Henry A. MacDonald (1928-1984).
William F. Illig (1946-1989).
Frederick F. Jones (1939-1977).
John E. Britton (1948-2004).
PARTNERS OF FIRM
T. Warren Jones (Partner) born Erie, Pennsylvania, March 2, 1943; admitted to bar, 1968, Pennsylvania. Education: Northwestern University (B.A., 1965); University of Pittsburgh (J.D., 1968). Named as Pennsylvania Super Lawyer, 2007. Note Editor, University of Pittsburgh Law Review, 1967-1968. Member: Pennsylvania Defense Institute (President, 1999-2000); Association of Defense Trial Attorneys; Defense Research Institute. Master, Northwest Pennsylvania American Inn of Court. Fellow: American College of Trial Lawyers; Life Fellow, American Bar Foundation. Practice Areas: Medical Malpractice; Negligence; Products Liability; Commercial Litigation; Class Action Defense; Complex and Multi-District Litigation.Email: T. Warren Jones
J. W. Alberstadt, Jr. (Partner) born Erie, Pennsylvania, October 29, 1954; admitted to bar, 1979, Pennsylvania; U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania. Education: Gannon University (B.A., magna cum laude, 1976); Dickinson School of Law of the Pennsylvania State University (J.D., 1979). Pennsylvania Legal Aid Network Excellence Award Recipient, 2008; Pennsylvania Bar Association Pro Bono Services Award Recipient, 1987-1988. Director & President-Elect (2009), Erie County Bar Association; Member, Estate Planning Council of Erie; Director & Past President, Northwestern Legal Services; Past President & Director, Catholic Charities Counseling and Adoption Services, Inc. (1988-1998); President & Director, Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Erie (1995-Present); President & Director, Housing & Neighborhood Development Services, Inc. (1999-2008); Trustee, Mercyhurst Preparatory School (1999-2006); President & Director, Early Connections, Inc. (2005-Present); Gannon University, Lecturer in Business Law (1980-1994); Director & Past Chairman, Erie County Bar Foundation (1991-1994); Director & Secretary, John Kanzius Cancer Research Foundation (2008-Present); Past Director, Perseus House, Inc. and L'Arche of Erie, Inc. Member: American Bar Association; Pennsylvania Bar Association; Erie County Bar Association. Practice Areas: Business Transactions; Real Estate; Government Services and Public Finance; Trusts and Estates.Email: J. W. Alberstadt, Jr.
Edward W. Goebel, Jr. (Partner) born Cleveland, Ohio, 1938; admitted to bar, 1967, District of Columbia; 1968, Pennsylvania. Education: University of Detroit (B.E.E., 1962); Georgetown University (J.D., 1966). Tau Beta Pi; Phi Delta Phi. Member: American Bar Association (Member, Intellectual Property Law, Antitrust Forum on Franchising Sections); American Intellectual Property Law Association; Licensing Executives Society; International Trademark Association. Special Agencies: United States Patent and Trademark Office; Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission Practice Areas: Intellectual Property; Business Law; Civil Litigation; Intellectual Property Licensing; Antitrust Law.Email: Edward W. Goebel, Jr.
