Position: Counsel

Matthew G. Brushwood

Matt is a member of the Finance & Creditors’ Rights Practice Group, where his practice includes residential and commercial mortgage foreclosure as well as complex consumer and commercial litigation. His practice also involves representation of secured and unsecured creditors, lenders and landlords in various areas including: 

  • Bankruptcy
  • Eviction and Tenant Disputes
  • Mechanic’s Liens
  • Tax Sales
  • Title Curative
  • Repossessions and Garnishments
  • Receiverships
  • General Collection
  • Bankruptcy Preference Defense
  • Commercial Lease Restructuring
  • Consumer and Banking Regulatory Compliance
  • Breach of Contract
  • Appeals
  • Federal and State Consumer Protection Defense including Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) and Fair Debt Collection (FDCPA)

With his extensive experience and practical approach, Matt has developed an understanding of how to identify risks, limit exposure and obtain effective and prompt resolution through cost-effective litigation and settlement. He routinely partners with his clients enhancing operational efficiency and compliance, crisis management, and devising both a litigation case strategy and a national litigation approach. Matt has successfully handled all aspects of complex litigation in state and federal courts, and he has also provided valuable on and off-site training for national mortgage servicers addressing emerging trends in foreclosure litigation in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Maryland.

MEMBERSHIPS
  • Berks County Bar Association
  • Lehigh County Bar Association
  • Pennsylvania Bar Association
  • Northampton County Bar Association
  • Middle District Bankruptcy Bar Association
  • Eastern District of PA Bankruptcy Conference

Martin R. Siegel

Marty is a seasoned attorney in Barley Snyder’s Real Estate and Environment & Energy practice groups. He works with businesses to navigate environmental and energy challenges in real estate transactions, development projects, PFAS-related issues, and regulatory compliance. Marty also advises municipalities on stormwater and sewage issues, as well as represents clients in addressing Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) enforcement actions, in addition to securing necessary permits. He takes a holistic approach to understanding each client’s goals, crafting cost-effective and timely solutions tailored to their unique needs.

Marty has advised out-of-state gas pipeline contractors, national chain retailers, and IT companies to help them comply with Pennsylvania environmental requirements and to defend them in DEP enforcement actions. He is also a trained and experienced mediator in environmental and agricultural disputes.

Prior to moving to private practice, Marty spent more than two decades as a litigator at the Pennsylvania DEP. In his time at the DEP, he handled more than 250 appeals in state and federal courts and in front of the Pennsylvania Environmental Hearing Board. Marty handled numerous matters involving solid waste, clean water, HSCA/CERCLA, environmental remediation, storage tanks, and sewage planning. His cases resulted in tens of millions of dollars of environmental remediation and civil penalties throughout Pennsylvania. This experience provides Marty with a unique perspective when guiding private sector clients through enforcement actions and helping them obtain permits.

In addition to his time at the DEP, Marty has worked in federal government positions at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry in Atlanta, and with the Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest Laboratory in Washington state.

Marty is a recognized thought leader and speaker on environmental topics throughout Pennsylvania. He regularly addresses issues such as Pennsylvania’s Environmental Rights Amendment, Pennsylvania’s voluntary cleanup program, PFAS contamination issues, Chesapeake Bay and clean water issues, and municipal stormwater requirements. He also co-authored the chapter on Pennsylvania’s Land Recycling and Environmental Remediation Standards Act (Act 2) in the Pennsylvania Environmental Law & Practice, 10th Edition.

Beyond his professional environmental experience Marty holds leadership positions with a multitude of nonprofit organizations across central Pennsylvania and the Mid-Atlantic region. He is a former member of the Board of School Directors for the Lower Dauphin School District.

