Edward B. French, Jr., Esq.

 

  Edward B. French, Jr. is a lifelong resident of Lamoille County. Ed’s family has resided in Vermont since 1933, when his father came to Vermont with the Civilian Conservation Corp and remained in Vermont to practice medicine as a doctor in Hyde Park. Ed grew up in Hyde Park with his parents and eight siblings. He attended the University of Vermont and graduated magna cum laude in 1975 with a Bachelor of Arts in classical studies, where he was a member of Phi Beta Kappa. From UVM, Ed attended Boston University School of Law. Ed earned his juris doctor degree in 1978 and returned to Lamoille County to begin his law practice with David B. Stackpole. The firm became Stackpole & French Law Offices in 1994.

  Ed is licensed to practice law in the State of Vermont, in Federal District Court of Vermont, in the Circuit Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, and before the United States Supreme Court. Over the years, Ed has practiced in many different areas of the law in various forums for a multitude of individual, small business and corporate clients. In his first appearance before the Vermont Supreme Court in 1979, he argued for a legal standard in the area of fraud in an appeal that is still cited in current case law. During the 1980s, he successfully represented the Town of Stowe Electric Department in several courts, including the United States Supreme Court, in a series of legal actions relating to the Seabrook Nuclear Power Plant. David Stackpole and Ed worked to establish the first timeshare condominiums in the Stowe area in the early 1980s. During the 1980s and 1990s, David Stackpole and Ed worked together to coordinate the defense of Vermont Asbestos Group in several thousand asbestos personal injury claims. Since that time, Ed has litigated complex legal cases against Dupont Corporation and Vermont Electric Power Company (VELCO).

  Throughout his years of practice, Ed’s clients have included real estate developers, sellers and buyers of businesses and real estate, plaintiffs and defendants in civil actions, banks, companies, health care organizations, estates, and individuals of all types. He has assisted in the establishment of businesses, the drafting of complex contracts, the preparation of wills, and has generally advised individual clients in connection with their conflicts and issues. Ed firmly believes in the concept of a lifetime client and the dedicated attorney. He believes that an attorney must develop a long relationship of trust and understanding in order to fully serve the needs of his clients. Many of the clients of Stackpole and French have a longstanding commitment to the firm.

  Ed is a member of the Vermont Bar Association and the Lamoille County Bar Association. He presently serves on the Board of the Lamoille Valley Chamber of Commerce. Ed has also been Commissioner of the Stowe Electric Department; Trustee of the Village of Hyde Park, Vermont, Member of the Board of Civil Authority in Hyde Park, Vermont; Charter Member of the Lamoille Area Lions Club; Board Member of the Lamoille County Mental Health Agency; Hyde Park Town Agent and Grand Juror for the last 20 years.

 

Email: efrench@stackpolefrench.com