James D. Cullen (Partner) born Detroit, Michigan, 1947; admitted to bar, 1972, Pennsylvania; 1973, U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania; 2005, U.S. Tax Court. Education: John Carroll University (B.S. in B.A. Accounting, 1969); University of Pittsburgh (J.D., 1972). Member: ABA and PBA Sections of Real Property, Probate and Trust Law; Estate Planning Council of Erie. Member: Erie County, Pennsylvania and American Bar Associations. [Captain, U.S. Army Reserves, Honorable discharge, 1977]. Practice Areas: Probate; Trusts and Estates; Living Trusts; Taxation; Wills.Email: James D. Cullen
William R. Brown (Partner) born Meadville, Pennsylvania, 1945; admitted to bar, 1973, Pennsylvania. Education: Edinboro University of Pennsylvania (B.S., 1967); University of Maryland (J.D., with honors, 1973). Order of the Coif. Practice Areas: Corporate Law; Commercial Real Estate; Banks and Banking; Business Law; Commercial Law.Email: William R. Brown
Roger H. Taft (Partner) born Erie, Pennsylvania, May 30, 1948; admitted to bar, 1974, Pennsylvania and U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania; 1979, U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit; 1983, U.S. Supreme Court; 1998, New York and U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Pennsylvania; 2002, U.S. District Court, Northern District of New York; 2005, U.S. Court of Appeals, Second Circuit, U.S. District Court, Northern District of Ohio and U.S. District Court, Middle District of Pennsylvania; 2009, U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois. Education: Williams College (B.A., 1970); Fletcher School of Law & Diplomacy, Tufts University (M.A., 1971); Georgetown University Law Center (J.D., 1974). Phi Beta Kappa. Named, Pennsylvania Super Lawyer, 2007-2009. Staff Member, Georgetown Law Journal, 1973-1974. Senior Law Clerk to Hon. Wm. W. Knox, U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania, 1974-1975. Member, Advisory Committee for Study of Rules of Practice, U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania, 2001. Fellow: American College of Trial Lawyers. Life Fellow, American Bar Foundation. Practice Areas: Employment Litigation; Complex Commercial Litigation; Employment Discrimination; Management Labor Law; Railroad Litigation.Email: Roger H. Taft
David E. Holland (Partner) born Erie, Pennsylvania, 1951; admitted to bar, 1976, Pennsylvania. Education: Gannon University (B.S., 1973); Dickinson School of Law (J.D., magna cum laude, 1976). Member, Dickinson Law Review, 1974-1976. Member, Real Property, Probate and Trust Committee, Pennsylvania Bar Association. Co-Chair, Real Estate Section, Erie County Bar Association, 2007 and 2008. Legal Counsel, Greater Erie Board of Realtors. Agent for First American Title Insurance Company. Practice Areas: Real Estate; Property Law; Mortgages; Leases and Leasing; Commercial Real Estate; Tax Sales; Real Estate Title Insurance.Email: David E. Holland
Wm. Patrick Delaney (Partner) born DuBois, Pennsylvania, 1950; admitted to bar, 1976, Pennsylvania. Education: Gannon College (B.A., 1972); Capital University (J.D., 1976). Order of the Barristers. Member: Erie County, Pennsylvania and American Bar Associations; The Association of Trial Lawyers of America; Pennsylvania Trial Lawyers Association; Federal Bar Association. Practice Areas: Litigation(100%); Personal Injury; Commercial Law; Business Litigation; Commercial Arbitration; International Commercial Arbitration.Email: Wm. Patrick Delaney
James M. Antoun (Chair of Business Transactions Practice Group) born Erie, Pennsylvania, 1953; admitted to bar, 1978, Pennsylvania. Education: Penn State University (B.Ph., 1975); University of Pittsburgh (J .D., 1978). Chair, Business/Banking/Corporation Committee, 1993, 1994 and Chair, Business and Commercial Law Section, 2007, Erie County Bar Association. Member: American Health Lawyers Association; National Association of Bond Lawyers. Transactions: Development and Financing of Erie Bayfront Convention Center and Sheraton Erie Bayfront (Host Hotel). Practice Areas: Health Law; Corporate Law; Finance.Email: James M. Antoun
