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Providence Office:
(tel) 401-861-8200     (fax) 401-861-8210

New Bedford Office:
(tel) 774-206-8200     (fax) 774-206-8210 


Mr. Purcell is a member of the Litigation Group and serves as an arbitrator and mediator in complex commercial disputes.  He was a member of the First Certified Alternative Dispute Resolution Panel for the United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island where he received extensive training, thereafter, conducting early neutral evaluations and mediations under the auspices of the Federal District Court. 

He has over 25 years of commercial and business litigation experience, with a focus on healthcare, construction disputes, arbitration, and energy/utility-related litigation, primarily in the state and federal courts of Rhode Island and Massachusetts and the Department of Business Regulation on insurance, rate setting, and regulatory matters.

Mr. Purcell served as President and CEO of Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island (BCBSRI) and is credited with making significant changes in an effort to moderate long-term healthcare costs and improve the quality of care for Rhode Islanders. He spent significant time developing relationships with the provider community and making long-term investments, such as electronic health records and patient-centered medical homes designed to improve the local healthcare system.

HONORS

• Community Leadership Award, Gateway Healthcare, Inc., 2011
• Community and Justice Award, Rhode Island for Community & Justice, 2010
• Corporate Leader of the Year Award, Hispanic American Chamber of Commerce of Rhode Island, 2010
• Business Leadership, Providence Business News, 2005

REPRESENTATIVE CASES

• Appointed arbitrator by Chief Justice Torres (Federal Court) to resolve the final dispute between the developers of the Providence Place Mall.  After two weeks of hearings, he issued an opinion resolving the complex construction and contractual issues quickly and inexpensively.
• As a practicing attorney, represented BCBSRI in all of its rate filings between 1983 and 2000; in litigation and arbitration, including antitrust litigation, breach of fiduciary duty litigation, and litigation with providers and physician groups; in negotiation and drafting of provider contracts and self insurance, AFA and TPA contracts; represented Board members during depositions and to the extent they appeared at trial as witnesses;  was co-lead counsel on two federal district court anti-trust trials, and was lead counsel in merger discussions between BCBSRI and Anthem in the late 1990’s. 
• Testified before Congress in favor of Behavioral Health Parity, championed by Senator Kennedy, Representative Kennedy, and others.
• Successfully represented Energy Management, Inc. (EMI), concerning all aspects of the construction and ongoing operations of multiple co-generation, gas-fired electric generating plants in Massachusetts and Rhode Island.  The disputes, each involving multiple millions of dollars included a protracted, large exposure defense of EMI against claims by Ebasco Construction, Inc.; superior court litigation involving the interpretation of a tax treaty with the City of Pawtucket, Rhode Island; a major energy contract dispute with Commonwealth Electric over the pricing of natural gas in the equation for payments by Comm Electric to EMI.
• Represented Stog Tec, Inc., a German manufacturer of environmental equipment, in an arbitrated contract dispute with a Rhode Island business, recovering for Stog full damages for breach of contract.
• Represented BCBSRI in a two-week preliminary and permanent injunction hearing involving the legality of BCBSRI creating its own Dental Plan to compete with Delta Dental. 
• Represented parties in arbitrations involving Massachusetts’ ch. 93A involving the possibility of treble damages and attorneys’ fees in the event of willful violation of its unfair competition provisions.

EDUCATION
Boston University Law School, J.D.
 magna cum laude, 1974

Cornell University, B.A., 1967

 

PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS
Alternative Dispute Resolution Panel, U.S. District Court, District of Rhode Island
 Charter Member
Rhode Island Bar Association
Massachusetts Bar Association
Maine Bar Association
American Bar Association
Plans’ Liability Insurance Company
 Member, Board of Directors
Rhode Island Quality Institute
 Former Chair of the Board of Directors
Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association
 Former Member, Board of Directors
Blue Cross and Blue Shield National Association,
 Former Member; Health Policy and Legislative
 Committee, Emerging Issues Committee;  Administrative Committee, Transformation
 Strategy Workgroup
Blue Health Intelligence
 Former Member, Board of Directors
BCS Financial
 Former Member, Board of Directors
 Former Chair, Investment Committee

 

COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES
Greater Providence YMCA
 Former Chair of the Board of Directors 
 Former Trustee
Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce
 Former Member, Board of Directors
 Former Member, Audit Committee
Rhode Island Public Expenditure Council
 Former Member, Board of Trustees;
Crossroads Rhode Island
 Former Member, Board of Directors
Roger Williams University School of Law
 Former Advisory Council
Brown University Civic Leadership Council
 Former Member, Board of Directors
New England Council
 Former Member, Board of Directors
Rhode Island for Community & Justice (RICJ)
 Former Member, Board of Directors

 

BAR MEMBERSHIPS
Rhode Island, 1980
Massachusetts, 1985
Maine, 1974
U.S. District Court,  Rhode Island
U.S. District Court,  Massachusetts
U.S. Court of Appeals, 1st Circuit
U.S. Supreme Court