Doreen M. Rachal

DOREEN RACHAL focuses her practice on white collar criminal defense, internal investigations, and criminal and civil government investigations. She represents companies and individuals in matters involving civil and criminal investigations, including grand jury matters, and enforcement actions conducted by the U.S. Department of Justice, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and state government agencies. She has extensive experience conducting complex global internal investigations and advising boards on internal compliance programs. Her clients span a variety of industries, including financial services, life sciences, technology, and maritime. Doreen is a member of Sidley’s White Collar Defense and Investigations, Healthcare, and Securities Enforcement and Regulatory groups.

Prior to joining Sidley, Doreen served as an Assistant United States Attorney at the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts in the Affirmative Civil Enforcement Unit, where she handled qui tam actions and prosecuted healthcare fraud matters involving potential violations of the False Claims Act. Prior to joining the Affirmative Civil Enforcement Unit, Doreen served in a supervisory capacity as the Chief of the Asset Forfeiture Unit. In that role, Doreen prosecuted civil and criminal asset forfeiture cases involving money laundering, drug trafficking, healthcare fraud, and securities violations. During her tenure at the United States Attorney’s Office, Doreen successfully handled several trials as lead counsel.

Prior to joining the United States Attorney’s Office, Doreen was an associate at a global law firm, as well as a law clerk for the Honorable Chief Justice (Ret.) Roderick L. Ireland of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court.

In 2024, Doreen was honored by the Massachusetts Black Women Attorneys with the “Ida B. Wells Award,” which recognizes Black women attorneys who have made significant contributions to the legal profession. Doreen’s experience and commitment to public service earned her the 2025 “Mary K. Ryan Achievements in Pro Bono Award” from Boston Bar Association, the Supreme Judicial Court Standing Committee on Pro Bono Legal Services’ 2023 “Adams Pro Bono Publico Award” and the National Bar Association’s 2019 “Outstanding Women Lawyer Hidden Figure/Impact Award.” Doreen is frequently recognized by Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly and was named to their 2023 “Pro Bono Spotlight.” She received Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly’s 2022 Excellence in the Law Award for “Excellence in Pro Bono” for her outstanding leadership, vision, advocacy, and contributions in the community, as well as the 2018 “Top Women of Law” Award, which celebrates outstanding achievements made by exceptional women lawyers. Doreen was recognized by Massachusetts Super Lawyers for Criminal Defense: White Collar (2022–2023), and she has been recognized as “Up and Coming” for Litigation: White-Collar Crime & Government Investigations by Chambers USA (2024–2025).

Doreen’s representative matters include:

• Representation of a large financial institution in a major unemployment insurance matter that has resulted in the client receiving over 4,000 subpoenas from local, state, and federal government agencies. This work has included production of thousands of account statements to the government agencies and responding to thousands of grand jury and administrative subpoenas since 2020 as a result of fraud related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Representation of global company regarding potential criminal liability exposure involving MARPOL and the Clean Water Act. Handled large scale internal investigation in the United States and assisted with related internal investigation in Asia. Handled company’s response to grand jury subpoenas, crisis management, preparing witnesses for potential grand jury testimony and proffers, settlement discussions with the government, and review and analysis of company’s governance policies and procedures. Also handled presentation to Board regarding findings and recommendations regarding the company’s governance policies and procedures.
• Representation of global company in connection with grand jury subpoena. Handled internal investigation and document review, responses to the grand jury subpoena, discussions with the government, and consultation with the company’s Board of Directors regarding findings of the internal investigation.
• Representation of private equity firm in connection with its investment in a company that is currently manufacturing an innovative cutting-edge technology. Provided crisis management and litigation support and handled settlement negotiations related to stock purchase agreements and shareholder derivative legal action.

Doreen is a member of the Boston Bar Association, the National Conference of Bar Presidents, the Massachusetts Black Lawyers Association, the American Bar Association, the Massachusetts Chapter of the Federal Bar Association, the Women’s Bar Association of Massachusetts, the National Bar Association, the Hispanic National Bar Association, and is a Life Fellow of the American Bar Foundation. An active member of the Massachusetts Black Lawyers Association, she served as President from 2013–2014 and held various other leadership positions. Doreen also serves on the Boston Bar Association’s Amicus Committee, the Massachusetts Chapter of the Federal Bar Association’s Board of Directors, as Chair of the Pro Bono Committee of the Women’s Bar Foundation of Massachusetts, and as Chair-Elect of the National Bar Association’s Women Lawyers Division. She is a member of the Board of Trustees of Barnard College. At her previous firm, Doreen served on the Diversity Committee for three years, focusing on the retention and recruitment of diverse lawyers. Doreen also served for six years on the Massachusetts Judicial Nominating Commission by appointment of the governor.

Doreen regularly handles high-profile pro bono cases for the NAACP Boston Branch, the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights, ACLU Massachusetts, and The Innocence Project. She was recognized by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Standing Committee on Pro Bono Legal Services on its 2022 and 2023 Pro Bono High Honor Roll, which recognizes attorneys who provide more than 100 hours of pro bono legal services in a calendar year. Since 2022, she has been recognized by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Standing Committee on Pro Bono Legal Services on its “Pro Bono High Honor Roll,” which recognizes attorneys who provide more than 100 hours of pro bono legal services in a calendar year.

She recently led a case with the NAACP Boston et al., which involved defending the Boston Public School District’s (BPS) implementation of an interim admissions policy geared toward creating socio-economic, geographic, and racial equity diversity within Boston’s elite exam schools. Doreen’s win in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts upheld the policy, which enabled BPS to enroll a more diverse student population. This case is currently pending before the First Circuit.