Shareholders John Summers, Andrew Erdlen and Matthew Hamermesh successfully represented Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner in a high-profile litigation challenging the legality of unprecedented impeachment efforts by the state General Assembly.
In a 52-page majority opinion, the high court found that articles of impeachment approved by House Republicans had expired in 2022 and could not be carried over to the current legislative session. The decision also left intact the Commonwealth Court’s ruling that the articles of impeachment failed by even alleging that DA Krasner had engaged in conduct amounting to “misbehavior in office,” the Pennsylvania Constitutional requirement for impeachment.
“The Constitution simply does not textually permit the House and the Senate of a subsequent session of the General Assembly to take any further action on matters which the House or Senate of a prior session of the General Assembly may have begun, but not finished during that session,” Chief Justice Debra Todd wrote in the Sept. 26 opinion.
Justices Kevin Brobson, Kevin Dougherty and Daniel McCaffery did not participate in the ruling.
The team has represented the district attorney in his lawsuit from its inception, with John Summers arguing the case before the state Supreme Court in November. Krasner, who was elected to a second term in 2021, has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing, calling the impeachment an unlawful attempt by lawmakers to interfere with a locally held election.
Read more about the decision, which was covered by The Philadelphia Inquirer, The Legal Intelligencer, the Pennsylvania Capital-Star, the Associated Press, Law360, WHYY, NBC10 Philadelphia, CBS News Philadelphia and PhillyVoice.
