Anthony Cardinale

Anthony M. Cardinale is a trial lawyer with over 35 years of experience. Although based in Boston, he has tried cases and presented appellate arguments in many other state and federal courts. He is a member of the bar of the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts, the U.S. District Court for the Districts of Massachusetts, Western Pennsylvania, Southern Ohio, Western Texas and Arizona. He is also a member of the United States Circuit Courts of Appeals for the First, Second, Third, Fifth, Sixth, and Eleventh Circuits, as well as the United States Supreme Court. Mr. Cardinale grew up in New York City. His father was a former professional boxer and trainer, who, with his 4 brothers, owned and operated the Delsomma Restaurant in Manhattan's theater district for over 55 years. He went to High School in Little Falls, N.J., attended Wilkes University in Wilkes-Barre, PA, on a football scholarship (where he is honored to be a member of Wilkes University Athletic Hall of Fame), and Suffolk University Law School in Boston. He graduated from Suffolk with honors, and served as an editor on its law review. Before and after his graduation from Suffolk, he worked with renowned criminal defense attorney F. Lee Bailey, where he tried several significant cases and presented appellate arguments for their clients, including Patty Hearst, Peter McDonald (the Chairman of the Navajo tribe in Arizona), John Gibson, (the Secretary Treasurer of the Int. Hotel Workers Union), and many other defendants in various state and federal courts. After leaving Lee Bailey's office he started his own practice in Boston. Since 1981 has been involved in trials and appeals in scores of cases, including a number of high-profile criminal matters. Among his clients were Arthur Coia, (Secretary Treasurer of the Int. Laborers Union), Gennaro Angiulo, Anthony Salerno (in the so-called "Commission" Case, and on appeal to the United States Supreme Court regarding the constitutionality of the Bail Reform Act), Joseph Murray (the Vallhalla" IRA weapons shipment), Joseph Russo, and John McCormick (Boston Police Detective charged in a RICO public corruption trial along with 5 other Boston Detectives). Notably, Mr. Cardinale represented Frank Salemme in the U.S. District Court in Massachusetts, and is credited for forcing the disclosure of the FBI's secret "Top Echelon Informant Program," and revealing that, James "Whitey" Bulger and Steven "The Rifleman" Flemmi, two of Boston's most notorious criminals, were in fact "top echelon" FBI informants for decades. He has also tried several high-profile murder cases including the King Arthur's "Motel Hell" case where he represented Everett, MA, Police Officer John Macauda, and Dr. Glen Wolsieffer, a dentist charged with his wife's murder in Wilkes-Barre, PA. Several of the cases which he tried have become the subject of best-selling books. For several years he has served as an instructor in trial advocacy programs at the Harvard Law School, Suffolk University Law School, Boston College Law School, and Boston University Law School. The Boxing industry is also an area in which Mr. Cardinale practices and serves as an advisor. He has successfully guided the careers of a number of professional boxers who have become World Champions, or who have had opportunities to fight for the championship. Among the fighters he has guided are Sean Mannion of Boston and County Galway, Ireland (the first Irish fighter to fight for a world title), Joey DeGrandis, of Boston, and two-time WBA World Champion Jose Antonio Rivera, of Worcester. He is best known for his efforts on behalf of two-time WBA Heavyweight World Champion John Ruiz of Chelsea, Massachusetts, the only Latino heavyweight champion in history. In addition, he represents professional boxers, managers, and promoters in trials and proceedings before courts, sanctioning bodies, state boxing commissions, and arbitrations throughout the world. He currently represents a number of active professional boxers and managers; among his clients is the current WBA/WBC world super-lightweight champion, Danny Garcia of Philadelphia.