J. William Eshelman, Partner
Practice Concentration
Legal practice focuses on performance and cost accounting-related issues in government, construction and commercial contract litigation.
- Represents clients before the Boards of Contract Appeals, the Court of Federal Claims, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, various U.S. District Courts, state courts and administrative agencies;
- Proposal preparation, warranty issues, exercise of options, negotiation of contracts and modifications involving defense, aerospace and postal contracting;
- Counseling on all aspects of Compliance Programs;
- Internal Investigations and Voluntary Disclosure;
- Trade Regulation and Export Administration;
- Business Ethics;
- Civil Fraud Issues;
- Extensive experience in arbitration and ADR;
- Retired from the U.S. Air Force Reserves (Lieutenant Colonel, Department of the Judge Advocate General).
Industry Experience
Government, Construction, Technology
Client Work
- Works with Federal agencies to resolve issues before they necessitate claims and litigation.
- Works with Congress on legislative issues affecting government contractors.
- Assists international companies doing business with the United States government and U.S. companies in dealings with foreign government.
- Represents construction company in equitable adjustment claims before Court of Federal Claims involving loss of efficiency and increased field overhead for construction of NASA Space Station Processing Facility.
- Represented systems integration contractor on Space Station Program in $90 million bad faith termination for convenience claim against NASA.
- Represented defense contractor on USAF Joint STARS program to reverse deductions to target cost and target price where Government had canceled certain line items of contract after work was performed.
- Represented precision welding equipment manufacturer in defective specification and change claims on construction of electron beam particle vapor deposition machine for Penn State Naval Applied Research Laboratory.
- Represented computer software company in bid protest involving enterprise management system.
Represented companies in voluntary disclosures and internal investigations. - Represented companies relative to Corporate Compliance Programs and related policies.
- Represented companies regarding Export Administration and Munitions matters including Technical Assistance Agreements.
Publications/Presentations/Speaking/Recognitions
- "Ethics in Government Contracts," WG and Samford University (Cumberland School of Law), 2005.
- "Superior Knowledge Doctrine, An Update," Public Contract Law J., Spring 1993.
- "Pricing Equitable Adjustment Claims," Federal Publications, 1988.
- "Implied Duty of Cooperation," Federal Publications, 1987.
- "Pricing of Claims" and "Government Contract Claims," the Center for Advanced Management Programs (CAMP) at the University of Houston, Clearlake, TX.
- "What To Do When Things Go Wrong," National Contract Management Association's World Congress April, 2006, Atlanta, GA
- "Neglected Areas of Enterprise Risk," NCMA World Congress April, 2007, Dallas TX
Professional Affiliations
Professional Affiliations
Air Force Association
Federalist Society
Lead Faculty and Area Chair for Law & Ethics, The Business School, College of Graduate Business and Management, University of Phoenix Online
Faculty Council Member, The Business School, College of Graduate Business and Management, University of Phoenix
Virginia Bar Association
District of Columbia Bar Association
Alabama Bar Association
Former Secretary, Army Navy Club in Washington, D.C.
Adjunct Faculty Member of The Columbia School of Law of The Catholic University of America
Personal Interests
U.S. History and Founding
Classics and Classical Philosophy
National Security
Fishing and Shooting Sports
