Small enough to care, large enough to win.

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Attorney Kowalski is a principal at Scartelli, Distasio & Kowalski, P.C., where he concentrates his practice in personal injury law, with an emphasis on medical malpractice, psychiatric malpractice, nursing home litigation, product liability, motor vehicle accidents, and insurance bad faith cases.  He received his Bachelor’s of Arts degree, Summa Cum Laude, from Kings College, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, in 1991.  He received his Juris Doctor Degree from the Dickinson School of Law, Carlisle, Pennsylvania, in 1994.
 
From 1994 through 2005, Attorney Kowalski was an attorney in the Litigation Department of Hourigan, Kluger & Quinn, P.C., having been named a partner in 1999.  While a partner at Hourigan, Kluger & Quinn, P.C., Attorney Kowalski also served as a member of the firms’ Executive Committee.
 
In 2005, Attorney Kowalski joined former partners, Melissa A. Scartelli and Daniel J. Distasio, to form the regional law firm of Scartelli, Distasio & Kowalski, P.C.  Attorney Kowalski has tried complex cases in State and Federal Courts throughout the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.  He has had the privilege of arguing cases before Pennsylvania’s appellate courts, including a case of first impression before the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.
 
In 2004, Attorney Kowalski was elected to the Board of Governors of the Pennsylvania Trial Lawyers Association and served in that capacity through 2007.  Attorney Kowalski is also a member of the Board of Directors of the Northeastern Pennsylvania Trial Lawyers Association and a member of the Association of Trial Lawyers of America.  He currently sits on the Wilkes-Barre Law & Library Association Civil Rules Committee.  He is a former member of the Federal Pro Bono Committee.  He is a member of the Pennsylvania Bar Association, Wilkes-Barre Law & Library Association, and Lackawanna County Bar Association.
 
 Attorney Kowalski is admitted to practice before the United States Supreme Court, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, and all Pennsylvania State Courts.

michael@sdklawfirm.com

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Peter Paul Olszewski, Jr. was born and raised in the City of Wilkes-Barre. He is the son of Retired Superior Court Judge Peter Paul Olszewski and June Marie Olszewski. After graduating from E.L. Meyers High School, he earned his Bachelor of Arts Degree in Pre-Law with Distinction from the Pennsylvania State University. He was awarded his Juris Doctorate Degree from the Dickinson School of Law in 1984.

Following law school, Olszewski was engaged in the private practice of law from 1984 through 1991. Olszewski was a trial lawyer who actively tried criminal, civil and family law trials throughout Northeastern Pennsylvania. He served as an Assistant Solicitor to the Pennsylvania State Trooper Association and for State Police Lodge No. 43.  He was an Assistant District Attorney from 1986-1987. He gained prominence in the legal community when he was certified by the National Board of Trial Advocacy as a Criminal Trial Specialist. The certification recognized Olszewski as demonstrating excellence in the trial of complex criminal cases.

Olszewski was elected District Attorney of Luzerne County in November, 1991, taking office on January 6, 1992, and was re-elected to a Second Term on November 7, 1995.  During his tenure as District Attorney Olszewski was extremely active in the Courtroom, personally securing seven (7) First Degree Murder verdicts.  He also successfully secured a Death Penalty against Michael Bardo.

As District Attorney, Olszewski oversaw the installation of a computer tracking system that enabled his staff to efficiently schedule and dispose of over four thousand (4000) cases per year.  He also transformed the legal staff from part-time Assistant District Attorneys to full-time career prosecutors.

Olszewski also initiated a series of educational programs for all law enforcement officers from throughout Northeastern Pennsylvania. Olszewski lectured on numerous and diverse areas of criminal law including Homicide Investigation, Trial Preparation, Search and Seizure, DUI, Vehicular Homicide, Domestic violence, and Sexual Assaults. Additionally, Olszewski has served and continues to serve as a frequent guest lecturer for the Pennsylvania District Attorneys Association, the Pennsylvania County and State Detectives Association, the Dickinson School of Law, the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency and  the Pennsylvania State Police.

Olszewski was elected judge to the Court of Common Pleas in 1999 and served until 2009. In 2000 and 2001, Olszewski served in the Family Division and also presided over Equity and Civil Non-Jury Trials where he eliminated a huge backlog of cases by disposing of 101 non-jury cases in 2000 and 66 in 2001.

In January, 2002, Olszewski was assigned to the Trial Division where he presided over both Criminal and Civil Jury Trials.  He presided over approximately 180 criminal jury trials, and over five of the last six Capital Cases tried in Luzerne County. Additionally, for the past five years, Olszewski served as the Criminal Court Administrator.

Olszewski enjoys a unique distinction in Capital Homicide litigation having reversed a Death Penalty given to a Lackawanna County criminal defendant, having personally secured a death penalty against Michael Bardo, and as a jurist having presided over 5 capital trials.

Olszewski has been recognized by the Pennsylvania State Police for dedicated service to law enforcement and had been awarded an Honorary Lifetime Membership in the Pennsylvania State Police Fraternal Order of Police.  He has received Special Commendation from the State Police in recognition of his conviction of two (2) Defendants who severely assaulted an off-duty State Trooper.

In 1998, Olszewski received Special Recognition from the Pennsylvania Homicide Investigators Association for outstanding work in the prosecution and conviction of Joann Curley.  In 1999 Olszewski was the Recipient of the William T. Mulligan/Edward J. Schrode Memorial Award from the Wilkes-Barre City Police Department.

Olszewski is a member of various professional associations including the Pennsylvania Conference of Trial Judges, the Bar of the Supreme Court of the United States, the Bar of the United States Third Circuit Court of Appeals, the Bar of the United States District Court of the Middle District of Pennsylvania, the Luzerne County Law and Library association, the Pennsylvania Bar Association, and the Professional Ski Instructors of America-Eastern Division.

