William Shaw Stickman IV was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1979 and grew up in the Mount Washington neighborhood of the city. Judge Stickman graduated as valedictorian from Our Lady of the Sacred Heart High School. He attended Duquesne University where he majored in the classics/ancient languages. Judge Stickman received his Bachelor of the Arts degree in 2002, summa cum laude, and was awarded the McAnulty College of Liberal Arts’ General Excellence Award (valedictorian).

Judge Stickman attended Duquesne University School of Law where he was a member of the Law Review. He graduated in 2005.

Judge Stickman began his legal career as a litigation associate in the Pittsburgh offices of Reed Smith LLP. He next served as a judicial law clerk to Chief Justice Ralph J. Cappy, of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. Judge Stickman returned to the practice of law as an associate, and later a partner, of the Pittsburgh litigation boutique firm of Del Sole Cavanaugh Stroyd LLC. In practice, Judge Stickman represented a diverse array of clients in state and federal trial and appellate courts throughout the United States.

In 2011 Judge Stickman was appointed by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court to serve on the Pennsylvania Civil Procedural Rules Committee—a panel of lawyers and judges charged with aiding the Court in reviewing and revising Pennsylvania’s unique Rules of Civil Procedure. The Court appointed Judge Stickman to be Chair of the Committee in 2015.

Judge Stickman is active in legal scholarship. He is the author of a peer-reviewed publication on the ancient King’s Bench Jurisdiction of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. He has served as a frequent guest lecturer on topics relating to legal procedure and history.

Judge Stickman was nominated to serve as a Judge of the Western District of Pennsylvania on May 13, 2019. He was confirmed by the Senate on July 31, 2019, and received his commission on August 5, 2019.

Judge Stickman is married to Leanne Stickman, Pharm.D. and has four children.