J. Nathan Cole is the
Founding Partner of Cole Law Partners, P.C., a boutique construction and
commercial litigation firm representing contractors, developers, owners, and
businesses throughout Massachusetts and Rhode Island. He has more than 22 years
of trial and appellate experience and holds an AV Preeminent rating — the
highest peer review standard issued by Martindale-Hubbell.
Mr. Cole's practice
centers on construction disputes, Prompt Payment Act claims, mechanics' liens,
bid protests, construction defect and delay claims, commercial litigation,
employer-side employment and risk management, and insurance coverage disputes.
He regularly appears before Massachusetts Superior Court, the U.S. District
Court for the District of Massachusetts, the Massachusetts Appeals Court, and
the Supreme Judicial Court. In February 2026, he argued J.C. Cannistraro,
LLC v. Columbia Construction Co. (SJC-13819) before the full Supreme
Judicial Court — a landmark case addressing the Massachusetts Prompt Payment
Act, G.L. c. 149, § 29E, and the scope of arbitrator authority under the
Massachusetts Arbitration Act, G.L. c. 251. The decision is pending.
Mr. Cole is an
experienced trial attorney who has tried numerous cases to verdict before state
and federal courts and has substantial arbitration experience before AAA, JAMS,
and private panels. He represents general contractors, subcontractors,
developers, property owners, and institutional clients in complex, high-stakes
construction and commercial litigation throughout New England. He also provides
construction contract drafting, negotiation, and risk management counsel to
clients seeking to manage and avoid disputes before they arise.
Mr. Cole is available for referrals in Massachusetts
construction litigation, commercial litigation, real estate disputes, and employer-side
employment matters. He regularly accepts referrals from general practice
attorneys, out-of-state counsel, and in-house legal departments requiring
specialized Massachusetts construction and commercial litigation expertise.
The case has generated amicus briefs from the Associated
Subcontractors of Massachusetts, the Associated General Contractors of
Massachusetts, and the Real Estate Bar Association. Decision pending.
Prompt Payment Act — Arbitration Award Vacated
J.C. Cannistraro, LLC v. Columbia Construction Co.,
Norfolk Superior Court (Goldenberg, J.), Lawyers Weekly No. 12-044-24 (December
2024) — Obtained vacation of arbitration award on behalf of subcontractor
client under G.L. c. 251, §12(a)(3). The arbitrator had ordered the general
contractor to pay $951,855 in "deemed approved" payment
applicationsfor Prompt Payment Act violations, then permitted the contractor to
file a counterclaim and recoup $576,855 from the subcontractor. Superior Court
vacated the recoupment award, holding that the arbitrator exceeded his
authority by awarding relief prohibited by the Prompt Payment Act: having
failed to pay the subcontractor prior to or contemporaneously with raising its
defenses, the contractor's right to assert those defenses was extinguished under
Graycor. Featured in Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, December 2024.
Real Estate — Option Agreement — Partial Summary Judgment
Haven Realty Trust v. Corrigan, et al., Norfolk
Superior Court (Doolin, J.), C.A. No. 22-01060, Lawyers Weekly No. 12-046-25
(October 2025) — Obtained partial summary judgment for plaintiffs, defeating
defendants' claim for specific performance of an option-to-purchase agreement.
Defendants sought to compel repurchase of 3.838 acres of real property for
$350,000 pursuant to an option that left parcel dimensions and future lot lines
to be "mutually agreed upon. "Successfully argued under *Lucey v.
Hero Int'l Corp.*, 361 Mass. 569 (1972) that an agreement to agree on the
essential terms of a real estate contract is too indefinite to support specific
performance as a matter of law. Promissory estoppel counterclaim survived as a
factual question for trial. Featured in Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, October
2025.
Commercial Litigation — Liquidated Damages — Federal
Summary Judgment
Secure Our City, Inc. v. ECI Systems, LLC, U.S.
