List of first minority male lawyers and judges in Pennsylvania
This is a list of the first minority male lawyer and judge in Pennsylvania. It includes the year in which the men were admitted to practice law. Also included are other distinctions such as the first minority men in their state to obtain a law degree or become a political figure.
Firsts in state history
Lawyers
- Moses Levy : First Jewish male lawyer in Pennsylvania
- Jonathan Jasper Wright : First African American male lawyer in Pennsylvania
- Leonard Staisey : First blind male lawyer in Pennsylvania
- Juan Silva : First Hispanic American male lawyer in Pennsylvania
- Nelson A. Diaz : First Puerto Rican male admitted to the Pennsylvania State Bar
Judicial Officers
State
Judges
- Issac Miranda: First Jewish American male to serve as a judge in Pennsylvania
- Herbert E. Millen : First African American male judge in Pennsylvania
- Theodore O. Spaulding: First African American male to serve as a Judge of the Superior Court in Pennsylvania
- Leonard Staisey : First blind male judge in Pennsylvania
- Nelson A. Diaz : First Hispanic American male judge in Pennsylvania
- William M. Marutani: First Asian American male judge in Pennsylvania
- Eduardo C. Robreno : First Cuban American male judge in Pennsylvania
- Daniel Anders : First openly LGBT male judge in Pennsylvania
Court of Common Pleas
- Raymond Pace Alexander : First African American male appointed as a Judge of the Pennsylvania Courts of Common Pleas
Supreme Court
- Horace Stern: First Jewish American male appointed as a Justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court
- Robert N. C. Nix Jr. : First African American male appointed as a Justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court and serve as its Chief Justice
Federal
District Court
- Paul Allen Simmons : First African American male appointed as a Judge of the United States District Court of the Western District of Pennsylvania
- A. Leon Higginbotham Jr. : First African American male appointed as a Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. He was also the first African American male appointed to a regulatory commission when he became a commissioner for the Federal Trade Commission.
- Gary L. Lancaster : First African American to serve as Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania
- Eduardo C. Robreno : First Cuban American male appointed as a Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
- Juan Ramon Sanchez : First Latino American male to serve as the Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
Appellate Court
- Luis Felipe Restrepo : First Hispanic American male appointed as a Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
Political Office
- Daniel Anders : First openly LGBT male to run for public office in Pennsylvania
Bar Association
- Gilbert "Ott" Nurick: First Jewish male to serve as the President of the Pennsylvania Bar Association
- Michael H. Reed: First African American male to serve as the President of the Pennsylvania Bar Association
Firsts in local history
Allegheny County
- Homer S. Brown: First African American male judge in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania
- Leonard Staisey : First blind male lawyer and judge in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania
Beaver County
- George E. James: First African American male judge in Beaver County, Pennsylvania
Blair County
- Angelo A. Santella : First Italian American male lawyer in Altoona, Blair County, Pennsylvania
Bucks County
- Clyde W. Waite: First African American male judge in Bucks County, Pennsylvania
Chester County
- J. Curtis Joyner : First African American judge in Chester County, Pennsylvania. He would later become a district court judge.
- Juan Sanchez: First Latino American male admitted to the Chester County Bar Association
Delaware County
- William H. Ridley: First African American male lawyer in Delaware County, Pennsylvania
Lehigh County
- Alfred Hemmons: First African American male lawyer admitted to the Lehigh County Bar Association
Monroe County
- Maxwell H. Cohen: First Jewish male lawyer admitted to the Monroe County Bar Association in Pennsylvania. He was also the first lawyer to hire an African American law clerk and a female law clerk.
Montgomery County
- Horace A. Davenport: First African American male judge in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania
- Daniel J. Clifford: First openly LGBT male judge in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia County
- Aaron Albert Mossell : First African American male to graduate from the University of Pennsylvania Law School
- Aladino A. Autillo: First male lawyer of Italian descent in Philadelphia, Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania
- Bernard G. Segal: First Jewish male lawyer to serve as the Chancellor of the Philadelphia Bar Association
York County
- Chuck Patterson: First African American male judge in York County, Pennsylvania
Other topics of interest
- List of first women lawyers and judges in the United States
- List of first women lawyers and judges in Pennsylvania