Civil Practice in Allegheny County 2026

Rebecca Johnson Barksdale (Becca) is a senior counsel member of the firm’s Business Litigation and Strategic Solutions, Insurance, and Construction groups. Based in the firm’s Pittsburgh office, Becca advises corporations on commercial, construction, and insurance contract drafting, negotiation, claims, and litigation matters. Becca is a magna cum laude graduate of Gettysburg College and earned her law degree from Harvard Law School, where she was a two-time recipient of the Paul C. Weiler Scholar Award. While at Harvard, she interned in the Corporate Legal Department at Major League Baseball, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Pennsylvania, and the Westmoreland County Court of Common Pleas. She was active in the Journal of Sports & Entertainment Law, Women’s Law Association, and Committee on Sports and Entertainment Law. An active contributor to her community, Becca serves on the board of the Western Pennsylvania March of Dimes Young Professionals, is part of the Pennsylvania Women Work Volunteer and Ambassador Council, and is a Young Lawyer Fellow for the Allegheny County Bar Foundation. She is also the president of the Delta Gamma Pittsburgh Alumnae Association and volunteers through the Harvard Law School Committee on the Sports and Entertainment Law Mentorship Program. Attorney-ranking service Super Lawyers has named Becca a Pennsylvania “Rising Star” in Civil Litigation since 2022, and Neighborhood Legal Services awarded her its “Partner in Justice Award” in 2025. Her writing has appeared in publications such as the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review and other regional publications.

Anthony Sarafino “Fino” Caliguire is an associate at Pietragallo Gordon Alfano Bosick & Raspanti, LLP and is a member of the Commercial Litigation Practice Group. Mr. Caliguire has a broad range of civil litigation experience in both state and federal court and at the trial court and appellate levels. His primary focus has been commercial litigation including breach of government contracts, nursing home and vendor disputes, internal LLC member disagreements, and enforcement of restrictive covenants. He also has experience in defending employee class actions, personal injury lawsuits, insurance bad faith claims, and complex mortgage foreclosures. Mr. Caliguire clerked for two years for the Honorable Christine Ward in the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas. He is a member of the Hay-Sell Pittsburgh Chapter of the American Inns of Court. He has been recognized as a Pennsylvania Rising Star in Business/Corporate by Super Lawyers. A graduate of Georgetown University, Mr. Caliguire earned his J.D. from Duquesne University School of Law. During his final year of study, he was an Associate Editor of the Duquesne University Law Review. Mr. Caliguire was also a member of the Duquesne University Trial Advocacy Team where he won the Shalom Moot Court Award for excellence in trial advocacy. His B.A. from Georgetown University focused on Government and Sociology.

Eric Efinger is the General Motions Supervisor for the Fifth Judicial District of Pennsylvania – Civil Division in Pittsburgh. Prior to this position, he was the Assistant Division Manager for the Department of Records. He is a graduate of the Thomas R. Kline School of Law of Duquesne University, J.D., and the University of Pittsburgh, B.A. He served as a law clerk for the Honorable John T. McVay, Jr,. Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas, Civil Division.

Brandon Keller is an attorney with Edgar Snyder and Associates in Pittsburgh. Brandon began his career trying cases as a Public Defender in Allegheny County in 2013. He ran his own state and federal criminal defense practice, Keller Law, for several years before transitioning to plaintiff-side personal injury work. He practices in Pennsylvania and Ohio’s state and federal courts, as well as the U.S. Court of Federal Claims where he represents people injured by vaccine administration. He is a member of the Academy of Trial Lawyers of Allegheny County, the Western Pennsylvania Trial Lawyers Association, and the Pennsylvania Association for Justice, and has been consistently named a Super Lawyers Rising Star since 2017. Brandon grew up in Lower Burrell, Pennsylvania. He earned Bachelor of Arts degrees in Political Science and Communications & Theatre Arts from John Carroll University, and his law degree from Duquesne University School of Law. He lives in the North Hills of Pittsburgh with his wife and two daughters.

Quinn Kobelak is the Case Management Coordinator at the Allegheny Court of Common Pleas, Civil Division. He earned a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Allegheny College. He works across departments to manage aging cases and supports alternative dispute resolution programs in the Court. For the new civil case management system, Quinn has written proposals and businesses processes for the Administrative Judge, the Calendar Control Judge, and the Deputy Court Administrator. He has also worked with the Court Information Systems Department to translate approved proposals into the case management system software. Quinn serves as a member of the PACM(PA Association of Court Managers) Case Flow Management & Delay Reduction Committee where court administrators across the Commonwealth meet to discuss case management strategies and initiatives. Along with Housing Court staff in 2025, Quinn received Neighborhood Legal Service’s “Special Merit Award” recognizing Quinn’s contributions to the Landlord-Tenant Mediation program and eviction prevention ecosystem in Allegheny County.

