Personal Injury/Wrongful Death
Complex litigation on behalf of chiropractor, who sustained soft-tissue injuries in a rear-end collision, against the driver, the disability insurance provider, and the first party insurance company to recover the chiropractor’s lost business income and overhead losses due to her injuries. Obtained arbitration award after a three-day hearing and award of social security disability benefits.
Litigated a wrongful death claim against a nursing home who failed to supervise a mentally incompetent patient with Alzheimer’s who wandered to the top of a stairwell in his wheelchair and fell down 5 flights of stairs, suffering severe facial lacerations, facial fractures, and burst fractures of each vertebrae.
Represented orthopedic surgeon who suffered spinal injuries in a side-impact collision of his vehicle.
Litigation on behalf of the spouse and children of a truck driver who was killed at a plant while offloading truck load.
Litigated a wrongful death claim for the family of a father of three who was killed when a coal truck crossed centerline of roadway causing a head-on collision.
Represented high school student who fell from the door of a vehicle, which then rolled over her lower back, resulting in paraplegia.
Negotiated settlement for an 18-year-old foreign exchange student who sustained a broken neck as a passenger in a vehicle when the driver failed to negotiate a curve.
Successfully litigated a wrongful death claim against a truck driver who killed a 53-year-old grandmother when the truck driver ignored a traffic sign and pulled in front of her vehicle immediately before impact.
Workers’ Compensation
Represented a woman who suffered both physical and psychological injuries, the latter of which involved severe stress and depression arising from her ongoing physical limitations, her inability to work, and the total loss of her income and livelihood. Our client was awarded Workers’ Compensation benefits for both the physical and psychological injuries following lengthy litigation, which was confirmed on appeal.
Following litigation to determine our client’s employee status, our client was entitled to bring her workers’ compensation claim when the Judge ruled she was an employee rather than an independent contractor of an uninsured employer.
Our client was awarded an increase in her workers’ compensation rate due to the employer’s failure to include tips in the calculation of benefits she received due to her injury at work as a bartender/waitress.
At the time our client sustained a work injury at her primary job, she also worked a second job. After extensive litigation, she was awarded an increase in her workers’ compensation benefits rate due to the employer’s failure to include her wages earned from the second job in the calculation of the benefits she was entitled to receive due to her work injury. The Judge also ordered the employer to pay our attorney’s fees incurred in litigating the matter for our client.
At conclusion of extensive litigation, Judge awarded full indemnity benefits and medical coverage to our client for both a broken ankle and back pain when he fell while working at a factory, despite the onset of debilitating back pain occurring more than four months after the broken ankle in the fall.
Successfully litigated a fatal workers’ compensation claim on behalf of the widow of a deceased employee who was killed in a fall from a piece of heavy machinery. We successfully discredited the employer’s argument that he was not “employed” when he fell, because the employer previously forced him to apply for and obtain unemployment compensation benefits during the Covid-19 pandemic, while he continued to work for the employer, so the employer did not have to pay wages to him during that time.
Through litigation, expanded a factory worker’s injury description to include aggravation of pre-existing post-traumatic stress syndrome, which entitled him to medical coverage for the additional injury.
Judge granted our claim petition to increase a minor’s compensation benefits based upon the employer’s violation of the Child Labor Law when the employer employed the minor without work permit or employment certificate.
Estate Planning, Administration and Litigation
Advised clients on federal and state estate tax consequences of distributing assets to heirs upon the client’s future death and planned clients’ desired distributions of assets to heirs to minimize tax consequences.
Drafted thousands of Wills and Powers of Attorney (including Medical Directives/Living Wills) in accordance with clients’ wishes.
Formed irrevocable trusts, revocable trusts and corporate entities as part of the planning and management of assets to minimize estate taxes and gift taxes.
Guided and counseled thousands of personal representatives of deceased persons’ estates in the administration of the estate containing the decedent’s stock, business interests, personal property, and real estate, subject to federal estate tax.
Served for multiple decades as trustee of a trust, which required the development and division of real estate in the trust into planned communities in compliance with planned community laws and the subsequent investment of sale proceeds into diversified stock portfolios and commercial paper to provide earnings for the income beneficiaries and capital growth for the benefit of residuary heirs. Also involved trust planning to minimize current income taxes as well as future federal and state estate taxes.
