Attorney Biographies
The Boston, Massachusetts-based financial crimes law firm of Markham & Read defends clients nationwide…and protects student rights.
Our firm
Markham & Read was established in 1990 with attorney John Markham as principal attorney. He has over 35 years of trial and appellate experience across the country, in both federal and state courts.
Markham & Read is small by design. Hiring Markham & Read means you are hiring John Markham to handle your case from beginning to end. Should you decide to retain our services, he personally attends to your case, reports to you on a regular basis, and promptly responds to your questions.
While our clients receive concentrated representation from one attorney throughout the case, Markham & Read has talented staff to conduct investigations, provide research assistance, and offer full office support.
When needed, Markham & Read collaborates with other law firms to handle cases where extra staff is appropriate. This approach enables us to offer lower fees by keeping overhead to a minimum.
Before accepting a case, the firm conducts an initial consultation with the prospective client to determine if our firm is right for the job. If we find that the case is one we can handle well and the client agrees, the case is vigorously pursued for the best outcome possible. If the case is not suited to the firm’s practice areas, we are pleased to recommend, and help secure, other counsel.
John Markham
Mr. Markham practiced commercial law as an associate at the Wall Street law firm of Shearman & Sterling in New York and as a partner at Lillick & Charles (now merged with Nixon Peabody) in San Francisco. He later served as a federal prosecutor for six years in San Diego, San Francisco, and Boston, where he was appointed as Chief of the Major Fraud Section.
Mr. Markham has taught law at the Harvard Law School as an adjunct faculty member, at the University of Santa Clara Law School as a tenure track professor, and as an instructor at the Attorney General's Advocacy Institute at the Department of Justice. His writings include contributions to books and journals such as:
- California Criminal Trial Practice, Matthew Bender. A Three-volume treatise on the California Evidence Code.
- Making the Most of the Multiparty Defense, Litigation, The Journal of the ABA Section of Litigation, Vol. 18, 1992.
- Attacking and Supporting Witness Credibility, California Litigation, The Journal of the Litigation Section (California), Vol 4, No. 3, Spring 1991.
Mr. Markham is a member of the bar in the states of Massachusetts, Maine, New York, and California, as well as a member of the United States District Courts in those states. In the State of Connecticut, he is a member of the United States Courts of Appeal for the First, Second, Third and Ninth Circuits, and the United States Supreme Court.
Education
Mr. Markham received his Bachelor of Arts Degree from Roanoke College in Salem, Virginia in 1969. He majored in French literature and made the Dean's List for his academic achievements. He also defended other students charged with honor and conduct violations, acted as captain of the varsity tennis team, and played varsity soccer.
Mr. Markham received his law degree from the Washington & Lee School of Law in 1972. He won the school moot court competition, competed as a regional finalist in the National Moot Court Competition, and edited and contributed to the Washington & Lee Law Review. He was a member of the Honor Counsel and was inducted into the prestigious Order of the Coif, a national honor society for law school graduates.
Bridget A. Zerner
Ms. Zerner has worked at Markham & Read since 2005. She is a member of the Bar in the states of Massachusetts and New York as well as a member of the United States District Courts in those states. Ms. Zerner is also a member of the American Bar Association, the Massachusetts Bar Association, the Boston Bar Association, and the New York State Bar Association.
Since joining Markham & Read, she has worked on many of the office cases nationwide, and has appeared and handled civil and criminal matters in Boston and New York state and federal courts.
Ms. Zerner received her Bachelor of Arts Degree from American University in Washington, D.C. in 2004. She double majored in Law & Society and Philosophy and was admitted to the School of Public Affairs Leadership Program. She graduated summa cum laude with university honors in philosophy and was inducted into the academic honor society Phi Beta Kappa.
Ms. Zerner received her law degree from Boston College Law School in 2007. She was a participant, then a co-leader of the Indian Law Service project that organized service trips to the Navajo Nation where law students interned for the Navajo Supreme Court and Department of Justice. She interned for a summer in New Mexico where she provided legal aid services for the Navajo Nation and Jicarilla-Apache tribe. In her final year, Ms. Zerner participated in the BC Defenders clinical program where she was a student advocate representing clients in criminal cases in Dorchester District Court.
