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Am Law 100 firm with practices in Business, Digital Assets and Data Management, Intellectual Property, Labor & Employment, Litigation and Tax.

Home | BakerHostetler

BakerHostetler Team Represents TMX Finance Holdings in Sale of TMX Finance LLC to BasePoint Capital LLC Affiliates

Alexander Reid Participates in Panel at 2025 Nonprofit Impact Summit

Michael Cortez Selected as Fellow of Construction Lawyers Society of America

ADventures in Law

Congratulations, Promotion Sponsors – You’ve Won Less Prize Paperwork!

As the first woman to serve as the First Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio, and later as the U.S. Attorney, Carole both supervised and personally handled high profile, crisis-level litigation, much of which involved intense public and media scrutiny. A passionate advocate for the community, Carole helped establish the Northeast Ohio Business Ethics Coalition, the U.S. Attorney’s Heroin and Opioid Task Force and the Northeast Ohio Cyber Security Consortium.

Carole has significant experience managing critical internal investigations and complex commercial, regulatory and criminal matters, with a particular depth of knowledge regarding the False Claims Act, FCPA, the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), insider trading, securities and shareholder litigation, as well as advising clients on structuring compliance programs to help avoid such problems. She has represented companies and individuals in high-stakes criminal, civil, internal and congressional investigations.

Carole is Co-Leader of the White Collar, Investigations and Securities Enforcement and Litigation team. She also serves as a member of BakerHostetler’s Policy Committee, the firm’s national board of directors.

core/freeform

J.D., Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law, 1987, 

B.A., Northwestern University, 1984, 

<ul>
<li><em>Lawdragon</em>, 500 Leading Litigators in America: White Collar, Investigations (2025)</li>
<li>Chambers USA: Litigation: White-Collar Crime and Government Investigations
<ul>
<li>Star Individual (2025), Band 1 (2020 to 2024), Band 2 (2019)</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The Legal 500 United States
<ul>
<li>Recommended in Dispute Resolution: Corporate Investigations and White-Collar Criminal Defense: Advice to Individuals (2018 to 2020, 2023 to 2025)</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><em>The Best Lawyers in America</em>® (2008 to 2025)
<ul>
<li>Ohio: Criminal Defense: General Practice
<ul>
<li><em>Best Lawyers</em>® &#8220;Lawyer of the Year&#8221; (2020)</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Ohio: Commercial Litigation</li>
<li>Ohio: Criminal Defense: White-Collar</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><em>Cleveland Jewish News</em>, Difference Makers Award (2019)</li>
<li>Law360: White Collar Editorial Advisory Board (2025)</li>
<li>Northeast Ohio Chapter of the American Constitution Society: Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones Award for Public Service (2017)</li>
<li>Mayfield Alumni Hall of Fame (2018)</li>
</ul>


Cleveland

BakerHostetler attorneys and practice areas spotlighted in the 2025 Legal 500 annual guide

Chambers USA Guide 2025 Recognizes 171 BakerHostetler Attorneys and 73 Practice Areas

Eleven BakerHostetler Attorneys Named to 2025 Law360 Editorial Boards

Carole Rendon, George Stamboulidis, John Carney, Rachel Ofori Author Article on Snyder v. US for Law360

 ‘Bribe’ vs. ‘Tip’ – The Implications of Snyder v. United States for Companies

BakerHostetler attorneys, practice areas stand out in The Legal 500 annual guide

Chambers USA Guide 2024 Recognizes 155 BakerHostetler Attorneys and ­66 Practice Areas

White Collar Team Ranked Among World’s Top 100 Investigation Firms in GIR 100 2023

DOJ to Corporations – “Knock on Our Door Before We Knock on Yours”

SEC Chief Accountant Warns About Need for Comprehensive Risk Assessments

BakerHostetler Attorneys and Practice Areas Recognized in The Legal 500 2023 Guide

Chambers USA Guide 2023 Honors 147 BakerHostetler Attorneys and Recognizes 64 Practice Areas

SEC Signals No End in Sight for Crypto Enforcement Ramp-Up

New DOJ Policies Tie Employee Compensation to Compliance

Federal Prosecutors to Assess Procedures Around Use of Personal Devices and Messaging Applications When Evaluating Corporate Compliance Programs 

DOJ Announces Major Corporate Enforcement Policies

Chambers USA Guide 2022 Honors 145 BakerHostetler Attorneys and Recognizes 62 Practice Areas

Bringing the Past to Life: AAPI Program Recreates Key Moments in American History

191 BakerHostetler Attorneys Named in 2022 “Best Lawyers” List; 10 Recognized as “Lawyer of the Year”

Carole Rendon Discusses Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s Dissents

Department of Justice – Antitrust and White Collar Investigations – What You Should Know

Antitrust and White Collar Investigations - What You Should Know

BakerHostetler Attorneys Make Significant Gains in The Legal 500 Annual Guide

Chambers and Partners USA Honors 127 Attorneys and 43 Practice Areas in 2019 Guide

BakerHostetler Boosts High Marks in the Legal 500 2018 Annual Guide

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National Security Investigations and Litigation Task Force

