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Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court Elects Judge Kevin Brobson as In-Coming President Judge

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December 09, 2020

The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania today announced the election of Judge P. Kevin Brobson as its next president judge.

Brobson, who begins his 12th year on the Commonwealth Court bench in Jan., succeeds President Judge Mary Hannah Leavitt, whose term as president judge ends on January 4, 2021. The president judge serves a five-year term.

As president judge, Brobson will oversee administrative matters of the court, including budgeting, oversight of administrative offices, scheduling, special sessions, education and bench-bar interaction. “I am humbled by the trust and confidence my colleagues have placed in me, especially as the court continues to address pressing business during a global pandemic,” Judge Brobson said.

“It is a particular honor to succeed President Judge Leavitt, who mentored me in private practice before her election to the bench. She has led the court with commendable aplomb during these challenging times. With the support of my colleagues and the court’s dedicated staff, my focus is to build upon her successes and those of her predecessors in service of the commonwealth.”

Judge Brobson was elected to the Commonwealth Court in 2009 and was retained for a second, ten-year term in Nov. 2019. Judge Brobson earned a bachelor’s degree, magna cum laude, in accounting and economics from Lycoming College and graduated from Widener University Commonwealth Law School, summa cum laude, where he served as executive editor on the law review.

“Judge Brobson is a very able and experienced jurist with a demonstrated commitment to the Commonwealth Court and to the Unified Judicial System as a whole,” said Pennsylvania Supreme Court Chief Justice Thomas G. Saylor.

“The Supreme Court congratulates him on his election as the Commonwealth Court’s President Judge.”

Prior to his service on the bench, Judge Brobson clerked for the late Honorable James McGirr Kelly, judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. He was in private practice for fourteen years, initially as a litigation associate and later as a shareholder and practice group leader with Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney PC. He also served on the Middle Paxton Township Planning Commission.

Since taking the bench, Judge Brobson has served on the Widener Commonwealth Law School Board of Advisors and as the law school’s Jurist-in-Residence. In 2015, he was appointed to the Judicial Conduct Board by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, during which time he served on the Executive Committee as Secretary and later as Board Chair. He is a member of the James S. Bowman American Inns of Court and the Pennsylvania, Dauphin, and Allegheny Bar Associations. Judge Brobson has been a continuing legal education lecturer for the Pennsylvania Bar Institute, the American Inns of Court, and county bar associations throughout Pennsylvania. He resides in Dauphin County with his wife of 22 years and their three children.

Active in the community, Judge Brobson has coached youth baseball and soccer and served in leadership roles on various nonprofit boards. He is particularly proud of his time working with the Penn State Hershey Children’s Hospital Four Diamonds Fund and THON™, which are dedicated to conquering childhood cancer by assisting children and their families through superior care, comprehensive support and innovative research.

The Commonwealth Court was established in 1968 and is one of Pennsylvania's two statewide intermediate appellate courts. The Court has subject matter jurisdiction over state and local government matters. It also acts as a trial court when lawsuits are filed by or against Commonwealth officials and Commonwealth agencies.

Appellate cases are generally heard by panels of three judges in Philadelphia, Harrisburg and Pittsburgh, although, on occasion, the Court sits in other locations. Cases may also be heard by a single judge or by en banc panels of seven judges.

More on the Commonwealth Court and its judges can be found at pacourts.us/commonwealth-court.

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Media contact: Stacey Witalec 717-877-2997