Judith K. Fitzgerald

Hon. Judith K. Fitzgerald is a shareholder with Tucker Arensberg, P.C. in Pittsburgh and a former member of its board of directors. She has a trial background and frequently served as a settlement judge and mediator. Judge Fitzgerald retired from her position as a U.S. Bankruptcy Judge for the Western District of Pennsylvania after more than 25 years on the bench, having presided over matters in the Western District of Pennsylvania (where she was chief judge for five years) as well as in the District of Delaware (20 years), the Eastern District of Pennsylvania (eight years) and the U.S. Virgin Islands (nine years). During her tenure as a bankruptcy judge, Judge Fitzgerald presided over many significant corporate cases and adjudicated more mass tort bankruptcies than any other bankruptcy judge in the country. Since joining Tucker Arensberg in 2013, she has served as a mediator and arbitrator in bankruptcy, consumer and commercial transaction-related proceedings. Judge Fitzgerald has been retained as an expert witness and consultant in cases throughout the country involving bankruptcy issues, insurance and reinsurance issues, fee disputes, bankruptcy-related malpractice matters, asbestos trust issues, and various commercial and contract disputes. She has represented both debtors and creditors in bankruptcy cases and works with clients on complex bankruptcy, insolvency and commercial issues. Among her many recognitions, in 2016 Judge Fitzgerald received an honorable mention by Law360 as one of The Ten Most Influential Bankruptcy Judges in History. She served as president of the National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges, sat on ABI’s Board of Directors, and is part of the education and other committees of several professional associations. In addition, she designed the Around the Circuits ethics program for the American Inns of Court. Judge Fitzgerald is an elected member of the American Law Institute and the American College of Bankruptcy, as well as other professional organizations. Before being appointed as a bankruptcy judge in 1987, she was an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Western District of Pennsylvania, with a concentration in complex frauds and criminal tax cases. Judge Fitzgerald received her B.S. in psychology and B.A. in English writing from the University of Pittsburgh, and her J.D. from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law.