The Honorable ARTHUR J. SCHWAB was born in the North Hills area of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on December 7, 1946. Judge Schwab was nominated by President George W. Bush on January 24, 2002; confirmed by the United States Senate on September 13, 2002; and sworn-in to office on January 1, 2003. He took Senior Status effective January 1, 2018.

He graduated from North Hills High School in 1964 and Grove City College in 1968 (A.B. cum laude), and was awarded a J.D. at the University of Virginia School of Law in 1972. He was on the Editorial Board of the Virginia Law Review and Order of the Coif. Thereafter, he clerked for the Honorable Collins J. Seitz, then-Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit (1972-1973 term).   

He worked at Reed Smith LLP from 1973 to 1990 serving as the Deputy Head of the Litigation Group and the founding Chair of its TECHLEX (technology law) Group. He joined Buchanan Ingersoll Professional Corporation in the Fall of 1990 as Chair of Litigation (1990-1999) and then as Chief Counsel - Complex Litigation (2000 to 2002).   

During his thirty (30) years in private practice, he established a nation-wide litigation practice. He worked in the areas of trade secrets, confidential information, employment agreements (covenants-not-to-compete and confidentiality agreements), software copyright infringement, trademark, unfair competition and diversion of corporate opportunities.   

As part of his national litigation practice, Mr. Schwab was a frequent speaker at numerous seminars and conferences relating to trial strategies, damages, litigation ethics, evidence, transfer of technology, law and technology, trade secrets and employment agreements. He was quoted in numerous national and regional printed media and published several articles.   

He is past Chair of the Civil Litigation Section of the Pennsylvania Bar Association; past President of the American Inns of Court Pittsburgh Chapter; past member of the Board of Governors of the Academy of Trial Lawyers of Allegheny County; and past Chair of the Council of the Civil Litigation Section of the Allegheny County Bar Association.   

He is listed in the 2003-2004, 10th edition of The Best Lawyers in America for both business litigation and intellectual property law. He taught an Intellectual Property course at Grove City College from 2002-2014.

He co-authored Chapter 1, "Introduction to Federal Practice," Federal Civil Procedure Before Trial -- 3rd Circuit, American Inns of Court Series, Federal Practice Guide, Lawyers Cooperative Publishing Company (1996).  

He is the Court’s Co-Chair of the Joint Information Technology Committee; past Chair and member of the Security, Safety, and Space/Facilities Committee; member of the Criminal Case Management Committee; and past Chair of the Court’s Case Management/Electronic Case Files Committee and the Alternative Dispute Resolution Committee.   

He received the Conflict Resolution Day Award from the Mediation Council of Western Pennsylvania on October 18, 2012, due to his leadership and support of the Court’s ADR Program. He also received an Honorary Membership from the Federal Bar Association, Western Pennsylvania Chapter, on November 6, 2013, in recognition of his judicial accomplishments.   

He received recognition for his 25 years of faithful service as a member of the faculty of the National Trial Advocacy College at the University of Virginia School of Law, at the annual program of the College in early January of 2023. The Trial Advocacy College is recognized as the nation’s premier trial advocacy program for lawyers, which was co-founded by Professor Stephen A. Saltzburg, who is the director of the program.

Previously, as a trial attorney, he received The Honorable William J. Brennan, Jr., Award, at the College. The Award was presented to him by Justice Antonin Scalia, who taught the first year’s contracts law course (small group), at UVA School of Law, to Judge Schwab. The Brennan Award honorees are selected on the basis of (1) their outstanding skills as trial lawyers or as a member of the judiciary, and (2) their invaluable contributions to the Trial Advocacy College and the legal profession.

On May 18, 2018, he was elected Trustee Emeritus of the Board of Trustees of Grove City College, after
twenty-eight years of service as an active Trustee. He also was elected Secretary Emeritus -- only the second time in the 142 year history of the College that an officer of the Board of Trustees was so honored. These honors were bestowed on the 50th anniversary of Judge Schwab’s graduation from Grove City College. He is the longest serving Trustee of the College, having served as a member of the Board of Trustees during the administration of five different Presidents of the College.