William A. Richards
Bill's 20 years of trial practice have developed an expertise in successfully managing large and complex litigation matters ranging from class action constitutional claims to lender liability defense. As Senior Litigation Counsel for the Civil Division of the Arizona Attorney General's Office, Bill recently acted as lead trial and appellate counsel for much of the State of Arizona's largest and most sophisticated civil litigation over a six-year period. There, his cases often regularly involved millions, hundreds of millions, or even over a billion dollars in potential impact to his clients. They included constitutional challenges to state financing of education programs, constitutional and statutory challenges to state budget legislation, and defense of civil rights actions arising out of government forfeiture proceedings and government employment disputes. Bill has extensive appellate experience, and has argued before the Supreme Court of Arizona, the Supreme Court of Utah, the Supreme Court of Nevada, the Arizona Court of Appeals and the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. He also has substantial skills in mediating civil disputes.
Areas of Practice
- Commercial Litigation
- Government/Civil Rights Litigation
- Securities Litigation
Bar Admissions
- Arizona, 1990
- U.S. Court of Appeals 9th Circuit
- U.S. District Court District of Arizona
- U.S. Supreme Court
Education
- Arizona State University, Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law, Tempe, Arizona
- J.D. (Magna Cum Laude) - 1990
- The Judge Advocate General's School U.S. Army, Charlottesville, Virginia - 1991
- Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, Arizona
- B.S. - 1987
- Major: Speech Communication
Representative Cases
Classes/Seminars
- Nat'l Assoc. of Attorneys General Trial Skills, Nat'l Assoc. of Attorneys General, 2005 - 2006
Honors and Awards
- Conference of Western Attorneys General Jim Jones Public Service Award, 2010 - Present
- Arizona Attorney General's Outstanding Trial Team, 2008 - Present
Professional Associations and Memberships
- Admitted to Colorado Bar, currently inactive
Past Employment Positions
- Arizona Attorney General's Office, Senior Litigation Counsel, 2005 - 2010
- Ryley, Carlock & Applewhite, Litigation Shareholder, 1994 - 2004
Pro Bono Activities
- Judge Pro Tempore, Maricopa County Supreme Court, 2005 - 2010
Ancillary Businesses
- Mediator for commercial litigation, contract, tort, civil rights or securities disputes