<p>In her 30-year career, Carole has been involved in nearly every type of criminal, civil and regulatory investigation, in many circumstances with experience serving as counsel on different sides. Representative matters and areas of experience include:</p>
<h5>Criminal Litigation and False Claims Act</h5>
<ul>
<li>Representing a manufacturer in connection with an ongoing EPA investigation being conducted by two U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the DOJ Environment and Natural Resources Division.</li>
<li>Representing a client in an ongoing companion civil and criminal False Claims Act investigation being conducted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Ohio.</li>
<li>Representing a leading healthcare system in connection with a Civil Investigative Demand issued by the DOJ pursuant to the False Claims Act.</li>
<li>Representing a post-acute healthcare provider in connection with a Civil Investigative Demand issued by the DOJ.</li>
<li>Lead counsel on the investigation and prosecution of Suarez Corporation Industries, Chief Executive Officer Benjamin Suarez and Chief Financial Officer Michael Giorgio for violations of the campaign finance laws and obstruction of justice.</li>
<li>Represented the largest American manufacturer and distributor of explosives in two separate matters involving criminal investigations regarding the company’s federally mandated record keeping.</li>
<li>Lead defense counsel in a case charging false statements in the context of a submission to the SEC in response to a Wells notice. Following extensive briefing and a contested hearing, the judge dismissed the indictment in its entirety on statute of limitations grounds.</li>
<li>Co-counsel defending a former Cuyahoga County probation officer charged with multiple counts of kidnapping, gross sexual imposition and related offenses.</li>
</ul>
<h5>Internal Investigations</h5>
<ul>
<li>Retained by the City of Beachwood to conduct an investigation regarding alleged sexual misconduct by the city’s mayor.</li>
<li>Represent a world-renowned academic hospital in an internal investigation related to an executive’s misconduct.</li>
<li>Represent a manufacturer of FDA registered products in connection with a whistleblower complaint regarding alleged OSHA and related safety violations.</li>
<li>Represent a financial services company in a matter involving an employee’s fraudulent misconduct and its impact on their customers.</li>
<li>Represented a global chemical manufacturer and its subsidiary in connection with a criminal embezzlement investigation involving alleged theft of trade secrets.</li>
</ul>
<h5>Commercial Litigation</h5>
<ul>
<li>Representing a national pharmaceutical company in the opioid MDL and related litigation in multiple jurisdictions. Serve as liaison counsel for all manufacturing defendants in the opioid MDL.</li>
<li>Representing a leading financial services company in connection with parallel DOJ and SEC investigations.</li>
<li>Defended a major insurance company in a consumer class action involving insurance rates.</li>
</ul>
<h5>Securities Enforcement and Litigation</h5>
<ul>
<li>Representing a multinational materials manufacturer in a shareholder derivative action in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio.</li>
<li>Representing an executive of an American retailer in a securities class action in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio.</li>
</ul>
<h5>FCPA</h5>
<ul>
<li>Represented an executive in the DOJ’s FCPA investigation of Rolls-Royce and its employees. Obtained an almost unheard-of sentence of probation for our client, who was prosecuted for paying significant bribes to foreign officials under the FCPA.</li>
<li>In conjunction with the Fraud Section of the Criminal Division of the Department of Justice and the SEC, served as lead counsel for the U.S. Attorney’s Office on an FCPA investigation in which the target company entered into a Deferred Prosecution Agreement, paid $25 million in fines and agreed to a monitorship to resolve its FCPA violations.</li>
<li>Represented the controller of a target company in an FCPA investigation.</li>
</ul>
<h5>Cybersecurity</h5>
<ul>
<li>Oversaw the formation of the Northeast Ohio Cyber Security Consortium, a unique, regional cross-sector information-sharing organization that combines leading private sector institutions, public entities and federal law enforcement in a joint effort to identify and mitigate ongoing cyber threats. Planned the kickoff conference to announce the consortium’s creation, at which the FBI Director was a keynote speaker.</li>
<li>Oversaw nearly a dozen national and international cyber prosecutions.</li>
</ul>
<h5>Civil Rights</h5>
<ul>
<li>As lead counsel for the United States Attorney’s Office, in partnership with the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice, engaged in an extensive investigation of the excessive use of force by the Cleveland Division of Police, and negotiated a consent decree with the City of Cleveland for comprehensive reform of the Cleveland Division of Police.</li>
<li>As lead counsel for the United States Attorney’s Office, in partnership with the Voting Rights Section of the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice, negotiated a consent decree with the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections requiring the adoption of bilingual ballots, bringing Cuyahoga County into compliance with the Voting Rights Act. Assisted in the negotiation of a similar agreement with the Lorain County Board of Elections the following year.</li>
</ul>
<h5>Higher Education</h5>
<ul>
<li>Advise a nationally renowned university regarding its disciplinary and Title IX practices.</li>
<li>Conduct Title IX investigations for a nationally renowned university and represent the university in resulting lawsuits.</li>
<li>Serve as counsel to a private university in relation to third-party criminal acts, assessing and advising the client on risks and potential exposure to liability.</li>
<li>Assisting a private university in response to a series of government investigations involving a professor who is alleged to have participated in China’s Thousand Talents Plan.</li>
</ul>
<h5>Testimony</h5>
<ul>
<li>Testimony before the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs Hearing titled “Examining the Impact of the Opioid Epidemic,” April 22, 2016.</li>
<li>Appearance with City of Cleveland Law Director Barbara Langhenry before the Cleveland City Council on the Consent Decree for comprehensive reform of the Cleveland Division of Police, June 3, 2015.</li>
<li>Testimony before the Ohio Civil Rights Commission on Human Trafficking, June 5, 2013.</li>
</ul>


Carole S. Rendon

Carole S. Rendon

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