David S. Hoopes

David S. Hoopes is a principal of Cohn Birnbaum & Shea P.C. and a member of the firm’s Litigation Group and Commercial Real Estate Group. He is a business law generalist with extensive litigation experience and regularly advises business clients on zoning and land use, real estate purchases and sales, leasing, financing, title matters, business formation and transactions, and employment matters. His clients include entrepreneurs, developers, investors, lenders, nonprofit organizations, municipalities, and housing authorities.

Hoopes earned his B.A. in History, summa cum laude, from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst in 1981, with Phi Beta Kappa and Phi Kappa Phi honors. He earned his J.D. with honors from the University of Connecticut School of Law in 1984. His legal career includes decades of business litigation and transactional work, including prior practice at Hoopes & Morganthaler from 2004 through 2026 before joining his current firm.

Hoopes has tried cases in multiple jurisdictions and argued appeals before the Connecticut Supreme and Appellate Courts, the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, and the Massachusetts Appeals Court. His representative matters include major business disputes, fiduciary-duty claims, injunction litigation, construction cases, title insurance disputes, and commercial real estate and finance transactions. His land use practice includes applications before zoning and wetlands bodies, the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, and the US Army Corps of Engineers.

David S. Hoopes is admitted in Connecticut and Massachusetts and to federal courts in both states and the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. He is a member of the American Bar Association, Connecticut Bar Association’s Commercial Law and Bankruptcy Section, and Hartford County Bar Association. His current practice spans litigation, commercial real estate, creditor rights and bankruptcy, land use, business transactions, financing, and related counseling for public and private clients.

Law Office Affiliations

• Principal, Cohn Birnbaum & Shea P.C.
• Member, Connecticut Bar Association
• Member, Massachusetts Bar Association
• Member, American Bar Association
• Member, Connecticut Bar Association, Commercial Law and Bankruptcy Section
• Member, Hartford County Bar Association
• Member, Glastonbury Zoning Board of Appeals

Licensed State

• Connecticut
• Massachusetts

Education

• University of Connecticut School of Law
  Juris Doctor (JD)
• University of Massachusetts at Amherst
  Bachelor of Arts (BA) in History Summa Cum Laude

Awards & Badges