RECOGNITION
  • The Best Lawyers in America©, Environmental Law (2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025)

 

MEMBERSHIPS
  • York County Bar Association
  • Environmental and Energy Law Section, Pennsylvania Bar Association

 

PUBLICATIONS
  • “Land Recycling and Environmental Remediation Standards Act” co-author, “Pennsylvania Environmental Law and Practice, 10th Edition (May 2021)
  • “Liability Costs Loom as DEP Seeks Greater Regulation of PFAS Chemicals”, “The Authority,” the magazine of the Pennsylvania Municipal Authorities Association (August 2019)
  • “Land Recycling and Environmental Remediation Standards Act”, Pennsylvania Environmental Law and Practice, 9th edition
  • “What is the Risk of Personal Liability for Environmental Violations?”, York Legal Record (March 2019)
  • “PA Environmental Constitutional Law: It’s a New Ballgame”, The Legal Intelligencer (July 2018)
  • “Pipeline Construction, Environmental Compliance Can Co-Exist”, Pipeline & Gas Journal (May 2018)
  • “Creating the Right Environment for an Environmental Mediation”, Pennsylvania Bar Association Alternative Dispute Resolution Committee (November 2017)
  • “Mediating Environmental Disputes: A Necessity in Today’s Political Climate”, The Legal Intelligencer (January 2017)
  • “It’s Time to Get DEP Off of Its Subsistence Diet”, PennLive (December 2016)

 

PRESENTATIONS
  • “How Environmental Requirements Can Wreck the Land Development Process”, Lancaster Bar Association’s 2024 Municipal, Zoning, and Environmental Law Summit (November 2024)
  • “”Legal Landscape of Land Application: Biosolids and Food Processing Waste”, Penn State Center for Agricultural and Shale Law’s Pennsylvania Agricultural Law Symposium (September 2024)
  • “Federal and State Nutrient Reduction Strategies and Plans”, HalfMoon Education  Inc. webinar (March 2024)
  • “What’s New with PFAS? Federal and State Developments”, Pennsylvania Bar Institute webinar (December 2022)
  • “COVID-19 Vaccines: The Impact on the Logistics Industry”, Barley Snyder webinar (January 2021)
  • “COVID-19 Vaccines: The Impact on Higher Education”, Barley Snyder webinar (January 2021)
  • “COVID-19 Vaccines: The Impact on the Hospitality Industry”, Barley Snyder webinar (January 2021)
  • “COVID-19 Vaccine: The Impact on the Food & Agribusiness Industry”, Barley Snyder webinar (December 2020)
  • “COVID-19 Vaccine: The Impact on Health Care and Long Term Care”, Barley Snyder webinar (December 2020)
  • “Getting Your Business Back to Business Webinar Part 2”, Barley Snyder Webinar Series (May 2020)
  • “The Legal Implications: Re-opening Your Business In Defiance of the Governor’s Order Webinar”, Barley Snyder Webinar Series (May 2020)
  • “Getting Your Business Back to Business Webinar Part 1”, Barley Snyder Webinar Series (April 2020)
  • “State Constitutions and the Environment: A Watershed Comparison”, Chesapeake Bay Commission meeting (January 2020)
  • “PFAS – Regulation, Liabilities and Potential Cost Recovery”, Pennsylvania Bar Institute (July 2019)
  • “PA’s Right to Know Law: What You Need to Know”, Society of Women Environmental Professionals (April 2019)
  • “State and Local Regulatory Obstacles to Composting: How to Manage the Regulators”, Compost2019, U.S. Composting Council (January 2019)
  • “Managing Regulatory Obstacles: Getting What You Need from DEP”, Appalachian Pipelines Association (December 2018)
  • “Managing Regulatory Obstacles: Getting What You Need from DEP”, Pennsylvania Municipal Authorities Association 76th Annual Conference and Trade Show (September 2018)
  • “Environmental Ethics (According to the Lorax and the Runaway Bunny)”, Society of Women Environmental Professionals (May 2018)
  • “The Impact of PA’s Rejuvenated Environmental Rights Amendment on Environmental Protection”, Keystone Coldwater Conference (February 2018)
  • “The Rejuvenated Environmental Rights Amendment: What It Means for Pennsylvania Businesses and Municipalities”, York County Bar Association (January 2018)
  • “How to get What You Want from DEP (Or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Department)”, PA Chamber of Business and Industry Fall Environmental Conferences (Fall 2017)
  • “Municipal Separate Storm Sewer Systems”, Municipal Law Colloquium, Pennsylvania Bar Institute (June 2017)
  • “The Chesapeake Bay: What Ails It and What is Being Done About It”, Lancaster County Bar Association (July 2016)