James R. Walczak (Partner) born Erie, Pennsylvania, 1952; admitted to bar, 1977, Pennsylvania; 1979, District of Columbia. Education: Georgetown University (B.S.F.S., 1972); University of Denver (M.A., 1977; J.D., 1977); Georgetown University Law School (LL.M., Taxation, 1980). Attorney, Office of the General Counsel, U.S. Department of Agriculture, 1977-1982. Practice Areas: Health Care; Bankruptcy; Business Transactions.Email: James R. Walczak
Russell S. Warner (Managing Partner) born Erie, Pennsylvania, 1956; admitted to bar, 1981, Pennsylvania. Education: Harvard University (A.B., cum laude, 1978); University of Pittsburgh (J.D., summa cum laude, 1981). Order of the Coif; Order of the Barristers. Executive Note Editor, University of Pittsburgh Law Review, 1980-1981. Law Clerk to: Hon. D. K. Sloviter, U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit, 1981-1982; Hon. Wm. W. Knox, U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania, 1981. Author: Case Note, "The Code Giveth and the Code Taketh Away: Implied Warranties and the Statute of Limitations," 41 University of Pittsburgh Law Review 783, 1980. President, Erie County Bar Association, 2003. Special Agencies: U.S.E.P.A. Environmental Appeals Board; Pennsylvania Environmental Hearing Board. Practice Areas: Environmental Law; Commercial Law; Business Law.Email: Russell S. Warner
Marcia H. Haller (Partner) born Erie, Pennsylvania, 1953; admitted to bar, 1980, Pennsylvania. Education: College of Wooster (B.A., 1975); University of Pittsburgh (J.D., 1980). Law Clerk to Hon. Gerald J. Weber, U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania, 1980-1982. Member: Pennsylvania Bar Association (Member, Commission on Women in the Profession); Pennsylvania Defense Institute. Practice Areas: Insurance; Litigation; Medical Malpractice; Premises Liability; Personal Injury.Email: Marcia H. Haller
James E. Spoden (Partner) born Erie, Pennsylvania, 1954; admitted to bar, 1982, Illinois; 1985, Pennsylvania. Education: John Carroll University (B.S.B.A., 1976); DePaul University (J.D., 1982; LL.M., Taxation, 1985). Member: Illinois State Bar Association; American Institute of CPA's. Practice Areas: Corporate Law; Estate Planning; Taxation; Mergers and Acquisitions; Commercial Law.Email: James E. Spoden
Dale Huntley (Partner) born Greensburg, Pennsylvania, 1956; admitted to bar, 1982, Pennsylvania; 1983, U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania; 1990, U.S. District Court, Northern District of Ohio, U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit and United States Supreme Court.. Education: Pennsylvania State University; Edinboro University of Pennsylvania (B.A., magna cum laude, 1978); University of Idaho (J.D., 1982). Member, Idaho Law Review, 1981-1982. Author: Article, 18 Idaho Law Review 347, 1982. Reported Cases: Erie Telecommunications, Inc. v. City of Erie, Pennsylvania, 853 F.2d 1084 (3d Cir. 1988) Practice Areas: Civil Litigation; Commercial Law; Insurance Defense Law.Email: Dale Huntley
John W. Draskovic (Partner) born Sharon, Pennsylvania, 1959; admitted to bar, 1984, Pennsylvania, U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania and U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit. Education: Youngstown State University (B.S., cum laude, 1981); Ohio Northern University (J.D., 1984). Member and Associate Editor, 1983-1984, Ohio Northern Law Review. Author: "United States v. Security Industrial Bank; A Final Determination of Retrospectivity of Section 522 (f) (2), 10 Ohio N.U.L. Rev. 573, 1983. Member: Pennsylvania Defense Institute; National Association of Railroad Trial Counsel. Practice Areas: Litigation; Insurance; Railroad Law; Workers Compensation; Labor and Employment.Email: John W. Draskovic
John J. Mehler (Partner) born Erie, Pennsylvania, 1959; admitted to bar, 1986, Pennsylvania and U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania. Education: Gannon University (B.S., 1982); University of Dayton (J.D., cum laude, 1986). Phi Alpha Delta. Trustee, Erie County Bar Foundation. Solicitor, Builders Association of Northwest Pennsylvania, 1987. Member: National Association of Bond Lawyers. Appraisal Institute (Affiliate Member; Director, Northwestern Pennsylvania Chapter); Institute for Professionals in Taxation (Vice-Chair, Legal Committee). Reported Cases: ENF Family Partnership v. Erie County Board of Assessment Appeals, 861 A.2d 438 Pa. Cmwlth. (2004); Human Development v. Zoning Hearing Board of Millcreek Township, 143 Pa. Cmwlth. 675, 600 A.2d 638 (1991). Transactions: Multinational financing including companies located in Brazil, Venezuela, U.K. and USA; Citicorp USA, First Commonwealth, HSBC Bank USA, Key Bank, National City Bank, Sky Bank and US Bank. Practice Areas: Business Law; Commercial Law; Zoning, Planning and Land Use; Real Estate; Property Tax Appeals.Email: John J. Mehler
