Patrick Costello practices complex litigation with an emphasis on business and commercial matters, trust and estate disputes, and professional liability defense. He has served as lead counsel on numerous trials and appellate proceedings in state and federal courts across the country. He also is skilled in electronic discovery, internal investigations and dispute resolution, and has successfully represented clients in mediations and arbitrations in the commercial law context.

Mr. Costello has litigated a wide variety of business disputes throughout his career involving such topics as commercial transactions; contracts and guaranties; corporate sales and buy-outs; consignments; internal disputes among members of partnerships, limited liability companies and other business entities; corporate dissolution proceedings; financing arrangements; post-judgment collection; membership deposits for golf and country clubs; open accounts; injunctions; and shipping transactions. Mr. Costello also maintains an active practice in both the enforcement and defense of non-compete agreements and restrictive covenants.

In the area of trust and estate litigation, Mr. Costello routinely represents trustees, personal representatives and beneficiaries in will and trust contests, declaratory judgment actions, fiduciary litigation, administration and investment challenges, surcharge and removal petitions, and accounting reviews. He also represents interested parties in the context of guardianship and incapacity proceedings.

Mr. Costello’s professional liability practice covers many industries, including insurance brokers, research companies, realtors, accountants, directors and officers. His work also involves representation of professional liability clients in responding to subpoenas and other third-party requests, both on the individual and institutional levels.

His recent experience includes:

• Defense of international insurance broker in several lawsuits alleging errors and omissions in the reporting of insurance claims and the negotiation of insurance policies. 
  
  
• Successful representation of trustee of a multimillion dollar estate in a declaratory judgment action seeking to invalidate fraudulent restatements of the trust instrument. 
  
  
• Counsel to physician in dispute with former partners concerning past-due compensation and conversion of partnership assets. 
  
  
• Representation of large telecommunications company in an action alleging violations of trade secrets and breach of non-compete covenants.
  
  
• Counsel to family members in the prosecution of an action for removal of a personal representative on grounds of misappropriation of trust assets and self-dealing in trust property. 
  
  
• Representation of beneficiary in a fiduciary duty and surcharge action against a trustee for maladministration of the trust. 
  
  
• Counsel to financing company on a multimillion dollar fraudulent transfer lawsuit spanning two jurisdictions brought against the debtors of the company and subsequent transferees of the assets in dispute. Successfully represented the company on an appeal brought by the debtors seeking to overturn the initial judgment for failure to pay on a guaranty.

Before joining Quarles & Brady, Mr. Costello practiced commercial and securities litigation with a national law firm in Atlanta, Georgia. He also was a member of the team of attorneys who served as counsel to the Enron Examiner, with responsibility for investigating and reporting on the roles of the accountants, directors and officers in connection with the bankruptcy of Enron Corporation.