Four County Civil Practice 2026

Jake Becker is a partner and Co-Chair of both Lamb McErlane’s Employment Law Department and Sports, Entertainment & Hospitality Department.

Mr. Pugh focuses his practice on civil litigation and arbitrations and mediations. Bill has tried over 100 cases to verdict in all of the courts in Southeastern Pennsylvania and has handled hundreds and hundreds of arbitrations and mediations over the course of his thirty-five plus year legal career. Bill is a former Assistant District Attorney with the Manhattan (New York County) District Attorney’s office under the leadership of the Honorable Robert M. Morgenthau. Bill serves as a Civil Case Hearing Officer having been appointed by the President Judge of the Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas in 2004. Bill is a past President of the Pennsylvania Bar Association, the largest association of lawyers in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Prior to serving as President, Bill served three years as the Zone 9 Governor on the PBA Board of Governors. While on the Board of Governors, Bill was appointed co-chair of the PBA Diversity Task Force by the PBA President. Over the course of two years the task force met and recommended six systemic changes to the PBA by-laws to increase diversity and inclusion. The Pennsylvania House of Delegates adopted all six of the task force’s recommendations. In 2011, Bill received the PBA’s President’s Award for his work and leadership on the diversity task force. Bill is one of a handful of Pennsylvania lawyers who have a lifetime appointment to the PBA House of Delegates. Mr. Pugh is a past President of the Montgomery Bar Association, the Montgomery Bar Foundation and the Montgomery County Trial Lawyers Association. Bill chaired many committees of the MBA but is most proud of the ten years he served as co-chair of the MBA Judiciary Committee. That committee is charged with evaluating and making recommendations regarding the qualifications of potential candidates for Judge on the Court of Common Pleas of Montgomery County. In 2007 Bill was awarded the James P. Fox Trial Lawyer of the Year Award by the Trial Lawyers Association. In 2010 Mr. Pugh was awarded the MBA Henry Stuckart Miller Award for service to the public. Bill is a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers. The American College is an invitation only fellowship of exceptional trial lawyers of diverse backgrounds from the United States and Canada. The College thoroughly investigates each nominee for admission and selects only those who have demonstrated the required highest standards of trial advocacy, ethical conduct, integrity, professionalism and collegiality. Less than one half of one percent of Pennsylvania lawyers are fellows of the College. Mr. Pugh is a member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum. One of the most prestigious groups of trial lawyers in the United States. Membership is limited to attorneys who have won million-dollar verdicts or settlements. Fewer than one percent of the United States lawyers are members. Bill is also a member of the invitation only American Board of Trial Advocates and the Litigation Council of America. Bill has long been recognized as a Pennsylvania Super Lawyer. In 2017 he was recognized as a top 100 Super Lawyer in the Philadelphia Metropolitan area. Mr. Pugh has been a member of the Board of Directors of the non-profit Montgomery Child Advocacy Project (MCAP) since 2004. MCAP’s mission is to end and prevent child abuse and neglect in Montgomery County through legal services, advocacy and education. Bill is also a past Board member of the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape, the Development Advisory Council of the Sisters of St. Joseph and the Mount St. Joseph’s Academy President’s Council. Mr. Pugh is a graduate of the University of Richmond and the Villanova University School of Law.

Seth D. Wilson is partner in the law firm of Morris Wilson Knepp Jacquette, P.C. in Conshohocken and Philadelphia. He is a seasoned courtroom litigator who is widely recognized by his peers as a go-to attorney to litigate medical malpractice, product liability, and other liability claims on behalf of the critically injured throughout Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Seth is the Immediate Past President of the Montgomery Bar Association, where he has held a multitude of positions over the course of his career. He is a Fellow and Board Member of Montgomery Bar Foundation. Seth sits on the Board of Governors of the Pennsylvania Association for Justice, as well as the Pennsylvania Bar Association’s House of Delegates. Seth is a frequent lecturer on legal topics throughout southeastern Pennsylvania. He regularly volunteers teaching civics classes to college, high school and middle school students as well as adults. He has been published in Trial Magazine, which is the publication of the American Association for Justice where he is also a long-time member. Seth has been the recipient of many awards including Top 100 Superlawyer in both Pennsylvania and Philadelphia as well as a Lawyer on the Fast Track by The Legal Intelligencer. Seth is a graduate of Lafayette College and the Temple University Beasley School of Law.

Attorney Carol A. Shelly is a shareholder and managing partner of Shelly Law Offices, LLC, in Doylestown, Pennsylvania. Serving clients throughout Bucks County and the surrounding areas of the Philadelphia metro region, Ms. Shelly devotes her practice exclusively to personal injury law. She has achieved notable success helping those across her region who suffered an injury or loss as the result of someone else’s negligent, careless or unlawful actions. Over the course of her more than 38 years of practicing law, Ms. Shelly has recovered millions of dollars in settlements and awards for those adversely affected by motor vehicle crashes, medical malpractice, brain and birth injuries, and other preventable tragedies. At every turn, Ms. Shelly delivers highly personalized, compassionate counsel and guidance to those she serves as she aggressively pursues the most favorable outcome possible for her clients. Recognized for her exemplary professionalism and outstanding legal abilities, Ms. Shelly has earned an AV Preeminent peer review rating by Martingale-Hubble, a designation reflecting the respect of Judges and her peers that ranks her at the highest level of professional excellence in legal knowledge, communication skills, and ethical standards. Ms. Shelly has been named to three prestigious Super Lawyer lists: Top 100 Super Lawyers in Pennsylvania, Top 100 Super Lawyers in Philadelphia, and Top 50 Women Super Lawyers in Pennsylvania. She has been named a Super Lawyer nearly every one of the past 18 years. A native of Philadelphia, Ms. Shelly graduated from Gettysburg College in 1981. She then obtained her Juris Doctor from Widener University’s Delaware Law School in 1986, and she is admitted to practice before the U.S. District Court for the Eastern and Middle Districts of Pennsylvania, as well as the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit and the U.S. Supreme Court. A leader in her field, Ms. Shelly once served as president of the Bucks County Bar Association, President of the Bucks County Bar Foundation and Chair of the Civil Litigation Section of the Bucks County Bar Association. She has written and conducted numerous lectures and seminars on a variety of legal topics. She is an active member of the Pennsylvania Bar Association, the American Bar Association and the American Board of Trial Advocates. Ms. Shelly is on the Board of Governors of the Pennsylvania Bar Association, representing attorneys from Bucks, Chester, Montgomery and Delaware counties.