Richard F. Hennessey
Richard F. Hennessey, is special counsel to the firm. He practices in the areas of general business law, health law, the law of lawyering, and professional and business regulation and enforcement. For example, Rich
- has functioned as general counsel for five years to the wireless communications division of a major Colorado-based cable and communications company, and was involved in operations, as well as acquisitions, mergers and sales;
- has assisted the financial services, legal and medical professions in the development of practice standards and regulatory procedures and assisted professional groups, businesses and insurers in a variety of risk management projects;
- assists in health care contracting and in the formation and operation of medical services provider groups;
- assists business and professional entities regarding entity formation, operations and dissolution; and
- advises and represents lawyers and law firms regarding matters of legal ethics and other issues related to the practice of law.
Rich has significant experience in health law related areas. For example, he has represented MSOs and single specialty and multi-specialty IPAs in their formation and operations, which has included payer and managed care contracting, credentialing, provider contracting, peer review, and systems development and management. Rich also represents several specialty medical associations.
Rich's practice also includes the law pertaining to lawyers. He represents lawyers and law firms regarding issues of legal ethics, professional responsibility, risk management and attorney regulation. He has been an expert witness in a variety of cases involving standards of practice and lawyers' conduct.
Rich also has significant experience in the area of state and local government. Prior to joining the firm in 1982, he served as the Deputy Attorney General of the State of Colorado, the statutory position currently called the chief deputy attorney general. He also previously served as associate regional attorney for the Office of General Counsel, U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. He served both as the first Committee Counsel for the Colorado Supreme Court Grievance Committee during the period 1974 to 1979 and as a member of the Colorado Supreme Court Grievance Committee for six years (1981 through 1986), serving as chair in 1986.
Rich's previous positions include:
- Colorado Department of Law, Office of the Attorney General, the Deputy Attorney General, 1979-1982
- Colorado Supreme Court Grievance Committee, Committee Counsel, 1974-1979
- U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Office of General Counsel, Regional Litigation Center, Associate Regional Attorney, 1973-1974
- Legal Aid Society of Metropolitan Denver, Attorney, 1968-1973; Associate Director, 1971-1973
- University of Denver College of Law, Adjunct professor, 1978 and 1981
- University of Colorado Law School, Visiting professor, 1972-1973
Rich was selected to Colorado SuperLawyers in the field of professional liability defense in 2006, 2007 and 2008.
Email rhennessey@penberg.com
Publications
C. Morris, Jr., and R. Hennessey, Ethics and the Business Lawyer, 32 Colo. Law 10, p. 43 (Oct. 2003)
R. Hennessey, "Emphasizing Rules Instead of Principles
Risks Losing Our Sense of Purpose," 27 The Colorado Lawyer 19 (February 1998)
R. Hennessey, N. Kanaya, "Rights and Limitations
Regarding a Patient's Access to His or Her Own Medical Records,"
Colorado Psychiatric Society Newsletter, Vol. XXI, No. 1 (March 1996)
"Colorado's New Rules of Professional Conduct: A More
Comprehensive and Useful Guide for Lawyers," 21 The Colorado Lawyer 2102 (R. Hennessey, ed. October, 1992)
R. Hennessey, J. Morrow, "Attorney's Ethical Duty to
Third Parties in the Context of Commercial Real Estate Transactions,"The Colorado Fund Concept, Vol. 6, No. 11 (Dec./Jan. 1992)
R. Hennessey, "Guidelines for Lawyer Trust Accounts," 12 The Colorado Lawyer 80 (April 1983)
J. Bunch, L. DeMuth, Jr., R. Hennessey, "Representing an Entity" (fifth of a six-article Symposium on Professional Responsibility and the Proposed Model Rules of Professional Conduct), 9 The Colorado Lawyer 2589 (December 1980)
R. Hennessey, J. Bunch and R. Polidori, "Some Persisting Problems" (the concluding article of a six-article Symposium on
Professional Responsibility and the Proposed Model Rules of
Professional Conduct), 9 The Colorado Lawyer 2599 (December 1980)
R. Hennessey, "Managing with Lawyers," Summary of
Proceedings, Fourth Management Institute (1977) - published by the National Association of Attorneys General
R. Hennessey, R. Landies, T. Shaffer, "Looking at Your
Law Firm as an Organization," 16 Law Office Economics and Management 160 (1976)
Four published Annual Reports of the Colorado Supreme Court Grievance Committee which appear as follows: the 1978 report, 8 The Colorado Lawyer 587 (April 1979); the 1977 report, 7 The Colorado Lawyer 723 (May 1978); the 1976 report, 6 The Colorado Lawyer 451 (March 1977); and the 1975 report, 5 The Colorado Lawyer 377 (March 1976) (which was the first such report)