about

Our Mission

For over 35 years, the Federal Criminal Law Committee for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania (operating initially as the Federal Bar Association, Criminal Law Committee, Philadelphia Chapter) has been dedicated to addressing issues concerning criminal defense in the federal courts. The Committee’s mission is to facilitate the fair, speedy and effective administration of criminal justice.

Membership
and Governance

The Committee is a non-profit volunteer bar organization in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania that holds a bi-annual event celebrating the Bill of Rights and presents CLE seminars in Philadelphia. The Committee accredits its CLE seminars only in Pennsylvania.

The Committee was established in 1988, and is composed of members of the bar other than prosecutors and members of the judiciary. Attorneys may become members upon payment of applicable dues.

The Committee is governed by its Officers and Executive Committee. The Officers consist of the Chair, Vice Chair, Secretary and Treasurer, who are elected for one-year terms by the full membership. Executive Committee members are appointed by the Chair of the Committee.

On January 3, 2017, the Committee filed its Articles of Incorporation with the Pennsylvania Department of State as a domestic non-profit corporation. A copy of the IRS letter may be found by clicking on this link: FCLC Letter of Tax Exempt Status.

A copy of the Committee’s Articles of Incorporation may be found by clicking on this link: FCLC Articles of Incorporation.

On July 5, 2017, the IRS advised the Committee of its exempt status under Internal Revenue Code Section 501(c)(6).

View the Committee’s 2024 Form 990-N.

On October 11, 2017, the current By-Laws of the Committee were adopted.

A copy of the Committee’s By-Laws may be found by clicking on this link: By-Laws.

Membership In
The Committee

To become a member of the Committee, create an account on this website, and then pay the annual dues based on the size of your practice, starting at $25 for public defenders and solo practitioners and ranging up to $150 for AmLaw 100 firms.

Become a Member

Brief History

In 1985, Stanley Weinberg, then Vice-Chairman of the Philadelphia Chapter of the Federal Bar Association asked Luther Weaver and Stan Shmukler to co-chair a seminar on the recently enacted Comprehensive Crime Control Act of 1984. That seminar was so successful that in 1988, when Weinberg became President of the Philadelphia Chapter, he requested that Stan Shmukler and Howard B. Klein create a Criminal Law Committee of the Philadelphia Chapter. The resulting establishment of the Committee in 1988 was publicized in the Legal Intelligencer.

Since that date, the Committee has become an established and important part of Philadelphia’s legal community. In nearly 35 years of its existence, the Committee has hosted innumerable continuing legal education seminars and events featuring prominent members of the defense bar, federal prosecutors, United States Probation Officers, Bureau of Prisons officials and federal judges at all levels speaking to legal issues relating to the administration of criminal justice in the federal courts. The Committee has issued reports and taken public positions on policy issues regarding criminal law. Since 1991, the Committee has held in even numbered years the Clifford Scott Green Bill of Rights Award Dinner to recognize a member of the bar for truly outstanding fidelity and service to the principles contained in the Bill of Rights.

2025 Officers Executive Committee Advisory Committee Past Awards Past Chairs