We Work Hard To Protect Your Priorities.

Samuel J. Cordes

Attorney

Practice Areas

Employment Law

Education

University of Pittsburgh School of Law, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
- J.D. - 1988
- Honors: magna cum laude
- Honors: Order of the Coif
- Honors: W. Edward Sell Award for Highest Grade in Corporations
- Honors: Herman L. Forman Award for Highest Grade in Labor Law
Point Park College
- M.A. - 1985
- Honors: summa cum laude
Point Park College
- B.A. - 1980
- Honors: magna cum laude

Professional Associations

National Employment Lawyers Association, Co-Chair, Trial Practice Committee
Allegheny County Bar Association, Member
Pennsylvania Bar Association, Member
American Bar Association, Member

Honors

Top 100 Super Lawyers in Pennsylvania, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019
Top 50 Super Lawyers in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 2005, 2007, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2020
Pennsylvania Super Lawyers, Employment Law and Litigation, since 2004
500 Leading Plaintiff Employment Lawyers - Law Dragon, 2018, 2019 and 2020
Three Best Rate, Top 3 Employment Lawyers in Pittsburgh, 2019
Listed in Best Lawyers in America, Employment Law
Pittsburgh Labor and Employment Lawyer of the Year - 2012, 2017 and 2021 from Best Lawyers in America®
eBossWatch nationwide list of Top Employment Lawyers
Fellow of National College of Labor and Employment Lawyers
Academy of Trial Lawyers Allegheny County
AVVO. Highest Possible Rating, Superb
AVVO Clients' Choice Award Employment Law, 2015

