Emil Giordano

The Honorable Emil Giordano (Ret.), Co-Chair of the firm’s Litigation Practice Group, focuses his practice on estate and commercial litigation, and mediation and arbitration.

Judge Giordano served as a presiding judge on the Court of Common Pleas of Northampton County, Third Judicial District, from 2004 through 2018. He was Northampton County’s first administrative Judge of the Orphans’ County Division, overseeing estates and trusts of the county, and was named to the Statewide Orphans’ Court Task Force, an organization charged with implementing changes to Orphans’ Court. He was also the first Judge in Pennsylvania to institute guardianship certification requirements for the protection of senior citizens.

For 15 years, Judge Giordano presided over jury trials and non-jury trials, hearings and motions, and a wide range of disputes under Pennsylvania and federal law, including construction, commercial litigation, professional malpractice, CERCLA, Civil Rights, condemnations, labor and land use appeals, criminal, and domestic relations.

As an arbitrator and mediator, Judge Giordano is certified through Harvard Law School Negotiation Institute in Advanced Mediation, is a fellow of the American College of Civil Trial Mediators, and is affiliated with the American Arbitration Association (AAA) Mediation. He serves as an arbitrator and mediator to the Judicial Roster, Real Estate, and Pennsylvania at Large ADR Panels of Distinguished Neutrals for the International Institute for Conflict Prevention & Resolution.

Judge Giordano is Chair of the Orphans’ Court Procedural Rules Committee for the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania. He is a Diplomate Member for mediation for the Pennsylvania Chapter of the National Academy of Distinguished Neutrals. Judge Giordano serves on the Board of Trustees of the Center for Guardianship Certification. He is a member of the Board of Governors for Saint Thomas More Society and in the Northampton County Bar Association Wills and Trusts Committee Lecturer. In 2005, Judge Giordano was the first judicial recipient of the Lehigh Valley Crime Victims Council Award for Outstanding Commitment to Victim’s Rights. He also received the Bethlehem Catholic High School Distinguished Graduate Award. Judge Giordano received the Title IX Hearing Chairs Certification and Title IX Hearing Officer & Decision-Maker Certification from the Association of Title IX Administrators.

Judge Giordano was selected for inclusion in the 2024 The Best Lawyers in America® list in Litigation: Labor and Employment.

Born in Brooklyn to Italian immigrant parents, Judge Giordano was the first in his family to attend high school, graduating from Bethlehem Catholic High School. A proud Moravian College alumnus, he currently serves as an Adjunct Professor for undergraduate classes.

Bar Admissions

• Pennsylvania
• New Jersey

Areas of Practice

• Litigation
• Estate Planning, Administration & Wealth Preservation
• Alternative Dispute Resolution

Professional Affiliations

• Supreme Court of Pennsylvania
  – Chair, Orphans’ Court Procedural Rules Committee

• The Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania
  – Advisory Council on Elder Justice in the Courts

Education

• Harvard Law School Negotiation Institute
  – Advanced Meditation Course

• Villanova University School of Law
  – J.D.

• Moravian College
  – B.A., Political Science