About Us
Egan, Flanagan & Cohen
A century-old law firm located in Springfield, Massachusetts
The Firm provides expert legal services and representation in a wide range of practice areas with particular concentration on civil litigation, criminal defense, labor and employment, probate, and real estate. Numerous members of the Firm have received awards recognizing them as among the best in their field.
The attorneys at the Firm are active members of their communities, serving as members of nonprofit boards, community organizations, bar organizations, church committees, as youth athletic coaches, and as elected and appointed officials. A number of the attorneys at the Firm are military veterans.
Honoring a Legacy. Prepared for Today.
The year was 1924. Northampton’s Calvin Coolidge was elected President of the United States, becoming the first U.S. president to deliver a radio broadcast from the White House.
In Springfield, Attorney James F. Egan opened a law practice in the historic Court Square Building, in the shadow of the Old First Church, where abolitionist John Brown once worshiped and where statesman Daniel Webster spoke.
Over the course of nearly a century, as Springfield became a hub of commerce and the region of Western Massachusetts grew and developed, so, too, did Egan, Flanagan & Cohen.
And while today’s Firm is located a short distance away in downtown Springfield on Market Street, there are still Egans working at the Firm. Today, Egan, Flanagan & Cohen offers a wide range of legal services with particular expertise in the areas of civil litigation, corporate representation, criminal defense, probate, and real estate.
We're not like the others
Unlike many large law firms, our clients have direct access to principals of the Firm. Retaining an attorney at Egan, Flanagan & Cohen means hiring a team of one of the region’s largest and most respected firms. Whenever the needs of a particular case require, our various legal departments team up to offer their expertise for the benefit of our client.
It is a law firm that both honors its legacy of service to the region and possesses the up-to-date legal skills needed to provide outstanding representation in an ever-changing environment.
Founders & Legacy
About James
James F. Egan established what is today Egan, Flanagan & Cohen in 1924, when he returned to his native City of Springfield after completion of his legal education at Harvard Law School and undergraduate education at the College of the Holy Cross. Mr. Egan’s college education was interrupted when he enlisted in the U.S. Navy during World War I. A graduate of the U.S. Navy’s Officer Candidate School in Newport, RI, Ensign Egan served his country at sea.
The practice established by Jim Egan began by serving mostly individuals in the greater Springfield area. However, based upon his reputation, it quickly grew to have a large client base of local businesses and families.
Active in the City of Springfield, Jim Egan held elected and appointed positions in the city government and appointed positions at the state and federal levels. He was a valued board member for years for some of the City’s largest business and financial institutions. A strong supporter of charitable endeavors, he served as a Trustee to institutions such as the Springfield Library and Museums, Mercy Hospital, the College of Our Lady of the Elms, and Brightside for Families and Children.
Jim gained a statewide reputation for his trial skills, particularly in the areas of eminent domain and shareholder disputes. At the time they were awarded, his verdicts on eminent domain were frequently the largest amounts at that time in Western Massachusetts.
In the area of business disputes, several of his cases established new law. Some of those cases were included in law school casebooks, treatises on shareholder rights, and were the subject of a national symposium at Western New England University Law School in Springfield.
Jim lectured on eminent domain and shareholder rights for the Hampden County and Massachusetts Bar Associations, and also at Harvard, Boston College, Boston University, and Suffolk University law schools.
Jim had the great privilege of seeing three of his five children become lawyers. All three worked at his firm, and his daughter, Mary, and son, Jack, remain important contributors to the firm he established.
About William
William C. Flanagan was raised in Chicopee, Massachusetts. Bill received his Bachelor’s degree from the College of the Holy Cross and his law degree from Georgetown University Law Center, where he was a member of its Law Review. Bill’s long-term association with Georgetown Law School includes stints as an adjunct professor on the law of evidence and as a member of its Board of Overseers.
After service as an officer in the U.S. Navy, Bill returned to Western Massachusetts and developed a particular interest in trial work. Bill became the Public Defender for the counties of Hampden, Hampshire, Berkshire and Franklin, which encompasses all of Western Massachusetts, and tried hundreds of serious felony cases as a very young attorney. He joined Jim Egan and expanded into civil litigation.
Bill tried cases for the Firm in all of the New England states and several jurisdictions outside of New England. He developed a reputation as a skilled advocate and in 1980 became the very first lawyer in Massachusetts certified as both a civil and criminal trial advocate by the National Board of Trial Advocacy. As further recognition of his trial skills, Bill was asked to author the volume in Trial Advocacy in the Massachusetts Practice Series. His treatise is found in any complete law library in Massachusetts.
An active member of the Springfield civic community, Bill served as Solicitor for the City of Springfield, the County Attorney for Hampden County, and a member of the Springfield Police Commission. On a statewide level, he was a member and Chairman of the Massachusetts Defenders Committee, the vehicle by which counsel was provided to indigent defendants throughout Massachusetts. In addition, Bill was actively involved with several nonprofits throughout Western Massachusetts. Bill now serves the Firm in a Senior Counsel status.
Two of Bill’s six daughters are members of the Massachusetts Bar.
About Charles
In an editorial piece in Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly upon his passing, Charles S. Cohen was described as “… a soft-spoken giant of the Massachusetts Bar.” To us, he was Charlie, a scholar of the law and mentor to many younger members of the Firm.
Born and raised in Holyoke, Massachusetts, a city abutting Springfield, Charlie graduated from Yale University and Harvard Law School. In 1975, Charlie was appointed a Justice of the District Court of Springfield. Bill Flanagan would describe Charlie as the “best” District Court Judge he ever appeared before.
Active in civic affairs, Charlie was the first Chairman of the Springfield Civic Center Commission and served as President of the Hampden County Bar Association. He was appointed by the Supreme Judicial Court as a member and then Chairperson of the Massachusetts Board of Bar Overseers. He served as a member of the governor’s Judicial Nominating Commission. Highly involved in Continuing Legal and Ethical Education, the Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education, Inc. established a scholarship in his memory.
Charlie’s practice centered on complex civil litigation. He represented many of the largest business organizations in Massachusetts.
He was highly skilled as an advocate and also extremely able at legal writing. All of the younger lawyers in the Firm endured his “editing” of any important filing. His goal was concise, clearly written advocacy, and he would devote hours of assistance to young lawyers seeking to emulate his skill at writing.
Two of Charlie’s seven children became members of the Massachusetts Bar. His son David practiced with Charlie at the Firm before Charlie retired.
The best representation for nearly a century.
As we look toward our second century of working for our clients in Western Massachusetts, we’re proud to provide individuals and businesses the accessibility, integrity, and dedication you expect in a great law firm.