Representative Cases

Karlo v. Pittsburgh Glass Works, 849 F.3d 61, 2017, 3d Cir. 2017
Wingard v. Allegheny County, 2017 WL 1755974 , 2017, W.D. Pa. May 3, 2017
Sharbaugh v. West Haven Manor, 2016 WL 6834613, 2016, W.D. Pa. Nov. 21, 2016
Roman v. McGuire Memorial, A.3d 26, 2015, Pa. Super. 2015
Bertani v. Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, Supp.3d 564 , 2014, W.D. Pa. 2014
Risk v. Burgettstown Borough, PA, 364 Fed.Appx. 725, 2010, 2010, 3rd Circuit
Davila v. Victory Sec. Agency, 2010 WL 2636067, 2010, W.D.Pa.
Salisbury v. City of Pittsburgh, 2010 WL 654490, 2010, W.D.Pa.
Kellerman v. UPMC St. Margaret, 317 Fed.Appx. 290, 2009, 3rd Circuit
Snooks v. Duquesne Light Co., 314 Fed.Appx. 499, 2009, 3rd Circuit
Kirby v. J.C. Penney Corp., Inc., 2009 WL 5206027, 2009, W.D.Pa.
Trefelner ex rel. Trefelner v. Burrell School Dist., 655 F.Supp.2d 581, 2009, W.D.Pa.
Dohner v. Clearfield County, Pa., 2009 WL 2762548, 2009, W.D.Pa.
Truman v. DeWolff, Boberg & Associates, Inc., 2009 WL 2015126, 2009, W.D.Pa.
Jarzabek v. UPMC Passavant Hosp., 2009 WL 693251, 2009, W.D.Pa.
Risk v. Burgettstown Borough, Pa., 2008 WL 4925641, 2008, W.D.Pa.
Smith v. Specialty Pool Contractors, 2008 WL 4410163, 2008, W.D.Pa.
Stager v. Beverly Health and Rehabilitation Services, Inc., 2008 WL 3165837, 2008, W.D.Pa.
E.E.O.C. v Aldi, Inc., 2008 WL 2329603, 2008, W.D.Pa.
Day v. Bethlehem Center School Dist., 2008 WL 2036903, 2008, W.D.Pa.
E.E.O.C. v. Aldi, Inc., 2008 WL 859249, 2008, W.D.Pa.
Lennex v. Wal-Mart Stores East, LP, 2008 WL 763740, 2008, W.D.Pa.
Conto v. Norfolk Southern Corp., 2007 WL 4370906, 2007, W.D.Pa.
Stewart v. Amazing Glazed, LLC, 2007 WL 3334973, 2007, W.D.Pa.
Wargats v. Pittsburgh Technical Inst., 2007 WL 81056, 2007, W.D.Pa.
Fowler-Nash v. Democratic Caucus of Pa. House of Rep., 469 F.3d 328, 2006, 3d Circuit
Pennsylvania v. Ostrosky, 909 A.2d, 2006, Pa.
Heller v. Elizabeth Forward School District, 182 Fed. Appx. 91, 2006, 3d Cir.
Colussi v Woodruff Family Services, 173 Fed. Appx. 91, 2006, 3d Cir.
Heller v. Elizabeth Forward School Dist., 182 Fed.Appx. 91, 2006, 3rd Circuit
Greene v. MPW Indus. Services, Inc., 2006 WL 3308577, 2006, W.D.Pa.
Kaufer v. UPMC Health Plan, Inc., 2006 WL 1984636, 2006, W.D.Pa.
Kreger v. Baldwin Borough, 2006 WL 456249, 2006, W.D.Pa.
Bradley v. Kemper Insurance Co., 121 Fed. Appx. 468, 2005, 3rd Cir.
Straub v. First Media Radio, LLC, WL 3158042, 2005, W.D.Pa.
Fiscus v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., 385 F.3d 378, 2004, (3rd Cir.)
Armour v. County of Beaver, 271 F.3d 417, 2001, 3d Cir., 2001468539
Hopp, et al. v. City of Pittsburgh, 194 F.3d 434, 1999, 3rd Cir.
Pivirotto v. Innovative Systems, Inc., 191 F.3d 344, 1999, 3d Cir., 1999205745
Boyle v. Allegheny County, 139 F.3d 386, 1998, 3d Cir., 1998075483
Ryder v. Westinghouse Elect. Corp., 128 F.3d 128, 1997, 3d Cir., 1997198327
Sherback v. Wright Automotive Group, 987 F.Supp. 433, 1997, W.D.Pa
Murphy v. Dalton, 81 F.3d 343, 1996, 3d Cir., 1996090945
Brewer v. Quaker State Oil Refining Co., 72 F.3d 326, 1995, 3d Cir., 1995245426
Roach v. American Radio Systems Inc., 80 F. Supp 2d 530, 1995, W.D. Pa., 2000042046
Defranks v. Court of Common Pleas of Fayette County, 66 Fair Emp. Prac. Cases (BNA) 1306, 1995, W.D. Pa.
Pennsylvania v. Flaherty, 983 F.2d 1267, 1993, 3d Cir., 1993031114
Quirin v. City of Pittsburgh, 801 F.Supp. 1486, 1992, W.D. Pa., 1992167724
Patterson v. American Bosch, 914 F2d 384, 1991, 3d Cir., 1990131157
Roney v. Allegheny Intermediate Unit, 568 Fed.Appx. 172 (3d Cir. June 12, 2014)
Roehrig v. W.G. Tomko, 2016 WL 2755177 (W.D. Pa. May 12, 2016)
Abrams v. CNB Bank, 2016 WL 1169544 (W.D. Pa. March 22, 2016)
Schilling v. Napleton's Ellwood City Dodge, 2015 WL 6509436 (W.D. Pa. Oct. 28, 2015)
Spencer v. Pennsylvania State Police, 2015 WL 5714411 (W.D. Pa. Sept. 29, 2015)
Cestra v. Mylan, Inc., 2015 WL 2455420 (W.D. Pa. May 22, 2015)
Brown v. Am. Sintered Technology, 2015 WL 917293 (W.D. Pa. March 3, 2015)
Shepherd v. Gannodale, 2014 WL 7338714 (W.D. Pa. Dec. 22, 2014)
Malaspina v. UPMC, 2014 WL 4925173 (W.D. Pa. Sept. 30, 2014)
Stuby v. Bedford Cty., 2013 WL 5724065 (W.D. Pa. Oct. 21, 2013)
Seretti v. Morrow Ford, 2012 WL 933058 (W.D. Pa. May 5, 2012)
Rector v. Blair County, 2011 WL 5439165 (W.D. Pa. April 12, 2011)
Rector v. Blair County, 2011 WL 5439165 (W.D. Pa. April 12, 2011)
Gaus v. Norfolk Southern, 2011 WL 4527359 (W.D. Pa., Sept. 21, 2011)