 

OTHER PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
  • U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
  • Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry
  • Battelle Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
  • Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection

 

Melanie Albert Lehman

Melanie Lehman is the general counsel of a privately held manufacturing company. Prior to this position, her practice included representation of clients in business matters, review and negotiation of contracts, representing clients in asset and stock sales and purchases and counseling business owners and managers with transactions, contracts, commercial matters and financing. She has represented lenders and borrowers in commercial loans and Uniform Commercial Code Article 9 issues. Melanie advised clients on entity selection and with governing documents, such as partnership agreements, shareholders agreements and operating agreements. She has participated in numerous seminars and panel discussions dealing with commercial and business issues.

Finance
Melanie has represented lenders and borrowers in many types of loan transactions, including secured and unsecured facilities, participated and syndicated loans, IDOTs, real estate acquisition and construction loans and tax-exempt financing. 

Mergers and Acquisitions 
Melanie has represented clients in business purchases and sales, both stock and assets, with deal values ranging in size from approximately $1 million to more than $100 million. She has assisted clients from the confidentiality agreement and letter of intent stage, through due diligence and negotiation of the purchase agreement to the closing.  

Business Law 
Melanie often served clients in an “outside general counsel” role by providing general business legal advice, risk management, contract review and drafting and coordination of legal services in other areas. She regularly advised clients in entity selection, governing documents and terms and conditions of sale.

RECOGNITIONS
  • The Best Lawyers in America®, Corporate Law (2022, 2023, 2024, 2025) Mergers and Acquisitions Law (2024, 2025)
  • Central Penn Business Journal (Forty Under 40, 2004)
MEMBERSHIPS
  • York County Bar Association, former board member
  • Pennsylvania Bar Association
  • American Bar Association

John L. Janick

A love of motorsports and all things cars drew John into the world of mechanical and electrical engineering. His passion for the law surrounding the inventions that made cars go faster more safely brought him into intellectual property law. John is one of the many members of our Intellectual Property Practice Group whose real world experience – particularly his development of electrical and mechanical components – prepared him to make the jump into a career as a patent attorney.

In more than a decade as an attorney certified with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, John has worked in drafting and prosecuting domestic and international patent applications in mechanical and electrical arts. He’s also worked in highly technical fields such as communications systems, analog/digital circuits, radar/sonar systems, semiconductors, automotive components, digital imaging devices and optics.

In addition to patent preparation and prosecution, John’s practice includes preparing patentability, invalidity and non-infringement opinions, client counseling and trademark and copyright registration. He also has experience preparing requests for proceedings before the USPTO and prosecuting patent matters in front of boards such as the International Trade Commission.

John continues his love of motorsports on the amateur level, and he volunteers as a performance driving instructor for automobile clubs such as the National Auto Sport Association, Sports Car Club of America and Porsche Club of America. You can usually find him enjoying the outdoors, be it skiing in the winter or running and biking in the summer. Or, you may find him in the outdoors spending time with his two young children. 

MEMBERSHIPS
  • American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA)
  • Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE)
  • Pennsylvania Bar Association

Joseph E. Erb Jr.

Joseph Erb is part of Barley Snyder’s Real Estate and Litigation practice groups. He is a member of the American Bar Association, the Pennsylvania Bar Association, and the York County Bar Association. He clerked for the Honorable John T. Miller of the York County Court of Common Pleas. Attorney Erb is member of St. Matthew Lutheran Church of Hanover; a past board member of the Hanover Red Cross; a past board member of the Battlefield Preservation Society of Gettysburg, and a past board member of the York County S.P.C.A. 

