Carl S. Burkhalter

Carl represents corporations in complex commercial litigation. Throughout his 30-year career, he has tried more than 50 cases and arbitrations in jurisdictions throughout the United States. 

Carl specializes in antitrust litigation and securities litigation. He heads the firm’s antitrust group and his work in that area includes acting as lead counsel for the bellwether defendant in In re Blue Cross and Blue Shield Antitrust Litigation, a massive MDL filed in 2012 that remains pending today. Plaintiffs there seek billions of dollars in damages. He also achieved a defense verdict in a Section One case tried under a per se liability standard. On the securities side, Carl successfully tried a $100mm+ bond fraud suit, favorably resolved significant nationwide class actions involving hundreds of millions of dollars, and won numerous FINRA arbitrations.

Among his notable clients, Carl has served as legal counsel to companies including Abbott Labs, AT&T, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Alabama, Bear Stearns, Citigroup, Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank, GlaxoSmithKline, Goldman Sachs, MetLife, Merrill Lynch, Morgan Keegan, Morgan Stanley, Regions Bank, Stifel Nicolaus, Wachovia Capital Markets, and Wells Fargo.

Carl received a B.A. from the University of Alabama, magna cum laude, and a J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School, with honors. He clerked for Judge E. Grady Jolly of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.

Community & Professional

• Defense Research Institute
• American Bar Association
• Alabama Defense Lawyers Association
• Alabama State Bar Association
• Birmingham Bar Association

Representative Trials:

• Lead trial lawyer for Bear Stearns in fraud trial in Alabama state court. Co-defendants settled before trial for $111,105,000 and Plaintiffs’ demanded over $100,000,000 from Bear Stearns. Jury hung 8-1 in Bear Stearns’s favor, leading to exceptionally favorable settlement. Case covered by the Wall Street Journal and other media.
• Co-Lead trial lawyer for BellSouth in $40,000,000 contract and business tort dispute tried in federal court. Plaintiffs’ last pre-trial demand was over $15,000,000. Jury deliberated less than an hour before rendering a defense verdict. Jury also awarded BellSouth $3,500,000 on a counterclaim.
• Lead trial lawyer for Cybex in $12,000,000 business dispute tried in federal court. Defense verdict.
• Lead trial lawyer for Goldman Sachs in arbitration alleging $18,000,000 in investment losses. Defense verdict
• Lead trial lawyer for Goldman Sachs in arbitration alleging $13,000,000 in investment losses. Defense verdict.
• Lead trial lawyer for prominent bank in arbitration alleging $12,000,000 in damages. Defense verdict.

Representative Engagements:

• Currently serving as co-lead counsel for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Alabama in federal MDL antitrust litigation comprising over 40 putative nationwide class actions. Plaintiffs seek literally billions of dollars in damages. Litigation has been pending since 2012.
• Lead counsel for 38 prominent investment banks in a putative nationwide class action alleging violations of the 1933 Securities Act. Plaintiffs alleged investment banks were strictly liable for underwriting over $500,000,000 in securities that became worthless after issuer (Colonial Bancshares) filed bankruptcy. Settled case for less than $5,000,000.
• Lead counsel for broker-dealer in $25,000,000 federal securities fraud lawsuit involving the sale of auction-rate securities. Case dismissed on summary judgment.

Recognition

• The Best Lawyers in America© for Commercial Litigation and Litigation: Securities (2024-present), Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions - Defendants (2025)