William M. Starr is a partner to Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP in Charlotte where he practices in the litigation fields of aviation, premises liability, toxic torts, and product liability. He represents some of the nation's largest airlines as well as manufacturers of a variety of products including automobiles, aircraft, industrial equipment, food, and child-restraints in matters pending in the southeastern United States and nationwide. He is a member of the State Bar of North Carolina and is admitted to practice before the United States District Courts for the Western, Middle, and Eastern Districts of North Carolina as well as the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.

Mr. Starr is the chair of the Firm’s Aviation Law Committee and devotes a significant part of his practice to this area of law. He routinely handles a multitude of litigation matters for some of the nation’s largest international and domestic air carriers. In his time with the Firm, he has successfully litigated commercial disputes, Montreal/Warsaw Convention claims, and personal injury lawsuits in North Carolina and beyond. He also represents general aviation facilities, certified repair stations, and fixed base operators (FBOs) in commercial disputes and claims relating to maintenance of general aviation aircraft. Additionally, he represents manufacturers and suppliers of component parts in various types of litigation.

Mr. Starr also has significant experience in asbestos litigation. With an emphasis on representing manufacturers of industrial pumps, valves, and boilers, Mr. Starr has deposed hundreds of plaintiffs, co-workers, and other factual witnesses. Furthermore, Mr. Starr made significant contributions to pivotal pre-trial motions and assisted in trial preparation of a multitude of asbestos cases pending in North Carolina and other states.

Related to this area of practice, in 2007 Mr. Starr made a presentation at the Fall Seminar of the North Carolina Association of Defense Attorneys entitled, "The Applicability of the North Carolina Products Liability Statute of Repose to Disease-Based Claims." He also co-authored an article by the same name appearing in the Winter 2008 edition of The Defender. 

Business North Carolina magazine recognized Mr. Starr in its "2011 Legal Elite," a roster of North Carolina attorneys selected by their peers as the most effective. Mr. Starr was selected as a "Young Gun," those attorneys under 40 identified in the lawyer survey as the best in their fields.

Active in the legal community, Mr. Starr is also a member of the Corporate Counsel Committee of the American Bar Association (ABA) and previously served as North Carolina's state liaison. In February of 2012, Mr. Starr was a speaker at the ABA Law Student Division's 4th Circuit Meeting regarding alternative legal careers. He is also member of the Defense Research Institute and a member of the Mecklenburg County Bar Association.

In 2003, Mr. Starr earned a Juris Doctor with honors from the University of North Carolina School of Law where he was senior staff member of the North Carolina Journal of International Law and Commercial Regulation. He received the school's 2001 Gressman-Pollitt Appellate Advocacy Award and was a member of the 2000 Trial Law Academy Moot Court Tournament Championship team. In 2000, Mr. Starr earned a Bachelor of Arts from the State University of New York College at Geneseo.