Joshua A. Cottle

Josh Cottle focuses his practice on circuit court appeals and appeals before the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia on behalf of clients in the education sector. As a member of the Bowles Rice Education Law Group, long recognized as “Top Tier” for Education Law in West Virginia by U.S. News & World Report, he also provides counsel regarding employee grievances, such as complex excess levy and personnel issues. In addition to administrative litigation, Josh represents school boards in cases involving violations of the Open Governmental Proceedings Act and the Freedom of Information Act, and counsels school boards on compliance with those Acts to avoid litigation.

Josh has advised the West Virginia School Board Association on the formation and operation of Educational Services Cooperatives and has assisted Regional Education Service Agencies with the transition to Educational Services Cooperatives.

Josh also handles transactional and litigation matters relating to the oil and gas industry. Specifically, his experience largely involves title curative work, including partition actions, missing or unknown heir petitions and complex lease disputes between oil and gas operators in the State of West Virginia. His previous work as a certified coal miner gives him a unique perspective among energy lawyers.

In addition to his education and energy work, Josh has successfully litigated multiple eminent domain actions on behalf of public utilities, and regularly counsels school boards on eminent domain and property matters.

He earned his law degree from the West Virginia University College of Law in 2014, where he was president of the Energy Law Society and a member of the Environmental Law Society. As a member of the school’s Moot Court, he served as Chief Justice of the National Energy and Sustainability Moot Court Competition.

Josh previously worked with the West Virginia Attorney General’s Civil Rights Division and was selected for the Judith A. Herndon Legislative Fellows Program. He is a member of the firm's Recruiting Committee.