Prior to law school and the practice of law, Joseph worked as a mixed gas tender/diver offshore throughout the oilfields of the Gulf of Mexico. He still continues nautical pursuits enjoying recreational scuba diving and sailing with friends. 

MEMBERSHIPS
  • York County Bar Association
  • Pennsylvania Bar Association
  • American Bar Association

Robert J. Tribeck

Rob is counsel at the firm and serves as Chief Legal Officer of PAM Heath, a central Pennsylvania-based health care system that owns and operates more than 80 hospitals throughout the United States. He is responsible for all legal operations associated with PAM Health including compliance and regulatory, litigation, business development and contracting, and employment issues.

Rob has served as lead counsel in business litigation of all types, from small corporate claims to “bet-the-company” litigation. He regularly represented clients in complex litigation, including employment, intellectual property and corporate governance disputes.  In addition, he has represented business and governmental entities in all aspects of employment law, from day-to-day human resource issues to drafting handbooks and employment agreements to litigating all aspects of employment discrimination, wage and hour, and FMLA claims.

RECOGNITIONS
  • Best Lawyers “Lawyer of the Year” in Harrisburg, 2020, Litigation – Intellectual Property
  • Federal Bar Association, Middle District of Pennsylvania, president (2017-2018)
  • The Best Lawyers in America©, Litigation – Intellectual Property (2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025)
  • Pennsylvania Super Lawyers, Rising Star
  • Central Penn Business Journal, “40 Under 40” (2008)
MEMBERSHIPS
  • Pennsylvania Bar Association
  • Dauphin County Bar Association
  • Federal Bar Association, Middle District Chapter, board of directors
  • American Health Lawyers Association
PUBLICATIONS
  • “The Impact of Cyberculture on Administrative Litigation,” 6th Annual Administrative Law Symposium for the Pennsylvania Bar Institute (2001)
  • “The Practitioner’s Guide to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure,” co-author, Recent Developments in Federal Practice (1995, 1998)
  • “Rule 68: Awakening a Sleeping Giant,” co-author, 65 Geo. Wash. L. Rev. 379 (1997)
  • “Practice Tips for Litigating in Federal Court,” co-author, 68 Pennsylvania Bar Association Q.1 (January 1997)
  • “Rule 11: Focus on Sanctions,” co-author, Vol. 2, No. 3, The Middle District Reporter 6 (Fall 1996)
  • “The Nuances of Rule 26,” co-author, Vol. 2, No.3, The Middle District Reporter 5 (Summer 1996)
  • “Cracking the Doctrinal Wall of Chapman v. Barney: A New Diversity Test for Limited Partnerships and Limited Liability Companies,” 5 Widener J. Pub. L. 89 (1995)
  • “Franklin v. Gwinnett County Public Schools: Bursting the Bubble of Sexual Discrimination in Education,” 19 Ohio No. U.L. Rev. 817 (1993)

Robert M. Frankhouser

Bob Frankhouser is a member of the firm’s Education, Employment and Labor Law practice groups. He provides advice and representation to educational entities both as a general solicitor and as special counsel. In addition, Bob counsels employers on employment issues with special emphasis on labor union matters.

Bob’s legal career has been fueled by a dedication to creating innovative solutions for the unique challenges his clients encounter. During his nearly 50 years in practice, he has represented school districts in many employment and construction matters. In addition, Bob serves as the solicitor of record for a variety of educational entities, providing guidance on governance, general business issues and labor relations matters.

He also has years of experience in labor/management relations, negotiating for and providing counsel to the firm’s public school district clients on collective bargaining agreements. Furthermore, he has litigated a wide variety of labor disputes for both the public and private employers he has represented.