Matthew W. McCullough (Partner) born Erie, Pennsylvania, 1961; admitted to bar, 1986, Pennsylvania, U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit and U.S. District Court, Western and Middle Districts of Pennsylvania. Education: Colgate University (B.A., cum laude, 1983); Dickinson School of Law (J.D., 1986). Beta Theta Pi; Delta Theta Phi. Member: Erie County, Pennsylvania and American Bar Associations; Pennsylvania Defense Institute. Practice Areas: Labor and Employment Law; Products Liability Defense; Business Litigation; Insurance Defense Law; Commercial Litigation.Email: Matthew W. McCullough
Susan Fuhrer Reiter (Partner) born Lewistown, Pennsylvania, 1954; admitted to bar, 1985, Pennsylvania and U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania; 1999, U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit. Education: University of Pittsburgh (B.S., 1976; M.Ed., 1977; J.D., 1985). Practice Areas: Bankruptcy; Collections; Commercial Law; Commercial Workouts; Creditors' Rights.Email: Susan Fuhrer Reiter
Mark J. Shaw (Member) born Norristown, Pennsylvania, 1962; admitted to bar, 1987, Pennsylvania and U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania; 1990, U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit. Education: Juniata College (B.A., 1984); University of Pittsburgh School of Law (J.D., magna cum laude, 1987). Order of the Coif. Executive Editor, University of Pittsburgh Law Review, 1986-1987. Teaching Assistant, Legal Research and Writing, University of Pittsburgh School of Law, 1986-1987. Law Clerk: Hon. Donald E. Ziegler, United States District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania, 1987-1988; Hon. Richard L. Nygaard, United States Court of Appeals, Third Circuit, 1989-1990. Member: Allegheny County Bar Association; Northwest Pennsylvania Chapter of the Air and Waste Management Association (Former Chairman). Practice Areas: Environmental Law; Superfund; Clean Air Act; Environmental Compliance; Environmental Permitting; Clean Water Act.Email: Mark J. Shaw
Craig R. F. Murphey (Partner) born Greensburg, Pennsylvania, 1963; admitted to bar, 1988, Pennsylvania and U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania; 1990, U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit. Education: University of Pittsburgh (B.A., cum laude, 1985); Ohio State University (J.D., cum laude, 1988). Member: Pennsylvania Defense Institute (Regional Vice-President); Defense Research Institute; Association of Defense Trial Attorneys; Barrister, Northwest Pennsylvania American Inn of Court. Practice Areas: Civil Litigation; Insurance Defense; Insurance Coverage; Insurance Bad Faith; Uninsured and Underinsured Motorists.Email: Craig R. F. Murphey
Daniel M. Miller (Partner) born Erie, Pennsylvania, 1964; admitted to bar, 1989, Pennsylvania. Education: Pennsylvania State University (B.S., summa cum laude, 1986); Case Western Reserve University (J.D., cum laude, 1989). Member: Erie County Bar Association; Pennsylvania Bar Association. Practice Areas: Management Labor Law; Management Employment Law; Employment Discrimination; Wage and Hour Law; Collective Bargaining; Employee Benefits; Business Law; WARN Act.Email: Daniel M. Miller
Shaun B. Adrian (Partner) born Manhasset, New York, 1960; admitted to bar, 1989, Pennsylvania and U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania. Education: United States Merchant Marine Academy (B.S., Engineering, 1982); Duquesne University (J.D., 1989). Licensed Marine Engineer, 1982. Member, Board of Directors, Sarah A. Reed Children's Center. Member, Board of Trustees, Flagship Niagara League. Life Membership, Trust Committee, Zem Zem Shrine. Member: Erie County (Member, Estate and Trust Leadership Committee), Pennsylvania (Member, Sections on: Real Property, Probate and Trust Law; Elder Law) and American (Member, Sections on: Real Property, Probate and Trust Law; Elder Law) Bar Associations; Estate Planning Council of Erie. [CDR., USNR (Ret.), 1982-2007]. Practice Areas: Probate; Trusts and Estates; Wills; Living Trusts; Elder Law; Taxation; Guardianships; Medicaid Planning.Email: Shaun B. Adrian
