William Costigan

In over thirty years in practice, Bill has handled an array of commercial litigation matters, including breach of contract, fraudulent conveyance, securities, antitrust, and insurance and reinsurance cases, as well as adversary proceedings in bankruptcy and domestic and international arbitrations.

A substantial part of Bill's practice has involved representation of state insurance commissioners when they function as statutory receivers of insolvent insurance companies. He has handled suits against former directors and officers of the insolvent companies, former parent companies and affiliates, and reinsurers. Outside the receivership realm, he has handled high-value coverage disputes, reinsurance litigations and arbitrations, and other insurance industry matters. He also acts for other commercial clients, including private equity firms, an international maritime shipping and logistics concern, and a Manhattan art gallery.

As a trial lawyer, Bill has won significant jury verdicts and arbitral awards in cases involving director and officer liability, reinsurance recoverable, and other contentious matters. As an appellate practitioner he has won precedential rulings in the New York Court of Appeals and the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the Second and Third Circuits.

Bill received his law degree from the New York University School of Law, where he was Editor-in-Chief of the Moot Court Board, and his B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania, where he was a Benjamin Franklin Scholar.

Bill began his career in the Litigation Department of Mudge Rose Guthrie & Alexander, leaving that firm in 1988 to launch his own practice. Early in his career, he also taught Legal Writing at New York Law School. More recently, he has testified in international arbitration proceedings as an expert witness on New York insurance law, and has spoken extensively on that subject as well as international regulation of insurers and reinsurers and receivership practice.

He is admitted to practice before the Courts of the State of New York and is also admitted to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court, the U.S. Court of Appeals (Second and Third Circuits), the U.S. District Court (Southern, Eastern and Northern Districts of New York), and the U.S. Court of International Trade.