MEMBERSHIPS
  • Lancaster Bar Association
  • Pennsylvania Bar Association
RECOGNITIONS
  • The Best Lawyers in America®, Construction Law (2024, 2025)

Lori McElroy

Government tax regulations are constantly changing, and Lori McElroy’s experience as a member of Barley Snyder’s Tax Practice Group has given her an intimate understanding of the financial restrictions that can slow a business down, and how to rectify them. She works to solve complex governmental regulations and restrictions for qualified retirement plans from both an implementation and operation standpoint, and has experience with corporate and individual tax issues surrounding business formations and reorganizations. Lori also has experience in working with the Internal Revenue Service in defense of qualified plans as well as for individual clients and entities in tax controversies.

Lori has helped the firm carve out the niche of working with companies in converting to the very popular but also very complex employee stock ownership plans (ESOP). She also works in the areas of employees benefits when it comes to nonqualified deferred compensation, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), executive compensation, qualified plan audits from the U.S. Department of Labor as well as charitable giving.

Lori is also fundamentally involved in various aspects of estate planning and wealth management, as well as the implementation and operation of a variety of charitable trusts, as well as helping individuals in other areas of charitable giving. She also regularly advises public charities and private foundations on corporate and tax matters.

MEMBERSHIPS
  • Estate Planning Council of Central Pennsylvania
  • Dauphin County Bar Association
RECOGNITIONS
  • The Best Lawyers in America®, Business Organizations (including LLCs and Partnerships) (2024), Nonprofit / Charities Law, Tax Law (2025)

Sarah Rubright McCahon

When most people think of estate planning, they immediately think about a will. But Sarah, a member of the firm’s Trusts & Estates Practice Group, understands the complexity of a complete estate plan to ensure that a person’s wishes are carried out, which goes much further than a will.

While she has helped many clients draft their wills, she is also qualified at developing comprehensive estate plans and has a broad array of experience with estate and trust administration. This area of her practice includes:

– Drafting of wills
– Drafting of power of attorney documents
– Drafting health care power of attorney documents and living wills
– Trust creation
– Trust administration
– Special needs trust establishment

    Clients working with Sarah can expect a thoughtful, inclusive approach that encompasses the full picture of their needs – paired with open communication and timely, reliable responses.

    Her work often takes her to Orphans’ Court, where she assists clients regarding the intricacies of special needs trust administration and guardianships of the person and of the estate. Those are legal tools that allow a person or entity to make decisions for another person of any age who is incapacitated or has certain special needs. Sarah’s elder law and special needs planning practice is focused on preserving dignity and autonomy for vulnerable individuals and their families. She offers guidance on long-term care planning, Medicaid eligibility, guardianships, and planning strategies tailored to individuals with disabilities, with compassion and deep knowledge of the legal landscape.

    Sarah is also a member of the firm’s Business Practice Group. In her business practice, Sarah deals primarily with the needs of nonprofit corporations, including religious entities and youth sports organizations. Her work advising nonprofit corporations includes:

    – Entity formation
    – Compliance
    – Bylaw review
    – Real estate transactions
    – Asset acquisitions
    – Dissolutions

      Sarah and her husband Brian live in Birdsboro with their daughters Maggie and Gracie. Her family can often be found enjoying the outdoors while camping in central Pennsylvania or spending time at the Jersey shore.

      MEMBERSHIPS
      • Berks Estate Planning Council, Board member
      • Dauphin County Bar Association
      • Schuylkill County Bar Association
      • Berks County Bar Association
      • Pennsylvania Bar Association
      • Pennsylvania Association of Elder Law Attorneys
      PRESENTATIONS
      • “Financial Planning, Assigning Beneficiaries and Becoming Knowledgeable on Important Forms” – Panelist, Greater Reading Chamber Alliance Women2Women Event (June 2023)
      • “Attorneys’ Duties to Protect Client Data”, Lancaster Bar Association Webinar (June 2020)
      • “COVID-19 Estate Planning Opportunities”, Herbein + Company Webinar (May 2020)
      • “Board Governance” Leadership Berks County (November 2012-18)
      • Transactional Law; Berks County Bar Association Law Explorer Post (January 2012)
      • “Entity Selection” Greater Reading Chamber of Commerce Small Business Summit (April 2011)
      • The Struggle of Punitive Damages in Arbitration: How to Get What you Want Out of an Arbitration; The Journal of American Arbitration
      OTHER PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
      • Legal intern for the Honorable John E. Jones III of the U.S. District Court, Middle District of Pennsylvania, 2004.
      RECOGNITIONS
      • The Best Lawyers in America®, Business Organizations (including LLCs and Partnerships) (2024)
      • Lehigh Valley Business “Women of Influence” Honoree (2023)