Supervised the administration of a deceased attorney’s complex estate, which involved locating and retrieving assets in multiple states and the use of disclaimers to avoid generation-skipping taxes, resulting in multi-million dollar tax savings distributed to the heirs.
Litigation contesting a Last Will and Testament executed by decedent on her deathbed, resulting in settlement at the time of trial.
Litigation contesting a surviving spouse’s election against the estate to take an elective share of estate assets, which was settled at the time of trial.
Litigation on behalf of the heirs contesting the personal representative’s sale of real property from the estate for less than half of the appraised value, including the arguments in the appeal of the trial court’s decision to the Superior Court of Pennsylvania.
Litigation on behalf of the heirs of the estate to force the removal of the estate’s personal representative and the return of estate assets after the personal representative fraudulently removed cash from the estate checking account for his own use.
Supervision of the lifetime administration of an incapacitated person’s estate and litigation of guardian’s handling of assets over a period of ten years.
Real Estate Transactions and Litigation
For over 30 years, we have represented title insurance companies and insured policy-holders in curing title defects and establishing policy-holders’ title or lien position in real estate, which has involved successful litigation in trial courts throughout Pennsylvania and the United States District and Bankruptcy Courts in each federal district in Pennsylvania.
Creation management of multiple real estate development with more than 30 lots, in accordance with Pennsylvania Uniform Planned Community law, and supervision of sales of lots in multiple development phases as well as the establishment of homeowners’ associations.
Served as legal counsel for homeowners’ associations in multiple planned communities.
Won both jury and non-jury trial verdicts in multiple cases involving alleged forgery of real estate documents in which opposing party sought to extinguish our clients’ interests in real estate.
Negotiation of oil and gas leases on behalf of private landowners during the last 15 years.
Litigation of fraudulent misrepresentation and non-disclosure claims regarding property defects discovered by buyers after the closing in real estate transactions.
Litigation of breach of construction contract claims on behalf of contractors as well as homeowners to enforce payment and contract terms.
Our attorneys have argued a wide variety of cases on appeal before the Pennsylvania Superior Court and Commonwealth Court
Drafting of complex conveyancing documents for commercial and residential real estate sales and purchases.
Negotiated and handled transaction involving $4.5 million sale and purchase of real estate for large commercial development as well as all aspects of client’s commercial development of vacant property following completion of the transaction.
Negotiation and closing of $25,000,000.00+ sales, financing, construction and remodeling projects for non-profit and for-profit corporations, including schools, churches, and community organizations.
Advised and assisted buyers or sellers in more than 2,000 real estate transactions, including negotiating the terms of sale and financing, obtaining zoning variances, resolving issues with the real estate prior to closing and representing clients at closings.
Represented an accountant purchasing real estate for new business location, which involved presenting argument for non-conforming use zoning variance to the Township Zoning Hearing Board and the discovery and correction of prior error in surveyed property line, with the negotiation of $30,000 reduction in purchase price.
Served as General Counsel for the Westmoreland Board of Realtors® since 1979.
Business Organization and Transactions
Established and formed hundreds of limited liability companies, partnerships, and incorporated hundreds of for-profit and non-profit corporations.
Negotiated and drafted Asset Purchase Agreements for sale and purchase of existing businesses and guided the transactions through closing, which involved negotiating and preparing other incidental contracts and agreements between the parties to the transaction, including assignments of contracts, bills of sale, transfer of title to business vehicles purchased, financing instruments, and employment agreements for retained employees.
Created and organized a professional limited liability company for a multiple-member physician practice. Also, assisted in integrating each physician’s individual practice with each entity having voting and non-voting memberships as part of the professional limited liability company.
Incorporated and obtained tax-exempt status for non-profit organizations, including churches, recreational sports and outdoor clubs and adoption agencies.
Served as corporate counsel for denominational churches, professional real estate member organizations, cemetery associations, real estate holding companies and non-profit food distribution organizations.
Established the appropriate business structure for numerous retail and wholesale merchandise businesses, pharmacists, physicians, chiropractors, dentists, in-home senior care companies, home inspectors, and accountants.
Established the corporate business structure for construction and plan development business, including a general partnership structure which held and managed corporate stock and real estate utilized by the business.
How can we help you?
We're Waiting for Your Call at 724-836-1500
Contact us today for a free consultation
