William J. Phelan, IV

William J. “Bill” Phelan, IV is a Litigation Partner at Cordell & Cordell and Co-Chair of the firm’s Appellate Practice Division. His practice combines family law litigation with substantial appellate work, and he regularly handles appeals arising from domestic relations matters of his own while consulting with and managing attorneys across the firm on appellate strategy and briefing.

Bill has significant experience before Pennsylvania’s appellate courts and is part of Cordell & Cordell’s dedicated appellate team. He regularly assists with family law appeals involving complex legal and procedural issues and is active in the Pennsylvania Bar Association’s Appellate Advocacy Committee and the American Bar Association’s Council of Appellate Lawyers.

He is also an Adjunct Professor at Villanova University, where he teaches family law, and regularly speaks on appellate developments and family law appeals.

Alongside his appellate practice, Bill maintains an extensive family law practice. He has appeared in hundreds of hearings and represents clients across a wide range of domestic relations matters, from negotiation and case preparation through contested and complex family law trial proceedings.

Before joining Cordell & Cordell, Bill was a partner at a small firm where his practice included family law, employment matters, Social Security benefits, civil litigation, and disability rights cases. He also served as a staff attorney with the American Bar Association Commission on Disability Rights and was appointed by the D.C. Superior Court to its Family Court Mental Health and Mental Habilitation Panels.

Bill has held leadership roles with the Pennsylvania Bar Association, including Chair of its Disability Services Committee, and has served in the Doris Jonas Freed Matrimonial American Inn of Court.

His work has been recognized by The Best Lawyers in America for Family Law, Pennsylvania Super Lawyers, and the Irish Legal 100. He has also previously been selected for recognition by The Appellate Lawyers.

Bill earned his J.D. from The Catholic University of America’s Columbus School of Law, where he received a certificate in Law and Public Policy and served as a Senior Editor of the Journal of Contemporary Health Law & Policy. He is licensed in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, the District of Columbia and the U.S. District Courts for Eastern Pennsylvania and the District of Columbia.