Kimberly A. Oakes (Partner) born Titusville, Pennsylvania, 1962; admitted to bar, 1991, Pennsylvania, U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania and U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit. Education: Pennsylvania State University (B.S., 1984); Allegheny General Hospital School of Medical Technology (Med. Tech. Cert., 1984); University of Pittsburgh (J.D., 1991). Recipient, Mary McClure Scholastic Award, Allegheny General Hospital. Member: Erie County Bar Association (Member, Workers' Compensation Committee and Family Law Divisions). Reported Cases: Heasley v. Belden & Blake Corporation, 2 F.3d 1249 (3rd Cir. 1993); 122 ALR Fed. 645 Practice Areas: Civil Practice; Workers Compensation; Family Law.Email: Kimberly A. Oakes
Robert M. Bauer (Partner) born 1963; admitted to bar, 1992, New York; 1998, Virginia; 2009, Pennsylvania; U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit; U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York; U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Virginia; registered to practice before U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Education: State University of New York, Stony Brook (B.E.E.E., 1985); George Washington University (J.D., 1991). Member, N.W. Commission Technology Advisory Group. Member: American Intellectual Property Law Association; American Bar Association. Fellow: American Bar Association. Special Agencies: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Practice Areas: Business Transactions; Intellectual Property; Bankruptcy.Email: Robert M. Bauer
Lisa Smith Presta (Partner) born Warren, Pennsylvania, 1965; admitted to bar, 1992, Pennsylvania, U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania and U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit. Education: Pennsylvania State University (B.S., cum laude, 1987); University of Pittsburgh (M.Ed., magna cum laude, 1989; J.D., 1992). Member: Pennsylvania Defense Institute. Practice Areas: Labor and Employment; Employment Discrimination Defense; Insurance Defense; Commercial Litigation; Medical Malpractice Defense.Email: Lisa Smith Presta
Steven C. Beckman (Partner) born Washington, D.C., 1960; admitted to bar, 1993, Pennsylvania. Education: Wittenberg University (B.A., magna cum laude, 1983); University of North Carolina (M.S., 1985); University of Pittsburgh (J.D., summa cum laude, 1993). Order of the Coif. Geologist, Shell Offshore, Inc., 1985-1990. University of Pittsburgh Law Review, 1992-1993. Regional Director, Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection, 1996-2001. Member: Erie County and Pennsylvania Bar Associations. Practice Areas: Environmental Law(65%); Construction Law(25%); Municipal Law(10%).Email: Steven C. Beckman
Thomas A. Pendleton (Partner) born Erie, Pennsylvania, 1965; admitted to bar, 1993, Pennsylvania and U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania; 1997, U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit. Education: Allegheny College (B.S., magna cum laude, 1987); Vanderbilt School of Law (J.D., 1993). Languages: German. Practice Areas: Corporate Law; Business Transactions; Oil and Gas Law; Trade Secrets; Complex Business Litigation.Email: Thomas A. Pendleton
John A. Lauer (Partner) born Erie, Pennsylvania, 1964; admitted to bar, 1996, Pennsylvania; 2006, Florida. Education: Gannon University (B.S., 1986); Wake Forest University (J.D., 1996). Certified Public Accountant, Virginia, 1990. Member: National Academy of Elder Care Attorneys. Practice Areas: Estate Planning; Taxation; Trust Law; Estate Administration; Estate Planning for the Elderly.Email: John A. Lauer
Bruce L. Decker, Jr. (Partner) born Erie, Pennsylvania, 1971; admitted to bar, 1996, Pennsylvania and U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania. Education: Pennsylvania State University (B.A., 1993); Cleveland Marshall College of Law (J.D., 1996). Member: Lake Erie Claims Association; Pennsylvania Defense Institute. Practice Areas: Labor Management Law; Civil Litigation; Insurance Defense; Social Security Disability; Unemployment Compensation; Workers Compensation.Email: Bruce L. Decker, Jr.
