"We strive always to listen to our clients, understand their goals, and then help achieve them."

As a veteran civil trial attorney, William McGrath is a problem solver. Companies and professionals of all ilk turn to him for help resolving their legal and business concerns. A trial lawyer in Connecticut for over thirty-five years, he knows the state’s legal, political, and business infrastructures in depth. Drawing upon his extensive knowledge and his knack for creative thinking, he is adept at exploring options with his clients and advising them on innovative strategies for overcoming business challenges.

Bill’s practice encompasses virtually any type of business dispute, whether between business associates or involving outsiders. Even when a dispute is such that litigation seems inevitable, he is often able to help a client find a cost-effective solution. If litigation is necessary, he takes charge of directing the case and applies his trial experience towards achieving the best result for the client.

Bill cut his teeth in the courtroom representing major insurance companies and lending institutions in tort, coverage, and consumer cases. Through the years, he broadened his practice to where it is today. While insurance and banking remain key areas of his focus, he now represents a wide variety of businesses in an array of matters. A particular emphasis of his is providing legal counsel to professional-services providers in fields such as medicine, law, marketing, accounting, and finance; he assists them with everything from business advice to malpractice defense. He frequently represents licensed healthcare professionals before the Department of Public Health.

Bill serves as a special master for the U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut, as well as a neutral mediator, applying his skills towards helping others find ways to resolve their differences. He has served as a designated arbitrator in over sixty private disputes.

As his practice has grown and diversified, so has his involvement in community affairs and state and local politics. Bill sits on the board of directors of the Public Health Foundation of Connecticut and the Greater Hartford Legal Aid Foundation. He is active in many local non-profit organizations, including the American Heart Association.

Growth and diversification likewise characterize Bill’s prior 20-year tenure as the firm’s Managing Partner. He has been instrumental in helping Halloran Sage become one of Connecticut’s leading law firms. Under his management, the firm significantly broadened and strengthened its practice areas. His commitment to community has been a catalyst for the firm’s greater immersion in community affairs, charitable organizations, and public service.

For his clients, Bill’s experience is key – experience in the courtroom, in business, and in the community. Clients know that these elements add up to a lawyer they can trust to solve any business problem they face.

Bill was elected a James W. Cooper Life Fellow of the Connecticut Bar Foundation. Life Fellows are exemplary lawyers recognized for the high quality of their work, their service to their community and the public, and their efforts to improve the legal system. He has been recognized by Super Lawyers® in the category of General Litigation and was included in the 2023, 2024 , and 2025 editions of The Best Lawyers in America® in the area of Litigation – Insurance. Bill holds an “AV” or preeminent rating under the Martindale lawyer rating system.