Peter S. Buas: Trusted Worcester County Real Estate & Estate Attorney

In 1951, Marcus J. Williams, a Somerset County native and a graduate of the University of
Maryland Law School, began the practice of law at 3 South Main Street, Berlin, Worcester
County, Maryland. Mr. Williams shared offices, but did not form a partnership with, William H.
Scott, a private practitioner, Daniel T. Prettyman, later Administrative Judge for the Circuit
Court for Worcester County, and Edward H. Hammond, Sr., the Court Reporter for the Court of
Appeals of Maryland.

In the summer of 1964, Mr. Williams employed Edward H. Hammond, Jr., a student at the
University of Georgia School of Law, as his law clerk. Mr. Hammond was joined in 1966 by
Joseph E. Moore, then attending the University of Maryland School of Law, who was also hired
as a law clerk and as a property surveyor. Mr. Hammond became Mr. Williams’ associate upon
his discharge from the Army in 1969, and Mr. Moore also became an associate after completing
his active duty service in the Army Reserve later in 1969.

In 1973, Mr. Hammond and Mr. Moore were admitted as partners, and the firm became known
as Williams, Hammond & Moore. The following year, Raymond C. Shockley joined the
partnership after retiring from the Maryland State Police and leaving the Berlin law firm of
Sanford, Bolte & Shockley. In 1975, Joseph G. Harrison, Jr. joined the firm, and upon becoming
a partner in 1978, the firm became known as Williams, Hammond, Moore, Shockley & Harrison.
Over the following decades, the firm continued to expand. Richard Collins joined the firm in
1984 after serving as law clerk to the Honorable Charles D. Edmondson of the Circuit Court for
Dorchester County. Regan J.R. Smith joined in 1988 following a clerkship with the Honorable
Marvin Smith of the Maryland Court of Appeals and private practice with the Towson law firm
of Cook, Howard, Downes & Tracy (now Venable LLP). Brian D. Shockley became the firm’s
first second-generation attorney in 1995 after practicing with the Towson firm of Morrow &
Hassani. Christopher T. Woodley joined the firm in 2000 following clerkships with the
Honorable Theodore Eschenburg and the Honorable Thomas C. Groton of the Circuit Court for
Worcester County. That same year, Richard Collins, Regan Smith, and Brian Shockley were
elected partners.

In July 2002, Edward H. Hammond, Jr. left the firm to serve full-time as Worcester County
Attorney after decades of service in that role on a part-time basis. Following his departure, the
firm adopted the name Williams, Moore, Shockley & Harrison, a name that would become
synonymous with trusted legal representation throughout Worcester County and Maryland’s
Eastern Shore.

The firm continued to grow in the years that followed. Christopher T. Woodley became a partner
in 2010. In 2012, Brian D. Shockley was appointed and sworn in as a Judge of the Circuit Court
for Worcester County. Chris S. Mason joined the firm in 2016 following more than twenty years
of private practice in Salisbury, Maryland.

In the fall of 2018, Peter S. Buas joined the firm following his clerkship for the judges of the
Circuit Court for Worcester County, including the Honorable Thomas C. Groton, Richard R.
Bloxom, Brian D. Shockley, Mary M. Kent, and Beau H. Oglesby. Morgan A. Fisher joined the
firm in 2019 after serving as law clerk to the Honorable Brian D. Shockley, Mary M. Kent, and
Beau H. Oglesby. In 2021, Peter S. Buas was elected a partner of the firm, continuing its long
tradition of developing leadership from within.

Effective April 1, 2026, after many years of practicing together, the partners mutually agreed to
continue their practices through two separate law firms. This transition represented a separation
of practices rather than a departure from the firm’s longstanding legacy. Peter S. Buas and
Raymond C. Shockley continued serving clients through Coastal Law Office, LLC, remaining in
the firm’s longtime Ocean City office at 3509 Coastal Highway, while the remaining partners
continued their practice through Williams, Moore, LLP at a new location. Although the firms
now operate independently, they continue to share a common history rooted in more than seven
decades of service to the Eastern Shore and remain committed to the professionalism, integrity,
and client-centered representation upon which the firm was built.

In 2026, Miranda K. Buas joined Coastal Law Office, LLC, further expanding the firm’s ability
to serve individuals, families, businesses, community associations, and real estate clients
throughout Maryland’s Eastern Shore. Her addition reflects the firm’s continued growth and
commitment to providing responsive, high-quality legal services while building upon the tradition established more than seventy years ago.

Coastal Law Office has a long history of service and commitment to the Worcester County
community. Its attorneys have varied and extensive abilities and specialties, creating a
comprehensive law firm dedicated to serving its clients and the citizens and visitors of Worcester County and Maryland’s Eastern Shore.