M. SUSAN WILLIAMS, M.S., ESQUIRE Clifton Heights, PA 19018 ladyjustice@erols.com 610.405.5008
ATTORNEY EXPERIENCE (Admitted in Pennsylvania)
Counsel, 2000-present Media, PA Prosecute non-custodial parents who are not honoring child support obligations. Represent custodial parents in petitions to increase or reduce child support. Represent the Department of Public Welfare in the collection of welfare arrears. Research and write Superior Court Appellate briefs. Oral arguments before the Superior Court.
Partner, 2000-2004 Media, PA General practice emphasizing elder law issues such as power of attorney for health care, wills, general durable power of attorney, trusts, tax and estate planning and administration, nursing home/assisted living admissions and discharges, Medicare/Medicaid, hospice and end of life topics.
Board President and Counsel, 2001-2003 Philadelphia, PA Hope Afloat Breast Cancer Survivor Dragon Boat Team. Preside over meetings. Work with committee chairs. Provide structure so that work of the board and organization can be accomplished. Ensure that strategic plan, budget, and fundraising are developed and implemented. Help recruit new members and develop succession plans for committee chairs. Serve as a link to community. Work with the media. Lead members of the board to make sure that the mission and visions of the organization are achieved. Complete all legal work leading to incorporation and 501(c)(3) status and wrote all by-laws.
Law Clerk, 1998-2000 Court of Common Pleas, Delaware County, Media, PA Write and research judicial opinions and orders for Civil Division cases. Coordinate complex litigation, including all of the diet drug products liability litigation and the asbestos litigation in Delaware County.
PROFESSIONAL AWARD
Widener University School of Law Alumni Association 2002 Outstanding Recent Alumni Award “in recognition of dedication and service to the law school and the community.”
TEACHING EXPERIENCE
Rutgers University School of Law Director of Academic Success, 1998-present Camden, NJ Conduct study, writing, and exam taking classes and individual sessions with day and evening students, ESL students, and students with learning disabilities to help them develop and apply better legal analysis skills.
Widener University Legal Education Institute Adjunct Professor, 2000-present Wilmington, DE Teach paralegal classes in “Human Resource Management” (also developed text) and “Trial Process.”
PUBLICATION
Elderly Legal Immigrants and Welfare Reform: An Analysis of the Effects of The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996. The Kansas Journal of Law and Public Policy, Volume VII, Number III, Spring 1998.
ADDITIONAL LEGAL EXPERIENCE
Tom Musi, Esquire, and Steve Wydrzynski, Esquire Law Clerk Intern, 1997-1998 Solicitors to the Courts of Delaware County, Civil Pre-Trial Division, Media, PA Read Motions and memoranda, researched and prepared over 160 Orders for civil court judges.
The Honorable Dolores K. Sloviter Judicial Extern, 1996-1997 (Then) Chief Judge, United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, Philadelphia, PA Read briefs and appendices, researched and prepared appellate bench memoranda.
Professor Jeff Lewin Research Assistant, 1996-1998 Widener University School of law, Wilmington, DE Researched case law and statutes for the meaning of the words “reasonable medical certainty” as applied to the admissibility of expert medical testimony from 1935 to 1997. See The genesis and Evolution of Legal Uncertainty About “Reasonable Medical Certainty,” 57 Maryland Law Review 380.
Law Offices of Ellner and Borrell Law Clerk, 1995-1996 In-house counsel for P.M.A. Insurance, King of Prussia, PA Researched all areas of Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation law. Wrote over 120 defense briefs, Memoranda of Law, Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law, Briefs on Appeal, and briefs to the Commonwealth Court.
LEGAL EDUCATION
Widener University School of Law J.D., cum laude, May 1998 Wilmington, DE Evening Division
Rank: #10 out of 332
Competitions: Fourth Place in A.B.A. Region 3 Negotiation Competition, 1996.
Advocacy: Rated “Outstanding” in First Year Moot Court Oral Argument.
Honors: The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi (top 10% of graduating class); Widener Scholar (academic scholarship) 1995-1998; Certificate of Achievement in Torts I; Dean’s Honors List - seven semesters; Phi Delta Phi, Harrington Inn, Honor Chapter.
Awards: The Howard M. Berg Award (graduation award given by the faculty for outstanding scholarship); Widener University School of Law Outstanding Student Service Award (graduation award); Chadwick Scholarship (academic scholarship given by the Delaware County Bar Association) 1995-1998.
Activities: Chair of A.B.A. Region 3 Client Counseling Competition, Spring 1997 and 1998; Chair of Interscholastic Client Counseling Competitions, Spring 1997 and 1998; Widener Law Cultural Arts Society, Vice President, 2nd-4th years; Widener Law Republican Caucus, Secretary, 2nd year; Student Bar Association Board of Governors Representative, 1st and 2nd years.
University of Nairobi School of Law Summer 1997 Nairobi, KENYA Studied International Environmental Law (highest grade in class) and Comparative Natural Resource Law (highest grade in class).
ADDITIONAL EDUCATION
Villanova University Master of Science, 1988, G.P.A. 3.86 Villanova, PA Human Resource Management
Cedar Crest College Bachelor of Arts, 1985 Allentown, PA Psychology and Sociology
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
Crawford Healthcare Management, Fortis/Corvel, & C.R.A. Vocational Consultant & Newark, DE, Wayne, PA, & Wyncote, PA Job Developer 1986-1994 Testified as an expert witness in the field of vocational rehabilitation. Managed activities of Job Development staff. Marketed employers and insurance companies to obtain own accounts. Visited prospective employers to develop employment opportunities for physically disabled clients.
EXHIBITIONS AND LECTURES
“Hope is on the Horizon” Presented at the Mendenhall Inn, West Chester, PA (2010).
“Breast Cancer Survivor Dragonboating” The Exchange Club, West Chester, PA (2002).
“Images of East Africa” A photography exhibit and lecture series on East African wildlife. Widener University School of Law, Wilmington, DE, and Harrisburg, PA (1997 and 1998); Faxon-Kenmar United Methodist Church, Williamsport, PA (1998); Mercy Community Hospital, Havertown, PA (1999); The Blue Church, Springfield, PA (1999).
PERSONAL
Marathon kayak and canoe racing (2002 – present).
Dragonboat racing (2000 – 2003), awards include gold and silver medals World Club Crew Championships, Rome, Italy; 6th place 25 mile Yangtze River race, Yichang, China.
Climbed Mount Kilimanjaro, Tanzania, highest mountain in Africa.