Joseph P. McDonald

Welcome to the Law Offices of Joseph P. McDonald, Jr. I have been a solo practitioner since November 1992, and have been licensed in Pennsylvania since 1986. I work in a multi-county area in eastern Pennsylvania, including Monroe, Pike, Northampton, Lackawanna, and surrounding counties. My practice focuses largely on transactional work, serving small businesses, consumers, and local governmental bodies.

My work over the years has shown my ability and experience in many areas of the law. I represent many small businesses, including family-owned businesses, sole proprietorships, and businesses with a small group of shareholders. In addition, I assist consumers with their residential real estate transactions and in their estate planning and probate needs. I also have a longstanding relationship as counsel for many municipal governmental bodies, assisting them with issues such as wetland laws, planning and development, and sewage facilities planning.

Involvement in the community is very important to me, as demonstrated through the many professional and civic organizations I am involved in. I am a past President of the Monroe County Bar Association, and an Executive Board Member and current 2008 President of the Pocono Mountains Chamber of Commerce. In the past, I have served as the Chairman of the Small Business Development Committee of this organization. I am an active volunteer in many parts of the business community.

My community involvement also includes work as the Vice President of the Stroudsburg Little League. Over the last several years, I have watched my son play and have served as a coach, volunteer, and umpire in this organization. I was also a founding member and Vice President of the Rotary Club of West End, Monroe County. Working as the leader of the Club's essay-based scholarship programs, I have been able to help emphasize the need for good writing and communication skills.

Working with clients is one of my strongest skills. The goal of the first interview with a client is to determine what result you, the client, are trying to achieve. You need to know that you are part of the solution. My function as your lawyer is to offer guidance and come up with the best questions to ask of the opposing party, or what information would be most useful to you. In a setting where the client is part of a new project (such as a new building or product line), my firm emphasizes a team approach, with the lawyer being part of a team that includes accountants, design professionals, and others. The goal is to get the project off the ground, not complicate it.

My firm blends sensitivity to a client's time frame with the fact that legal skill comes from the need to see the big picture and reflect on the proper way to address an issue. In other words, I don't let speed compromise professional insight on how to approach the issue. A great lawyer understands that his value is more than ministerial, more than pushing papers. As a solo practitioner I embrace the idea that I can get work done without the overhead that comes with a larger firm. You can also be assured that you will not get "lost in the shuffle," as you might in a firm of 50 lawyers.

I take the needs of my clients very seriously. In my public appearances on behalf of my clients, my professionalism shows through in the respect I receive from the judges and opposing counsel. If you are in need of a lawyer for your small business or as a consumer anywhere in eastern Pennsylvania, please call us at the Law Offices of Joseph P. McDonald today. We would like to put our professionalism, experience, and dedication to client service to work for you.