Simultaneous electroplating of both sides of a dual-sided substrate

A method of simultaneously electroplating both sides of a dual-sided circuit board substrate having electrically connected, multi-trace circuit patterns formed on both sides of the substrate, without requiring formation and at least partial removal of electrically conductive tie bars and associated extensions, comprises steps of simultaneously electrically contacting each feature of a first one of the circuit patterns with a multi-fingered electrical contactor, and applying an electrical potential to the contactor to effect simultaneous electroplating on the circuit patterns on both sides of the substrate. According to an embodiment of the invention, the multi-fingered contactor comprises an array of electrically conductive wires, rods, or filaments extending from one surface of a metal plate. The invention finds particular utility in the fabrication of ball grid array (BGA) semiconductor device packages.