Hugh W. Farrell
About Hugh
Hugh began his legal career as an associate attorney with the civil litigation firm of Welch, Murphy & Welch in 1984. He founded the law firm of Hugh W. Farrell & Associates in May of 1991, which became Farrell & Gunderson in 2007. The firm focused on business law, employment law, and health care law. Hugh and his team joined Davis, Agnor, Rapaport & Skalny, LLC in 2018.
Hugh is AV-rated Pre-eminent by Martindale-Hubbell, a peer-rated honor recognizing his professional excellence and commitment to the highest ethical standards. In 2022, Hugh was named to the Top Lawyers Hall of Fame by Washingtonian Magazine.
Hugh concentrates his practice in civil litigation and, in particular, in the defense of security services, medical malpractice cases, insurance defense and defense of employment wrongful termination claims. He possesses extensive experience in the areas of general negligence, business torts, employment wrongful termination claims, employment discrimination claims, institutional security claims, workers’ compensation claims, municipal liability claims, premises liability claims, insurance coverage declaratory judgment actions, and products liability.
In addition to representing health care facilities in defense of medical negligence and other litigation matters, Hugh assists facilities in compliance matters, including HIPAA issues, defending health care providers in complaints filed with licensing boards and with other federal and state agencies.
Supporting the various communities in which he lives and works is extremely important to Hugh. He has served as a court appointed mediator in the Multi-Door Dispute Resolution Division of the Superior Court for the District of Columbia. Hugh is also a trained facilitator by the Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Committee of the Howard County Bar Association and volunteers his time to mediate cases before the District and Circuit Courts of Maryland.
In his spare time, Hugh enjoys playing golf. He and his wife enjoy spending weekends with family and friends.
Practice Groups
Areas of Focus
- Business Litigation
- Collaborative Law & Alternative Dispute Resolution
- Labor & Employment Litigation
- Mediation & Arbitration
- Regulatory Compliance & Internal Investigations
- Electronic Recordkeeping & Technology
- Negligence & Professional Liability
- Physician Contracts & Compensation
- Health Care Regulatory Compliance
- Risk Mitigation
- Employee Policies & Procedures
- Employment Litigation & Dispute Resolution
- Employment, Non-Competition & Severance Agreements
- Employment Discipline & Discharge
- Human Resources Advice & Counseling
- Workplace Investigations
Community Involvement
- Governor Run Homeowners Association, Member, Board of Directors
- Past President, Board of Directors
- Howard County District Court, Volunteer Facilitator
- Howard County, Carroll County, and Montgomery County Circuit Courts, Court Mediator
- Maryland Program for Mediator Excellence, Member
- D.C. Defense Lawyer’s Association, active Member and CLE presenter
- Mt. St. Mary’s Seminary Rector’s Council, past Member
- Defense Lawyers Research Institute, Member
Membership in Professional Organizations
- The Maryland Program for Mediator Excellence
- American Board of Trial Advocates
- The Defense Research Institute
- The District of Columbia Defense Lawyers Association
- Howard County Bar Association
- Anne Arundel County Bar Association
- The Maryland, Virginia and District of Columbia Bar Associations
Schooling
- Mount Saint Mary’s University, B.A.
- University of Baltimore Law School, J.D.
Bar Admission
- Maryland
- District of Columbia
- Virginia
Training
- Baltimore Mediation Training, Basic Mediation and Conflict Transformation Skills, 2018
- Harvard Negotiation Advanced Mediation Workshop; Mediating Complex Disputes, 2019
Awards
- District of Columbia Defense Lawyers Association – Lawyer of the Year (2010)
- Washingtonian Magazine – Best Lawyers in Washington, D. C. (2007 -2019)