Walter E. Deacon III (Partner) born Plymouth, Massachusetts, 1971; admitted to bar, 1997, Wyoming; 1998, Pennsylvania; U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania and U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit. Education: Tulane University (B.A., cum laude, 1993); University of Wyoming (J.D., 1996). Order of the Coif. Member, Law Review, 1995-1996. Law Clerk, Honorable Richard V. Thomas, State of Wyoming Supreme Court, 1996-1998. Member: Pennsylvania Defense Institute; Northwest Pennsylvania American Inn of Court. Practice Areas: Commercial Litigation; Labor and Employment Law; Employment Discrimination; Insurance Defense; Immigration Law.Email: Walter E. Deacon III
Gregory P. Zimmerman (Partner) born Greenville, Pennsylvania, 1967; admitted to bar, 1998, Pennsylvania; 2004, New York. Education: University of Pittsburgh (B.A., 1989); Duquesne University (J.D., 1998). Recipient, Corpus Juris Secundum Award for Torts. Member, Board of Directors, Greater Erie Chapter, American Red Cross. Member: American Immigration Lawyers Association; Pennsylvania Defense Institute; American Inn of Court; Pennsylvania Trial Lawyers Association. Practice Areas: Litigation; Insurance Defense; Personal Injury; Immigration Law; Commercial Litigation.Email: Gregory P. Zimmerman
Robert E. Gandley (Partner) born Monongahela, Pennsylvania, 1968; admitted to bar, 1998, Pennsylvania. Education: Carnegie Mellon University (B.S., 1990); University of North Carolina (M.S., 1992; J.D., 1998). Practice Areas: Environmental Law; Natural Resources; Occupational Safety and Health.Email: Robert E. Gandley
ASSOCIATES
Laura Popoff Stefanovski (Associate) born Erie, Pennsylvania, 1968; admitted to bar, 1993, Pennsylvania and U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania. Education: John Carroll University (B.A., magna cum laude, 1990); Case Western Reserve University (J.D., 1993). Member: Erie County, Pennsylvania and American Bar Associations; Northwest Pennsylvania American Inn of Court; Lake Erie Claims Association. Practice Areas: Insurance Defense; Litigation; Personal Injury.Email: Laura Popoff Stefanovski
Catherine Moodey Doyle (Associate) born Chicago, Illinois; admitted to bar, 1998, Pennsylvania and U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania; registered to practice before U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Education: Allegheny College (B.A., 1989); Duquesne University School of Law (J.D., 1997). Law Clerk, Superior Court of Pennsylvania. Member: Pennsylvania Defense Institute; American Intellectual Property Law Association; Pittsburgh Intellectual Property Law Association. Practice Areas: Litigation; Insurance Defense; Commercial Litigation; Intellectual Property; Copyrights; Patents; Trade Secrets; Trademarks.
Jon L. Woodard (Associate) born State College, Pennsylvania, 1973; admitted to bar, 2000, Pennsylvania; registered to practice before U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Education: Miami University (B.S., A.B., 1996); Dickinson School of Law of the Pennsylvania State University (J.D., 1999). Delta Theta Phi. Recipient: Richard Reeve Baxtor Award; FPLC European Constitutional Law Award. Senior Editor, Dickinson Journal of International Law, 1997-1999. Practice Areas: Intellectual Property; Patents; Trademarks; Copyrights; Trade Secrets.Email: Jon L. Woodard
Matthew W. Fuchs (Associate) born McKeesport, Pennsylvania, 1976; admitted to bar, 2002, Pennsylvania; 2003, New Jersey and U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania. Education: Allegheny College (B.A., magna cum laude, 1998); Rutgers University Law School (J.D., cum laude, 2002). Practice Areas: Insurance Defense; Commercial Litigation; Litigation.Email: Matthew W. Fuchs
Marissa A. Savastana (Associate) born Montgomery, Pennsylvania, 1978; admitted to bar, 2003, Pennsylvania, U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania and U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit. Education: James Madison University (B.A., 2000); Dickinson School of Law of the Pennsylvania State University (J.D., 2003). Erie Dance Consortium, Advisory Committee; Young Erie Professionals; Erie Ambassador; Erie Philharmonic, Board of Directors. Member: Erie County, Pennsylvania and American Bar Associations. Practice Areas: Labor and Employment; Insurance; Litigation; Commercial Litigation; Medical Malpractice Defense.Email: Marissa A. Savastana
Jennifer B. Hirniesen (Associate) born Erie, Pennsylvania, 1978; admitted to bar, 2004, Pennsylvania and U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania; 2005, U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit. Education: Pennsylvania State University (B.S., 2001); Dickinson School of Law of the Pennsylvania State University (J.D., 2004). Judicial Law Clerk, U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit, 2004-2005. Practice Areas: Real Estate; Business Transactions; Family Law.
