rick is also a sought-after speaker in both Massachusetts and across the country and has appeared on local and national television and radio shows as a commentator on civil and criminal trials that have garnered media attention. He is also widely considered the leading authority in the Commonwealth on premises liability.
Before founding BHPK, Rick worked as a senior partner at a large Boston insurance defense firm. Prior to that, he worked as an assistant district attorney for the Middlesex County District Attorney's Office. As an assistant district attorney, Rick investigated and prosecuted major felonies, including homicides, rapes, armed robberies, and arson, and supervised a team of prosecutors. He began his legal career as Chief Law Clerk to the Massachusetts Superior Court Justices.
Honors
Rick Brody has been the recipient of too many honors to fully list here, and is considered one of the most distinguished trial attorneys in the state of Massachusetts. For example, in 2014, Rick was named Lawyer of the Year by Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly for his involvement in a personal injury matter that resulted in a $12.3 million judgment in favor of his client.
In addition, Rick has been selected to the Massachusetts/New England "Super Lawyers" list every year since its inauguration. He has also been given a "Superb" rating from AVVO.com and has received an AV Preeminent rating from Martindale-Hubbell, a certification indicating that his peers consider him to display unparalleled professional excellence in his practice.
Media, Lectures, Presentations, and Publications
Rick has been featured and has provided legal commentary for national and local media outlets and television shows on significant civil and criminal trials. He has also authored numerous trade articles for insurance defense and trial publications, as well as professional programs related to trial practice, premises liability, and civil rights.
Rick also co-authored (along with partner Jocelyn Sedney) a Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education handbook on premises liability. He is a recognized expert in the field of premises liability and the liability of landowners for criminal acts that occur on their property.
Rick has also lectured at the Massachusetts Bar Association, Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education, National Institute of Trial Advocacy, Defense Research Institute, the Harvard University Law School Trial Advocacy Workshop, as well as trade group organizations throughout the country.
Finally, Rick acts as a mediator for the Massachusetts Trial Courts, in addition to fielding his own private mediation and arbitration service at BHPK.
- Author: “Constitutionality of the Common Law Presumption of Malice in Maine,”: Vol 54, No. 5, Boston University Law Review, cited in Supreme Court decision, Mullaney v. Wilbur, 421 U.S. 684, 694 note 15 (1975), reprinted in The Maine Prosecutor and Boston Bar Journal.
Due to the confidential nature of many of Rick’s most successful cases, the results are governed by non-disclosure agreements and cannot be featured here. However, he has settled several six and seven figure cases in his career. Perhaps no greater compliment was paid to Rick than, as part of an insurance bad faith claim, the trial judge acknowledged that the insurance company decided not to play fair after Rick had been retained because it knew Rick was “competent” and “aggressive.” Anderson v. Am. Int'l Grp., Inc., No. MICV200301212B, 2014 WL 1878882, at *7 (Mass. Super. Apr. 8, 2014).
Practice Areas
- Business Disputes
- Child Abuse & Sexual Assault
- Education Law
- Employment
- Insurance Defense
- Investigations and Trainings
- Mediation
- Personal Injury
- Sexual Harassment and Discrimination
Education
- Boston University School of Law, J.D. (1975); Boston University Law Review (1974-1975)
- Washington & Jefferson College, B.A., English, cum laude (1971)
Bar Admissions
- United States Supreme Court
- First Circuit Court of Appeals
- United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts
- Massachusetts
Memberships and Affiliations
- Massachusetts Bar Association
- Boston Bar Association
- The Massachusetts Association of Trial Attorneys
- The Defense Research Institute
- The International Association of Defense Counsel
- The Frank J. Murray Section of the American Inn of Court.
- The American Board of Trial Advocates
- Massachusetts Bar Foundation Fellow
- Trustee of the Massachusetts Civil Liability Institute
- National Advisory Board for Government Liability Insurance member