By Erin Tiernan — Erin@concordbridge.org
Growing up in tight-knit Concord instilled in attorney Victoria M. Santoro the importance of community. She calls it one of her guiding principles as she takes over as president of the Massachusetts Bar Association.
“It’s one of my top three values that drives me in my daily life,” she told The Bridge in a recent interview.
Santoro was elected MassBar president for the 2024-25 membership year, which began September 1. She took her oath in a ceremony at the UMass Club in Boston that paid homage to Santoro’s admiration and appreciation for community.
Her longtime friend and mentor, Superior Court Associate Justice Valerie Yarashus, presided. The two were partners at the first firm where Santoro worked after graduating from Boston College Law School.
Driving community support
Santoro, a personal injury lawyer, avoids “traditional networking,” which she considers “too transactional.” Instead, she said she maintains a large personal and professional “network of friends.”
Nine months ago, Yarashus and Santoro launched the groundbreaking Lawyer for the Day Program in Superior Courts throughout the state. Through Zoom, the program connects people who need legal advice with lawyers who can help. Santoro said the most common types of cases are people dealing with social services denials, including food stamps and disability benefits.
Santoro said the program, which is on track to help 500 people in its first year, has aided people in Concord and throughout Middlesex County.
It’s an example of the community values that Santoro wants to define her presidency at MassBar, where she plans to focus programming for her peers on reproductive justice, diversity and inclusion, and mentorship opportunities for members of marginalized communities.
Santoro credits her appreciation for community to her Concordian upbringing. It’s a driving force that brought her boomeranging back to her hometown shortly after she gave birth to her son, Oscar, about five years ago.
“Concord was the only town I considered,” Santoro said. “It’s so beautiful, and the people who live here really care about the community, and as a result, it’s really well maintained and safe.”
Concord roots
Having grown up on Independence Road in the Author’s Ridge neighborhood, Santoro remembers having the “freedom” to ride her bike between friends’ houses and to traverse the natural beauty and history within arm’s reach in Concord. She gained a deep appreciation for play, nature, and history — Louisa May Alcott’s house was at the bottom of her childhood street.
“Concord is a really beautiful place to live, and I wanted Oscar to grow up appreciating that. Appreciating the natural world is really important to me — the fresh air, open spaces,” Santoro said. “The fabric of community here is really strong.”
Santoro attended Concord-Carlisle High School, where she played tennis and made captain — then did it “all over again” at Wesleyan University, where she graduated in 2007.
“Now I’m a member at Thoreau and play tennis there. It’s so full circle for me. It’s wild,” Santoro said.
She’s excited her son will have the same opportunities. Oscar just started kindergarten at the Willard School.
“It’s the foundation of how I grew up here that has propelled me throughout my adult life,” Santoro said.
A lawyer with purpose
The year ahead will be a busy one for Santoro, who in May launched her own firm, Santoro & Gray Law, with longtime trial partner Jessica Gray after 14 years in the field of personal injury law.
And on October 15, the Women’s Bar Association of Massachusetts will present Santoro with its Emerging Women Leaders in the Law Award.
