Baker Donelson has grown its Corporate Group with the addition of William W. Fagan III, who counsels clients on mergers, acquisitions, and other complex commercial transactions, as well as serving in the role of de facto in-house counsel for business owners.
Mr. Fagan, who joins as of counsel in the Firm's Atlanta office, previously served as general counsel and corporate secretary for one of the largest privately-held risk management and insurance agencies in the U.S. His extensive in-house experience also includes his work as senior corporate counsel and claims counsel for a national mutual insurer of physicians, hospitals, and health care facilities, where he provided legal counsel in complex business transactions, including the acquisition of another mutual insurance company; managed outside counsel in professional liability litigation, including insurance bad faith exposures; developed an expertise in coverage analysis; and advised executives and senior management on policy developments and regulatory issues. While in-house, he regularly drafted, reviewed, and negotiated all manner of complex commercial contracts, including employment agreements, leases, service provider agreements, and vendor contracts.
In addition to his focus on mergers and acquisitions and other complex business transactions, regulatory compliance, corporate governance and securities, Mr. Fagan provides advice on a variety of day-to-day legal issues and consults on internal investigations, complex corporate deals, and litigation and claims management. His private practice experience as a litigator includes defending matters involving securities and shareholder derivative class actions, real estate finance, medical malpractice, and white collar crime.
A graduate of Washington & Lee University School of Law and Duke University, Mr. Fagan served as a member of the Georgia State Senate "Cost of Doing Business in Georgia" Study Committee in 2019. He is a member of the State Bar of Georgia, where he serves on the Advisory Committee on Legislation and the Insurance Committee, and previously served on the board of directors of the Georgia Chapter of the Association of Corporate Counsel.