HARRISBURG (Oct. 16, 2019) —Lee S. Piatt of Rosenn, Jenkins & Greenwald LLP in Wilkes-Barre is the recipient of the eighth annual Pennsylvania Bar Association (PBA) W. Edward Sell Business Lawyer Award, which will be presented at the 2019 Business Law Institute in Philadelphia, Nov. 21-22.
The late W. Edward Sell, the award’s namesake, was a driving force behind the enactment of business corporation law in Pennsylvania. Sell served as chair of the Title 15 Task Force of the PBA Corporation, Banking and Business Law Section. From 1966 to 1977, he served as dean of the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, where he was later appointed Distinguished Service Professor of Law.
Presented by the PBA Business Law Section, the W. Edward Sell Business Lawyer Award honors the contributions to the practice of business law at the highest level, either through the practice of law or through teaching. Recipients must have contributed to the statutory development of business law in Pennsylvania and to the PBA by working in leadership roles in the Business Law Section.
Piatt has practiced law in Northeastern Pa. for more than 36 years. A partner in the Business and Finance Department of his firm, he represents a diverse mix of businesses, individuals and nonprofit organizations in mergers and acquisitions, financing, corporate organization and governance, succession planning, owner disputes, and business and real estate transactions.
An active member of the PBA and its Business Law Section, Piatt was instrumental in the founding of the PBA Shale Energy Law Committee, serving as its first co-chair with PBA President Anne N. John. A former chair of the Business Law Section, he served for a number of years on its Section Council, as well as its Title 15 Committee, which drafts and revises the corporation and unincorporated association laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and the Legal Opinion Committee. Piatt worked on section task forces charged with writing Pennsylvania Corporate Laws, providing standards for issuance of legal opinions and proposing change to Pennsylvania Business Sales Tax Law. In addition, Piatt was involved in the creation of the Edward W. Sell Business Law Award and is a member of the section’s Privately-held Business Practice Committee.
Piatt is a frequent lecturer on various business law topics, including buying and selling a privately held business, choice of business entity and various limited liability entity issues, as well as the impact of shale energy on business and legal practice.
Piatt is chairman of the Elder Board of Fellowship Church and a member of the Northeastern Pennsylvania Industrial Resource Center. He has held numerous other leadership roles in the community, including serving on the boards of the United Way of the Wyoming Valley, Volunteers of America of Pennsylvania (twice past chair), RHC Management Corporation and others. He was a longtime Advisory Board member of both the King’s College Family Business Forum and the Wilkes University Family Business Alliance.
Piatt received a B.A. from William and Mary College and a J.D. from University of Pennsylvania Law School.
The PBA Business Law Section consists of approximately 850 licensed Pennsylvania lawyers supporting the advancement of business practice through practical legal education, legislative drafting, and communication and networking within the bar.
Founded in 1895, the Pennsylvania Bar Association strives to promote justice, professional excellence and respect for the law; improve public understanding of the legal system; facilitate access of legal services; and serve the lawyer members of the state’s largest organized bar association.