William L. Coggshall

925.952.5416 | Walnut Creek
wcoggshall@archernorris.com

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Fast Facts

  • In 2009 Will achieved a favorable result for an architectural firm - claimants received less than 5% of alleged damage claim
  • In 2008 Will successfully defended commercial property owners in a hotly contested trial
  • Negotiated $5K settlement of a $1.8 million claim on day one of binding arbitration

 

Education

  • Marquette University Law School, J.D., 1999
    • Intellectual Property Law Review, Associate Editor, 1998-99
  • San Jose State University, B.A., 1995

Admissions

  • State Bar of California
  • State Bar of Wisconsin
  • U.S. District Court, Northern District of California
  • U.S. District Court, Western District of Wisconsin
     

Memberships

  • AIA-East Bay
  • Council on Litigation Management
  • Defense Research Institute
  • Contra Costa County Bar Association
  • Association of Defense Counsel
     

Practices

William L. Coggshall, III

Partner

A litigator with the professional liability and construction practice groups, Will specializes in the representation of architects and engineers in complex commercial litigation.  Will is sought after by design professionals and their insurers who tout his work ethic and dedication to the protection of their professional practice. His knowledge and skills have been much appreciated by clients and respected by opposing counsel.

Displaying a Marine’s Discipline in Protecting Design Professionals

Will credits his service in the United States Marine Corps for his deeply held belief in the power of preparation and how he builds the foundation of his litigation practice.   He takes an aggressive yet real world approach in representing clients.

His current litigation focus is defending design professionals involved in litigation, whether binding arbitration or trial.  This current specialty is aided by his many years representing general contractors, subcontractors and materials suppliers in contract and construction defect disputes.  

Structuring Business Solutions for Design Professional’s Disputes

In addition to defending lawsuits, Will has been successful and is often requested to represent clients asserting affirmative claims such as unpaid contractual fee claims and lost business profit claims.

Litigation is an expensive proposition and Will’s practice representing design professionals and other businesses also includes advising clients regarding litigation/claims avoidance, contract negotiation, contract interpretation and review.

Recent Results

  • Will recently obtained an excellent result in a binding arbitration. Will defended an architectural firm against a claim made by a homeowners association (HOA) against regarding designed repairs. Claimant’s damage claim was in excess of $750,000 at the beginning of the hearing and later reduced to approximately $560,000 at the conclusion of testimony. Following the hearing and post arbitration briefing, the arbitrator made a very small award of $31,000 in favor of the HOA.
  • Trial – After a three week hotly contested trial involving a dispute between adjacent commercial property owners Will obtained all relief requested for his defendant client.
  • Settlement – On the first day of a two party binding arbitration and faced with a claim to his architect client exceeding $1.8 million Will negotiated a settlement of under $5,000.

Architect Defense

  • Represented architect whose work was alleged to have contributed to the cause of pedestrian/vehicle accident and the resulting injuries.  Plaintiffs initial demands were in the high six figures.  Following depositions and faced with a summary judgment motion, plaintiff settled the case against the architect for $2,000.
  • Successful in reducing claims of over $1 million to a settlement in the low $100,000 while at the same time securing approximately $50,000 in incurred and unpaid fees for the architect client.

Construction Contract/Attorneys Fees

  • Following a stipulated judgment, Will was able to defend an attorneys fees motion of $1.7 million and received an order reducing the amount by over 66%.