Jack Anthony Panella (born May 4, 1955) is an American lawyer who is the President Judge of the Superior Court of Pennsylvania. He is a member of the Democratic Party. Prior to his election to the Superior Court, he was a Judge on the Court of Common Pleas of Northampton County, Pennsylvania. Personal Panella attended St. John's University and graduated in 1977 with a B.S. degree in Accounting. He then received his J.D. degree in 1980 from The Catholic University of America Columbus School of Law, where he received the American Jurisprudence award from The Lawyers Co-Operative Publishing Company for the highest academic grade in Contracts. Following graduation, Panella was a judicial law clerk in the Court of Common Pleas of Northampton County, Pennsylvania. Following his clerkship, from 1982 to 1991, he maintained his law practice as a sole practitioner. As an assistant county solicitor for Northampton County, he represented the Department of Human Services, including the Children and Youth Services Division, the Mental Health Division, and the Area Agency on Aging. In May 1987, he was the youngest attorney in the history of Northampton County to be selected as the County Solicitor. In 2002, he was selected to join the United States Army National Guard to visit United States troops in Germany and Bosnia. The trip was a cooperative effort of the 28th Infantry Division with the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR) Committee. In 2005, Panella received the honor of "Cavaliere" by the Republic of Italy, which is awarded to individuals of Italian descent living abroad who have provided outstanding leadership and service to the positive image of Italy and Italians. On September 27, 2019, Panella received the Outstanding Service Award from the Justinian Society of Philadelphia. Judicial career Panella's election to appellate court in 2003 followed twelve years as a trial judge. He was appointed to the Northampton County Bench in 1991 by Governor Robert P. Casey, and became the second youngest judge in the history of Northampton County. In 1993 he was elected to a full ten-year term commencing January 1, 1994. He presided over civil, criminal and family law cases and was also the Administrative Judge for Asbestos Litigation, which involved complex mass tort litigation. While a trial judge, he was a member of the Pennsylvania Conference of State Trial Judges. He was Chair of the Commonwealth Partners Program, where he participated in