District Court for the District of Massachusetts (Gorton, J.), Lawyers Weekly
No. 02-074-22 (March 2022) — Obtained summary judgment for defendant systems
integrator on plaintiff's breach of contract claim arising from an alleged
violation of a non-solicitation agreement. Successfully argued that the liquidated
damages provision — requiring forfeiture of 25% of revenues derived from
soliciting the plaintiff's clients — was an unenforceable penalty under
Massachusetts law, bearing no logical relationship to the plaintiff's
anticipated lost profits. Plaintiff's own designee had described the provision
as a "penalty" at deposition, which the court found dispositive.
Ruling enabled defendant's counterclaims for unpaid work to proceed. Cover
story, Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, March 25,2022.
Mechanics' Lien — Statutory Noncompliance — Summary
Discharge
Atlas Contracting, Inc. v. Saleh, et al., Middlesex
Superior Court (Barry-Smith, J.), Lawyers Weekly No. 12-022-18 (June2018) —
Obtained summary discharge of mechanics' lien on behalf of homeowner defendants
under G.L. c. 254, § 2.Successfully argued that the contractor's notice of
contract identified a written agreement for $240,294 that was not the operative
contract for the project, and that the contractor could not substitute a
different, nearly identical contract for a lower amount after the fact. Court
reaffirmed the strict compliance requirement: a mechanics' lien notice must be
based on the specific written contract for the project, and a contractor cannot
cure a defective notice by producing a different version post-filing. Cover
story, Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, June 20, 2018.
Commercial Litigation — Failure to Prosecute — Dismissal
with Prejudice
Saladin v. Goslee, et al. and Saladin v. South
Coast Music Group, et al., Essex Superior Court (Buxton and Dunigan,
JJ.),Lawyers Weekly No. 12-043-24 (November 2024) — Obtained summary judgment
dismissing all claims against clients in complex multi-defendant litigation,
then successfully defeated plaintiff's Rule 60(b) motion to reopen the case
following dismissal for failure to prosecute. Superior Court found a five-year
pattern of failure to pursue and prosecute the action —including failure to
move for default against non-answering defendants, voluntary dismissal on the
eve of trial without co- defendants'
consent, and failure to appear at a status conference — and denied the motion
to reopen. Featured in Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, November 2024.
Premises Liability — Summary Judgment
Belanger, et al. v. Boys in Berries, LLC, et al.,
Suffolk Superior Court (Ullmann, J.), Lawyers Weekly No. 12-070-15 (July2015) —
Obtained summary judgment for retail establishment defendant in premises
liability action brought by a customer who tripped over a wooden pallet at the
end of a checkout counter and sustained fractures to her hip and shoulder. Successfully
argued that a pallet holding merchandise placed adjacent to a checkout counter,
in an adequately lit space with sufficient room to exit, did not constitute an
unreasonably dangerous condition requiring warning under Massachusetts law,
notwithstanding plaintiff's theory that a nearby melon display created a
distracting condition. Featured in Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, July 2015.
Recognition
AV Preeminent Peer Review Rating, Martindale-Hubbell —
highest peer rating standard
Super Lawyers, Massachusetts, 2013–2026 (Construction
Litigation, Business Litigation, Employment & Labor: Employer)
Best Lawyers in America, 2020–2026 (Construction Litigation,
Commercial Litigation)
Boston Magazine Top Lawyer — Construction, 2022, 2024, 2025
BTI Consulting Group Client Service All-Star, 2022–2023
Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly — Best Up and Coming Law Firms,
2026
Leadership and Professional Affiliations
President-Elect, Massachusetts Defense Lawyers Association
(assumes presidency May 2027). Chair, Massachusetts Bar Association Real Estate
Development and Construction Law Steering Committee (2025–2026). Past Chair, International
Association of Defense Counsel Construction Law and Litigation Committee
(2022–2024). NITA instructor. Member, Defense Research Institute; International
Association of Defense Counsel; Boston Bar Association. Frequent lecturer at
MCLE, IADC Annual and Midyear Meetings, and the National Electrical Contractors
Association on topics including Prompt Payment Act compliance, mechanics' lien
practice, construction delay claims, and Chapter 93A.