Jonathan M. D'Silva (Associate) born Kuwait City, Kuwait, 1976; admitted to bar, 2005, Pennsylvania; 2006, District of Columbia and New York; registered to practice before U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Education: Cornell University (B.S., 1998; M. Eng., 1999); State University of New York at Buffalo (J.D., 2005). Phi Alpha Delta (Vice Justice, 2003-2004). Recipient, American Bar Association Award for Excellence in the Study of Intellectual Property Law, 2005. Member: Erie County (New York) and New York State Bar Associations; The District of Columbia Bar; American Intellectual Property Law Association; Erie County (PA) and Pennsylvania Bar Associations; American Bar Association. Practice Areas: Intellectual Property; Business Law; Copyrights; Patents; Trademarks.Email: Jonathan M. D'Silva
Michael P. Thomas (Associate) born Meyersdale, Pennsylvania, 1979; admitted to bar, 2005, Pennsylvania; 2006, Florida. Education: Juniata College (B.S., Accounting, 2002); Dickinson School of Law of the Pennsylvania State University (J.D., 2005). Member, The Woolsack Honor Society. Member: Erie County, Pennsylvania and American Bar Associations; The Florida Bar. Practice Areas: Business Law; Taxation; Estate Planning; Estate and Trust Administration.Email: Michael P. Thomas
Patrick J. Mondi (Associate) born Washington, D.C.; admitted to bar, 2007, Illinois; 2008, Pennsylvania. Education: Purdue University (B.S., 2001); Chicago-Kent College of Law (J.D., 2007). Kent Moot Court Honor Society. Associate Editor, The Seventh Circuit Review. Member, Pennsylvania LLC Task Force. Purdue University Student Body Vice President. Member: Erie County and Illinois State Bar Associations. Practice Areas: Commercial Transactions(25%); Commercial Litigation(25%); Real Estate(25%); Intellectual Property(25%).
Ross M. Petrini (Associate) born Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 1977; admitted to bar, 2008, Pennsylvania and U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania. Education: Edinboro University of Pennsylvania (B.A., English and Communications, 2000); University of Pittsburgh (J.D., 2008). Order of the Barristers. Member: Erie County and Pennsylvania Bar Associations. Practice Areas: Litigation.Email: Ross M. Petrini
RETIRED PARTNERS
Norman H. Stark (Retired Partner) born Erie, Pennsylvania, July 11, 1937; admitted to bar, 1962, Indiana; 1965, Pennsylvania. Education: Gannon University (B.A., 1959); University of Notre Dame (J.D., 1962). President: Erie County Bar Association, 1986; United Way, 1992; Rotary Club, 1998. District Governor, Rotary International, 2001-2002. [Capt., U.S. Army Reserve]. Special Agencies: Federal District Court Advisory Group; Adjunct Settlement Judge Practice Areas: Business Law; International Trade; Contracts; Natural Resources; Real Estate.Email: Norman H. Stark
John J. Stroh, Jr. (Retired Partner) born Cleveland, Ohio, October 11, 1936; admitted to bar, 1962, Pennsylvania. Education: University of Michigan (B.B.A., 1958; LL.B., 1961). Practice Areas: Business Law; Health Care; Hospital Law; Management Labor Law.Email: John J. Stroh, Jr.
All firm members are members of the Erie County, Pennsylvania and American Bar Associations unless otherwise indicated.