Ethan R. O’Shea

P: (215) 661-0400
F: (215) 661-0315
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Ethan O’Shea is a Principal of the firm and has been a member of the Litigation Department at Hamburg, Rubin, Mullin, Maxwell & Lupin for 20 years. He currently chairs the firm’s Employment Law Group. His practice focuses on employment law, commercial litigation, real estate litigation, and criminal law. Ethan has counseled corporate and individual clients on a variety of employment, commercial and criminal matters. Ethan also appears regularly before the PA Human Relations Commission, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and has tried cases in the federal and state courts throughout Pennsylvania. Prior to joining the firm, Ethan was a Senior Deputy District Attorney with the Bucks County District Attorney’s Office, where he served as a member of the Child and Sexual Abuse Unit and prosecuted a wide variety of criminal cases in the Court of Common Pleas. Before joining the District Attorney’s Office, Ethan served as a Law Clerk for The Honorable Edward G. Biester, Jr., Bucks County Court of Common Pleas. Ethan is a member of the Pennsylvania, Bucks and Montgomery Bar Associations. He has lectured for the Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Pennsylvania Municipal Authorities Association, Montgomery Bar Association and People’s Law School concerning employment law and criminal law. Ethan is past president of the Montgomery Bar Association Trial Lawyers Section, past chair of the Montgomery Bar Association Employment Law Committee, and past vice-chair of the Criminal Defense Committee. He serves as a Board member of Main Line Television 21 (MLTV21).

Ethan has served as a Director of the Plymouth Community Ambulance Association, has been a volunteer for Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Montgomery County and Bucks County, and has served as a board member for the Montgomery County Victim-Offender Conferencing program. A graduate of Bucknell University with a degree in International Relations (B.A. 1990), Ethan received his J.D. from The George Washington University National Law Center in 1993. In 2003, he attended the Academy of Advocacy of Temple University.

Representative Cases

Employment

  • Obtained injunctive relief for a medical device manufacturer against a former employee and multi-national corporation for breach of restrictive covenants.
  • Obtained a defense verdict for a professional corporation in a suit filed by a former employee alleging age discrimination.
  • Assisted packaging company in successful defense of employment discrimination claim.
  • Obtained defense verdict for principals of construction consulting firm against a claim made under Pennsylvania’s Wage Payment and Collection Law.
  • Represented two restaurants and their owner defending a class-action complaint alleging Fair Labor Standard Act violations.
  • Obtained a confidential 6-figure settlement from a multinational pharmaceutical company for an employee resulting from the company’s violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
  • Obtained dismissal of discrimination charges for numerous corporate clients at EEOC and PHRC.
  • Negotiated employment and separation agreements for individual and business clients.

Criminal

  • Successfully negotiated a guilty plea in a case where the defendant husband was charged with the aggravated assault of his wife resulting in serious brain injuries. Following extensive negotiations with the District Attorney, the client pled guilty to only a misdemeanor and received six months’ non-reporting probation.
  • Successfully represented a defendant charged with various firearm offenses, including Persons Not to to Possess a Firearm, Possession of a Firearm with an Altered Manufacturer’s Number, Criminal Use of a Communication Facility and Conspiracy. Following arguments on several pretrial motions to suppress evidence and a non-jury trial, client was acquitted on the aforementioned charges.
  • Obtained not-guilty verdict following a jury trial on all felony charges for a client charged with numerous offenses in a high-profile assault case.
  • Obtained not-guilty verdict following a non-jury trial for client wrongfully accused of assaulting estranged spouse.
  • Successfully argued pre-trial motions leading to the dismissal of charges against numerous clients because of unlawful searches and violations of the Rules of Criminal Procedure.
  • Negotiated guilty pleas on behalf of many clients leading to a reduction of charges and/or reduction of sentence.

Commercial and Real Estate Litigation

  • Successfully argued case before PA Supreme Court creating new law pertaining to easements by necessity.
  • Represent mortgage lenders in various actions to establish the validity and/or priority of the clients’ mortgages, and represent property owners to defend claims against title.
  • Successfully defended property owner’s petition for writ of certiorari to the United States Supreme Court.
  • In a case of first impression in Pennsylvania, successfully obtained a judgment on behalf of a mortgage lender against a competing lender whose mortgage was declared void due to an improper notarization of the loan documents.
  • Obtained verdict for specific performance on behalf of real estate developer to enforce Agreement of Sale.

News

Videos

Credentials

Admissions

  • U.S. Supreme Court
  • Pennsylvania
  • U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Pennsylvania
  • U.S. Court of Appeals, 3rd Circuit

Education

  • The George Washington University Law School, (J.D.1993)
  • Bucknell University (B.A.1990)
  • Goldsmiths’ College, University of London, Fall Semester 1988
  • Academy of Advocacy, Temple University, Summer 2003

Memberships

  • Pennsylvania Bar Association
  • Bucks County Bar Association
  • Montgomery Bar Association
    • President, Trial Lawyers Section (2018)
    • Chair, Employment and Labor Law Committee (2014 & 2016)
    • Co-Chair, Employment and Labor Law Committee (2015)
    • Vice-Chair, Employment and Labor Law Committee (2006)
    • Member, Employment and Labor Law Committee (2005, 2007-Current)
    • Vice-Chair, Criminal Defense Committee (2010)
    • Member, Criminal Defense Committee (2000-Current)
  • Main Line Television 21 (MLTV21)
    • Member, Board of Directors
  • Radnor Youth Soccer Program – Coach
  • Plymouth Community Ambulance Association Board of Directors
    • Past Director
  • Montgomery County Victim-Offender Conferencing Program
    • Past Board member

Publications & Speeches

Honors & Awards

  • Listed as “Awesome Attorney” for Criminal Defense, DWI/DUI, Traffic Law, and Employment/Labor Law, Suburban Life Magazine, 2012

Personal Interests

Ethan is an avid soccer, tennis and platform-tennis player, and is active with his three children’s schools and community youth sports programs.