      W. Jeffrey Sidebottom

      Jeff Sidebottom is the former chair the Workers’ Compensation Law Group and focuses his practice on advising clients regarding workers’ compensation issues and representing clients in related litigation. When providing counsel on workers’ compensation matters, he works closely with other members of the firm’s Employment Law Group to provide coordinated full-service risk management advice for the benefit of the firm’s clients.

      Jeff has handled workers’ compensation cases throughout Pennsylvania for clients, including self-insured employers, insurance carriers and third-party administrators, as well as businesses such as hospitals, food processing companies, manufacturers and printing companies. Jeff has aggressively defended cases for businesses he represents to its final conclusion. When defending employers or businesses in workers’ compensation matters, Jeff believes it is absolutely essential to take a team approach in working and communicating on a regular basis with the insurer, third party administrator and representatives of the employer.

      On many occasions, a workers’ compensation claimant has other employment-related issues with the client so Jeff takes a team-oriented approach with other members of the Employment Law Group to provide a coordinated approach while dealing with problem employees which can include FLMA, ADA, or termination issues. This coordinated advice approach is very helpful to clients when dealing with difficult or problem employees.

      During his 45 years representing employers in the workers’ compensation field, Jeff has become very aware of the interests of businesses to reduce workers’ compensation costs, including litigation expenses. He has become an advocate for the interests of businesses dealing with the workers’ compensation system, both at the state and local levels. To this end, Jeff serves as a member of the Pennsylvania Chamber of Commerce’s Workers’ Compensation Executive Committee, which provides advice to the Chamber on possible legislative initiatives affecting the workers’ compensation system. Jeff has also been involved with the Lancaster Chamber of Commerce Workers’ Compensation Work Group which meets on a regular basis to address common issues of employers in Lancaster County dealing with workers’ compensation matters.

      In addition, Jeff has served on the editing committee for the Pennsylvania Chamber’s Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation Guide, a useful and informative book for businesses on how to deal with the workers’ compensation system in the state. Jeff authored an article that has been very useful for employers by providing a guide for understanding and dealing with the workers’ compensation litigation process and providing tips on how to increase the likelihood of a successful litigation outcome.

      MEMBERSHIPS
      • American Bar Association
      • Pennsylvania Bar Association
      • Lancaster Bar Association, co-chair of the Workers’ Compensation Practice Section
      PRESENTATIONS
      • “Workers’ Compensation: The Role of Medical Evidence in Litigated Cases”, Barley Snyder Employment Law Seminar (April 2015)
      • “Workers’ Compensation: The Role of the Occupational Medicine Physician”, Barley Snyder Employment Seminar, (May 2014)
      • “Workers’ Compensation: Aggravations of Degenerative Conditions”, Barley Snyder Employment Seminar (May 2013)
      • “Workers’ Compensation: Repetitive Injuries”, Barley Snyder Employment Seminar (May 2012)
      • Faculty, Pennsylvania Bar Institute’s advanced workers’ compensation course, “Tough Problems in Workers’ Compensation Cases”
      • Member of editing committee for the Workers’ Compensation Guide, published by the Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry
      • Seminar Speaker for programs dealing with workers’ compensation issues, the Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry, Lancaster Chamber of Commerce Workers’ Compensation Work Group

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