Joseph Froetschel is a founding partner of Phillips Froetschel. His practice involves all aspects of plaintiff personal injury including medical malpractice, construction litigation, nursing home negligence, insurance litigation, product liability, premises liability, liquor liability, and catastrophic motor vehicle collisions. He has individually obtained tens of millions of dollars in verdicts and settlements on behalf of clients throughout Western Pennsylvania. Joe has successfully argued before every appellate court within the Commonwealth. He is a frequent author of amicus briefs on medical malpractice issues such as peer review, evidentiary issues, and mandatory arbitration agreements. Joe is an adjunct professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, where he currently teaches Advanced Pennsylvania Torts, and has been a frequent guest lecturer in Trial Advocacy and Pennsylvania Practice. He has also been the planner, moderator, author, and lecturer on numerous continuing legal education courses, including: The Pennsylvania Association for Justice’s Annual Medical Malpractice Seminar; Bill Cosby: the Rise, Fall, and Release of America’s Dad; Breakfast with the Judges; the Pennsylvania Bar Institute’s three-part Pretrial Practice Series; and the Pennsylvania CLE Board’s Bridging the Gap for newly admitted lawyers. In recognition of his professional accomplishments, Joe has been inducted as a member of the Academy of Trial Lawyers of Allegheny County, an invitation-only organization of premier trial lawyers. He is A/V rated by Martindale-Hubbell, the highest rating for both legal ability and personal qualities like reliability, diligence, and ethics, and has received a perfect 5.0 rating by his peers. Joe has been named of one of the National Trial Lawyers Association’s American Society of Legal Advocate’s “Top 40 Under 40,” as well as a “Top 10 Under 40” by the National Association of Personal Injury Attorneys. Joe has also been repeatedly recognized as a Pennsylvania Super Lawyer “Rising Star” in the field of plaintiff’s medical malpractice and personal injury litigation, and recently, a Medical Malpractice Super Lawyer. In 2019, he was appointed by the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania to serve as a Hearing Committee Member for the Disciplinary Board. In addition to his professional achievements, Joe has been an active member and contributor to numerous professional organizations. He is a member of the Executive Committee and Board of Governors for the Pennsylvania Association for Justice. He is on the Membership Committee for the American Association for Justice and the Board of Governors of the Western Pennsylvania Trial Lawyers Association. He serves on the Local Rules Committee, the Ally Initiative, Membership, and has been an officer for the Allegheny County Bar Association’s Civil Litigation Section, culminating with his service as the Chair in 2022. He is also the 2023 Chair of the Allegheny County Bench-Bar Conference. In addition to his community service work, he has served as a pro bono attorney for Neighborhood Legal Services Association, as a volunteer for the transgender name change project, as a trial attorney for the Federal Pro Bono Prison Rights Program, and is a Sustaining Fellow of the Allegheny County Bar Foundation. He was a member the Allegheny County Bar Association’s 2008-2009 Bar Leadership Initiative that implemented the “Wills for Heroes” pro bono project providing free estate documents to first responders throughout Allegheny County. After its inaugural year, Joe served as the Western District Coordinator of the Wills for Heroes program for an additional five years, organizing numerous events throughout Western Pennsylvania that provided counseling and assistance to hundreds of local police, fire fighters, and emergency medical providers. Outside of the office, Joe was named as one of Pittsburgh Magazine’s “40 Under 40.” He served as a Committee Member for the Pittsburgh Symphony Soiree and the Children’s Trust for the Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh. He is an avid cyclist, fly-fisher, skier, hiker, scuba diver, and participates in several recreational soccer and hockey leagues. On winter weekends, he is a ski instructor at Hidden Valley.

JJ Gismondi practices with Gismondi & Associates in Pittsburgh. He entered the practice of law in the Fall of 2024 after graduating from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law where he served as an Executive Editor of the Law Review and graduated Order of the Coif, designating top 10% class rank. JJ was also the winner of the Law School’s Appellate Moot Court Competition, designed and overseen by Third Circuit Judge D. Michael Fisher, which involves multiple rigorous rounds of oral advocacy, each one before a different panel of judges. After being admitted to practice in October 2024, JJ wasted no time in getting into the courtroom as he tried his first jury trial three weeks after passing the bar, and just a few months later he served as co-counsel alongside his father, John Gismondi, in a complex medical malpractice jury trial tried in central Pennsylvania which resulted in a seven figure verdict. He continues to work daily on a variety of medical malpractice, auto accidents, and other personal injury matters.

Kathy Lederman is the Deputy Civil Case Manager in the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas, Civil Division. She also serves as a Senior Judge Law Clerk in the Civil Division, a position she has held for 12 years. Kathy previously served as law clerk to the Honorable Joseph M. James (Ret.). She received her J.D. from the Thomas R. Kline School of Law of Duquesne University and her B.A. from The Pennsylvania State University.