Classes/Seminars

Sexual Harassment Evidentiary Issues, Duquesne University, Employment Law Forum, Pittsburgh, PA, 1994
Negligent Employment Law, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Employment Law Institute, Philadelphia, PA, 1996
Sexual Harassment Litigation: A Plaintiff's Perspective, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Philadelphia, PA, 1996
Hot Topics In Employment Law: Surviving Summary Judgment in Employment Discrimination Cases, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Pittsburgh, PA, 1996
Trying A Sexual Harassment Suit, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Pittsburgh, PA, 1996
Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and Pennsylvania Workers Compensation Law, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Pittsburgh, PA, 1996
Speaker, Employment Discrimination Law and Litigation, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, 1996 - 2010
Third Annual Employment Institute: Sending A Message: Trying Punitive Damages Issues, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, 1997
The Trial Of A Sexual Harassment Lawsuit, Pennsylvania Bar Association, Pittsburgh, PA, 1997
Evidence Issues In Employment Litigation, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, 1997
Trial Of Sexual Harassment Lawsuit , Pennsylvania Bar Institute, broadcast throughout Pennsylvania over closed-circuit radio, won an award for excellence in continuing education, 1998
Fourth Annual Employment Law Institute: Motions Practice In Employment Litigation, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Philadelphia, PA, 1998
Motions Practice In Employment Litigation: Retaliation Claims, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Pittsburgh, PA, 1998
Fifth Annual Employment Law Institute: Surviving Summary Judgment In Employment Discrimination Actions, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Philadelphia, PA, 1999
Evidentiary Issues In Employment Litigation, Pennsylvania Bar Institute (West), Pittsburgh, PA, 1999
Employment Law In Pennsylvania, Practicing Law Institute, Pittsburgh, PA, 2000
Sixth Annual Northeast Employment Law Institute: Trying A Pretext Case , Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Philadelphia, PA, 2000
Sixth Annual Northeast Employment Law Institute: Ethics And The Media For Employment Lawyers, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Philadelphia, PA, 2000
Summary Judgment In Employment Litigation, Allegheny County Academy of Trial Lawyers, Pittsburgh, PA, 2000
Ethics and the Media For Employment Lawyers, Pennsylvania Bar Institute: Employment Law Institute (West), Pittsburgh, PA, 2000
Trying A Pretext Case, Pennsylvania Bar Institute: Employment Law Institute (West), 2000
Education Law In Pennsylvania, Practicing Law Institute, Pittsburgh, PA, 2001
Use and Abuse of Expert Witnesses in Employment Litigation, Pennsylvania Bar Institute: Seventh Annual Northeast Employment Law Institute, Philadelphia, PA, 2001
Trial Of Age Discrimination, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Pittsburgh, PA, 2001
Punitive Damages After Kolstad: The Trial Issues, Pennsylvania Bar Institute: Seventh Annual Northeast Employment Law Institute, Philadelphia, PA, 2001
Interference or Retaliation: Litigating Under the FMLA's Confusing Remedial Scheme, Pennsylvania Law Institute, Pittsburgh, PA, 2001
Surviving Summary Judgment In Employment Discrimination Actions, Pennsylvania Bar Institute: Employment Law Institute (West), Pittsburgh, PA, 2001
"Litigating against government employers under the Constitution." "Interference or Retaliation: Litigating Under the FMLA's Confusing Remedial Scheme", Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Annual Employment Law Institute, Philadelphia, PA, April 2002
Sexual Harassment Update, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Harrisburg and Pittsburgh PA, July 2002
"Motions in Limine in Employment Litigation", Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Employment Law Institute (West), Pittsburgh, PA, November 2002
"Surviving Summary Judgment in Employment Discrimination Actions", Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Ninth Annual Employment Law Institute, Philadelphia, PA, April 2003
Trial of Sexual Harassment Lawsuit, Broadcast throughout Pennsylvania over closed-circuit video, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, November 2003
Litigating employment issues under the U.S. Constitution, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Employment Law Institute (West), Pittsburgh, PA, December 2003
“New and Evolving Damage Issues in Employment Discrimination Cases”, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Tenth Annual Employment Law Institute, Philadelphia, PA, April, 2004
“Wrongful Termination in Pennsylvania”, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Pittsburgh, PA, June 2004
Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Employment Law Institute (West), Pittsburgh, PA, November 2004
Evidence for Employment Lawyers, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Pittsburgh, PA, June 2005
Course Planner, Summary Judgment Motions in Employment Law, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Pittsburgh and Harrisburg, PA, July 2005
“Update on Americans with Disabilities Act;” “Surviving Summary Judgment in ADA Cases: Global Warfare on Paper", Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Employment Law Institute (West), Pittsburgh, PA, November 2005
Basics of Employment Law, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Pittsburgh, PA, January 2006
Wrongful Termination in Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Pittsburgh and Harrisburg, PA, June 2006
Sexual Harassment Update, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Harrisburg, PA, August 2006
Suing the Government: Constitutional Litigation under 42 U.S.C. §1983, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Employment Law Institute (West), Pittsburgh, PA, November 2006
Employment Law Update, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Pittsburgh, PA, February 2007
Summary Judgment in Employment Litigation, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Pittsburgh, PA, April 2007
Program Coordinator, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Employment Law Institute (West), Pittsburgh, PA, November 2007
Trial Advocacy for the Plaintiff’s Employment Lawyer; Themes and Values in Employment Discrimination Cases, National Employment Lawyers Association, Washington D.C., March 2008
Managing Intermittent Leave and Other Hot FMLA Issues, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Pittsburgh, PA, August 2008
Fire at Will, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Pittsburgh, PA, July 2009
Valuing Employment Cases, Federal Bar Association, Pittsburgh, PA, September 2009
Surviving Summary Judgment in Employment Litigation, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Pittsburgh, PA, October 2009
Program Coordinator, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Employment Law Institute (West), Pittsburgh, PA, November 2009
Handling the Sexual Harassment Case, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Pittsburgh, PA, March 2010
Employment Law Basics, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Pittsburgh, PA, August 2010
Program Coordinator, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Employment Law Institute (West), Pittsburgh, PA, November 2010
Fire at Will in Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, 2010
Summary Judgment in Employment Discrimination, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, 17 Annual Northeast Regional Employment Law Institute, Philadelphia, PA, April, 2011
Fire at Will in Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Pittsburgh, PA, October 2011
Trying a Plaintiff’s Employment Law Case, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Employment Law Institute (West), Pittsburgh, PA, November 2011
Navigating the Rising Tide of Retaliation Claims, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Employment Law Institute (West), Pittsburgh, PA, December 2011
The Summit for Workers' Rights, National Employment Lawyers Association, 2013
Trying A Pretext Case, National Employment Lawyers Association, National Convention, Denver, CO, June, 2013
The Next Big Fight in Employment Discrimination Law: Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Discrimination, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Employment Law Institute (West), Pittsburgh, PA, November 2013
Gross and Nassar: Supreme Court Rejects “Motivating Factor” Standard and Applies “But-For” Causation Standard to Age and Retaliation Claims, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Employment Law Institute (West), Pittsburgh, PA, November 2013
Pregnancy Discrimination: Determining the Legal Boundaries, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Employment Law Institute (West), Pittsburgh, PA, November 2014
Avoiding Summary Judgment in Employment Law, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Philadelphia, PA; Pittsburgh, PA, February 2015

Published Works

"Employers Minefield, Employees' Opportunity; Courts Now Give Teeth to Employer's Burden in Employment Discrimination Actions", Pa. Law Weekly 12, July 3, 2001
"Replacement No Longer Element of Employment Discrimination Prima Facie Case", Lawyers J., Vol. 2, No. 22, 2000
"Third Circuit Slowly Expanding Scope of Relevant Discrimination Evidence", Pennsylvania Law Weekly, June 3, 1997
"Congress Overrules Leading Supreme Court Case on Admissibility of Evidence in Sexual Harassment Litigation, Pittsburgh Legal Journal, November 1, 1994