Phillip A. Cole / Retired
Former Areas of Practice: Legal Malpractice, Professional Liability, Medical Malpractice, Commercial Litigation, Business Litigation, Intellectual Property Litigation, Shareholder/Owner Disputes, Wrongful Death
Phillip A. Cole / Biography
Before his retirement, Phil Cole used his extensive litigation experience in handling personal injury cases, commercial disputes, business torts, class actions, medical malpractice claims, and the defense of all types of claims brought against lawyers. Mr. Cole has been a frequent lecturer and a published author in the areas of trial strategies and professional liability subjects. Mr. Cole was a board certified civil trial advocate by the National Board of Trial Advocacy before retiring.
He has been a qualified neutral under Rule 114 of the Minnesota General Rules of Practice and included on the civil neutrals rosters for both facilitative/hybrid and adjudicative/evaluative panels. Mr. Cole was selected as the Minneapolis Best Lawyers Legal Malpractice Lawyer of the Year for 2011 and as the Minneapolis Best Lawyers Legal Malpractice Lawyer-Defendants of the Year for 2014 and again in 2019. Cole, a member of the American Board of Professional Liability Attorneys until his retirement, was certified as a specialist in the litigation of both legal and medical professional liability claims (this national organization is not accredited by the Minnesota Board of Legal Certification).
Mr. Cole has also been recognized in the International Who’s Who, Who’s Who in American Law, the National Registry of Who’s Who, and as one of The Best Lawyers in America© by U.S. World & News Report. He has been repeatedly listed as a Minnesota Super Lawyer and has been listed as a Top 100 Minnesota Super Lawyer for over a dozen years. Before his retirement he was rated AV Preeminent® for the highest level of professional excellence by Martindale-Hubbell.
Education
- University of Maryland, B.A., 1961
- Georgetown University, J.D., 1964
News + Articles
New Law Series: The Loss of Chance Doctrine in Minnesota – Dickhoff v. Green
Phil Cole and Bryan Feldhaus spoke on September 20, 2013 at a Minnesota CLE webcast, “New Law Series: The Loss of Chance Doctrine in Minnesota – Dickhoff v. Green.” Program description: The Minnesota Supreme Court Dickhoff v. Green case adopted the “Loss of...
Ask Upsize: Glenn Kessel on the New Minnesota Estate & Gift Tax
[Q] I am a divorced small business owner in Minnesota with a net worth of approximately $3,000,000. How will the new Minnesota estate and gift tax affect my ability to leave my estate to my children with minimum gift and estate taxes? Read Glenn Kessel's answer to...
Duty to Defend & Priorities of Coverage
John Crawford presented a webcast on August 16, 2013, Insurance Law Deskbook: Duty to Defend and Priorities of Coverage. The webcast was presented by Minnesota CLE and John's co-presenter was Benjamin Johnson of Johnson & Lindberg, P.A. Program...
The U.S. Supreme Court’s Big New Decisions
Kay Hunt spoke on August 13, 2013 at The U.S. Supreme Court’s Big New Decisions seminar presented by Minnesota CLE. Program description: Part I U.S. Supreme Court Update: The Big Cases This Term and Those on Deck for Next Not all Supreme Court cases are created...
To Leave or Not to Leave: Determining Minnesota Residency for Tax Purposes
The new tax law significantly affects taxpayers and their estates by enacting a gift tax (and thereby joining Connecticut as the only states to impose a state-level gift tax) and amending the estate tax and income tax. The Minnesota Legislature passed this Omnibus Tax...
Ask Upsize: Bob Abdo on Continuing Liability After Selling Your Business
[Q] I’m selling my business and the business broker tells me I will continue to have liability for the business after I close. Is this true? Read Bob Abdo's answer to this question in the Ask Upsize segment at Upsize Magazine.