Olszewski has received numerous community honors including the 1992 Outstanding Alumni Award from the Dickinson School of Law, Northeastern Pennsylvania Alumni Association; the 1993 Community Service Award from the NAACP, Wilkes-Barre; and the 1995 Silver Beaver Award from the Northeast Pennsylvania Council, Boy Scouts of America.  He was also awarded a Lifetime Membership to the Victims Resource Center, and a Lifetime Goldcard Membership to the Young Man’s Polish Association of Hazleton.

Olszewski continues to serve on the Board of Directors of the Anthracite Golf Association which promotes the game of golf to youth and adults throughout Northeastern Pennsylvania.

Olszewski is an Eagle Scout and is a Past President of the Northeastern Pennsylvania Council, Boy Scouts of America.  He is a former member of the Board of Directors of the Pennsylvania State Police, Troop “P” Camp Cadet.  He is a former member of the Board of Directors of the Wilkes-Barre YMCA.  He is a founding member of the District Attorney’s Committee on Youth and Violence and Luzerne County Heroin Task Force.  He is a former member of the League of Women Voters of the Wilkes-Barre Area and of the Luzerne County Highway Safety Advisory Board.  He is a member and Past Exalted Ruler of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, Wilkes-Barre Lodge 109.  He is a Life Member of the National Rifle Association, and is a former Alumni Trustee of the Dickinson School of Law.  He is a member of and scripture reader at St. Frances Cabrini Church, Carverton.

Olszewski is married to Melissa Scartelli and has a fourteen year old daughter Rachel Olszewski.

ppojr@sdklawfirm.com

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Principal Attorney Melissa Scartelli knows the people of Northeast Pennsylvania, as she grew up in Scranton and graduated high school from Scranton Preparatory School. Attorney Scartelli went on to attend the University of Scranton and then graduated from Dickinson College in Carlisle, PA magna cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English. She also received her Juris Doctorate degree from the Dickinson School of Law, where she was captain of the trial moot court team and received the International Academy of Trial Lawyers “Award for Excellence in Trial Advocacy.”

Following graduation, Attorney Scartelli returned to Scranton and was law clerk to the Honorable S. John Cottone of the Court of Common Pleas in Lackawanna County. She then worked as an associate in the trial litigation department of the regional law firm of Hourigan, Kluger, Spohrer and Quinn, P.C. Just four years later, Attorney Scartelli became the firm’s first female Principal Attorney.

While there she represented injured plaintiffs in cases against large corporations including automobile manufacturers, suppliers of industrial and consumer products, hospitals, nursing homes and physicians. Attorney Scartelli successfully tried numerous cases in the state courts of Pennsylvania and Federal Court in the Middle District of Pennsylvania.

In 2001, Attorney Scartelli founded the Firm with offices in Lackawanna and Luzerne Counties. Her mission was to focus on protecting the rights of seriously injured individuals and their families against those who violate state and federal law. The Firm quickly earned an excellent reputation and became an in-demand “boutique” litigation firm with wide resources available to help protect clients' rights.

In 2003, Attorney Scartelli was joined by Attorney Daniel J. Distasio and then later by Attorney Michael J. Kowalski. Attorneys Scartelli, Distasio and Kowalski were former principals in the litigation department at Hourigan, Kluger, Spohrer and Quinn, P.C. in Wilkes-Barre. Together, with a common goal and philosophy, they formed Scartelli, Distasio and Kowalski, P.C., and continue to offer the benefits of a small firm atmosphere, with big firm resources to represent individual citizens in civil cases seeking compensation for their injuries. 

Attorney Scartelli steadfastly believes that more products are made safe in the United States and that individuals receive better health care because of legitimate lawsuits which uncover unsafe products and practices.

Attorney Scartelli is a member of the Board of Directors of the Lackawanna County Bar Association. She is a member of the Wilkes-Barre Law and Library Association where she serves as a Co-Chairperson of the Social Committee. She is a memer of the Pennsylvania Association for Justice and the American Association for Justice. Attorney Scartelli is a member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum, Trial Lawyers for Public Justice and the Attorneys Information Exchange Group. She is past president of the Northeastern Pennsylvania Trial Lawyers Association. She is admitted to practice in all Pennsylvania State courts, Middle District Court of Pennsylvania, as well as the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.

Citizenship Award

melissa@sdklawfirm.com

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Daniel J. Distasio is a principal at Scartelli, Distasio & Kowalski, PC where he concentrates his practice in Personal Injury claims with an emphasis on product liability, motor vehicle accidents, tractor trailer accidents and motorcycle accidents.

Attorney Distasio received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Susquehanna University in 1982. He received his Juris Doctor Degree from the Dickinson School of Law in 1985. Following graduation, Attorney Distasio was employed by Foulkrod, Reynolds & Havas, P.C, Harrisburg and Libert, Short & Hirshland, Philadelphia. From 1993 through 2003, Attorney Distasio was a Partner in the Litigation Department at Hourigan, Kluger & Quinn, PC.

In 2003, Attorney Distasio joined his former partner, Melissa Scartelli, to form the Scartelli & Distasio Law Firm, P.C.

In 2002, Attorney Distasio was appointed by The Disciplinary Board of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania to serve as a Hearing Committee Member. Attorney Distasio is also a member of the Pennsylvania Association for Justice, Pennsylvania Bar Association, Wilkes-Barre Law & Library Association and the Luzerne and Lackawanna Bar Associations. He is admitted to practice before the United States District Court for the Eastern and Middle Districts of Pennsylvania as well as all Pennsylvania State Courts.

dan@sdklawfirm.com