LANCASTER, Pa., June 5, 2025 — “Super Lawyers” has named 16 Saxton & Stump attorneys to its annual Super Lawyers and Rising Stars lists in Pennsylvania and South Carolina. Super Lawyers is a rating service for outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement, and each state has its own list of deserving attorneys.

The 16 Saxton & Stump attorneys recognized are:

James W. Saxton, shareholder and CEO at Saxton & Stump, has now made the list for his 14th consecutive year and 15th year overall in the practice area of Civil Litigation: Defense. He is a member of the firm’s Healthcare, Healthcare Litigation, Medical Device and Technology, Investigations and Criminal Defense, and Risk Management and Quality Assurance groups. Saxton has been named to the Central Penn Business Journal’s “Power 100” list from 2021 to 2025 as one of the region’s top professional, political, and economic leaders who hold positions that give them the ability to shape the region’s communities and influence its quality of life. CPBJ also named Saxton to its 2025 “Icon Honors” list, recognizing his decades of leadership, business success, and service to the community. He is rated AV Preeminent by the Martindale-Hubbell rating service and has been named to the “Best Lawyers in America®” list from 2016 to 2025.

Mark E. Cedrone has made the Super Lawyers list every year since 2005 – 21 straight years – in the Criminal Defense: White Collar practice. He is the co-chair of the Saxton & Stump Investigations and Criminal Defense Group, and Best Lawyers in America®also recognized Cedrone in the Criminal Defense: White Collar practice from 2023 to 2025.

Rory O. Connaughton has been a mainstay on the Super Lawyers list each year since 2014 in the practice areas of Business & Corporate and Business Litigation. Connaughton, a shareholder at Saxton & Stump in its Lancaster office, is a member of the firm’s Commercial Litigation and Labor and Employment groups.

Steven D. Costello was included in the inaugural Pennsylvania Super Lawyers list in 2004 and has made the list in the last three years in the category of Personal Injury Medical Malpractice: Defense practice. In addition to Best Lawyers in America® naming Costello “Lawyer of the Year” in 2022 and 2024 for Medical Malpractice – Defendants, he also was included in the Medical Malpractice Law – Defendants and Professional Malpractice Law – Defendants practices from 2017 to 2025. Costello is a shareholder and the co-chair of the firm’s Healthcare Litigation Group in the Malvern office.  

Elizabeth “Beth” J. Palmer made her debut on the South Carolina Super Lawyers list in 2021 and has been named to the list each year since then in the Business Litigation practice. She is a shareholder at Saxton & Stump who had been named to the South Carolina Super Lawyers Rising Stars List from 2013 to 2020, and Best Lawyers in America® has included her on its Commercial Litigation list since 2021. Palmer is based in the firm’s Charleston office and is a member of the firm’s Commercial Litigation, Trusts and Estates, and Labor and Employment groups.

Alice F. Paylor also made the list in South Carolina as a Business Litigation attorney and has been selected to Super Lawyers from 2009 to 2025. Best Lawyers in America®named her the “Lawyer of the Year” in the “Bet-the-Company Litigation” category in 2019, and she has been recognized on the Best Lawyers list each year since 2011. Paylor is a shareholder in the firm’s Charleston office in the Labor and Employment, Education, and Commercial Litigation groups.

M. Kelly Tillery is also a longtime honoree on the Pennsylvania Super Lawyers list, with 2025 marking his 21st consecutive year on the list for the practice of Intellectual Property Litigation. He joined Saxton & Stump in 2022 as a shareholder in its Philadelphia office, and Best Lawyers in America® named him “Lawyer of the Year” for Litigation – Intellectual Property on its 2023 list. From 2011 to 2025, Best Lawyers in America® also recognized him in its Litigation – Intellectual Property and Litigation – Patent practices in the Philadelphia area. He is a member of the firm’s Intellectual Property, Intellectual Property Litigation, Commercial Litigation, and Franchising, Licensing and Distribution groups.

Joshua J. Voss has been named to the Pennsylvania Super Lawyers list for the first time in 2025 after being named to the Super Lawyers Rising Stars list from 2016 to 2019. He was honored for his work in Appellate, Business Litigation, and Civil Litigation: Defense. Voss is a shareholder in the firm’s Appellate and Post-Trial Advocacy, Commercial Litigation, and Regulatory and Government Affairs groups in the firm’s Lancaster office. 

Coulter D. Ebbert made his Super Lawyers debut on last year’s Pennsylvania Rising Stars list in the Personal Injury Medical Malpractice: Defense practice, and he is again recognized in 2025. He is an associate in the firm’s Healthcare, Healthcare Litigation, Commercial Litigation, Environmental, Workplace Safety and Utilities, and Attorney and Judicial Ethics and Discipline groups in the Harrisburg office.

Emily C. Ford makes her debut on the South Carolina Super Lawyers Rising Stars list this year in the Family Law practice. She is an associate in Saxton & Stump’s Charleston, S.C., office and is a member of the firm’s Commercial Litigation and Family Law groups.  

Harlan W. Glasser has been recognized on the Pennsylvania Rising Stars list in the Personal Injury Medical Malpractice: Defense practice in 2024 and 2025. He previously made the list from 2017 to 2019 during his first tenure with Saxton & Stump. He is part of the firm’s Labor and Employment, Investigations and Criminal Defense, Healthcare Litigation, and Appellate and Post-Trial Advocacy groups.

Lauren A. Green has been named a Pennsylvania Rising Star for the fourth time in her career in the practice area of Personal Injury Medical Malpractice: Defense. She is a senior counsel in the firm’s Malvern office, and for the past three years, Best Lawyers in America® has named her to its Medical Malpractice Law – Defendants “Ones to Watch” list. Green is part of the firm’s Franchising, Licensing and Distribution, Healthcare Litigation, Risk Management and Quality Assurance, Commercial Litigation, Intellectual Property, and Intellectual Property Litigation groups.

Bijan K. Ghom made his debut on the 2022 South Carolina Super Lawyers Rising Stars list, and he has now made the Rising Stars list for a fourth straight year in Business Litigation practice. Best Lawyers in America® has honored Ghom on its Ones to Watch list for Commercial Litigation for five straight years and its Corporate Law list the last two years. A senior counsel in Saxton & Stump’s Charleston office, he is a member of the Business and Corporate, Trusts and Estates, Commercial Litigation, Labor and Employment, Intellectual Property, and Intellectual Property Litigation groups. 

Rebecca Johnson Barksdale has made the Pennsylvania Rising Stars list for a fourth consecutive year in the practice areas of Civil Litigation, Construction Litigation, and Insurance Coverage. She is a senior counsel in the Saxton & Stump Pittsburgh office, and is a member of the Commercial Litigation, Insurance, and Construction groups. 

Franqui-Ann J. Raffaele was named to the Pennsylvania Rising Stars list for the first time in 2025 for her work in Estate Planning and Probate. She is a member of the Saxton & Stump Senior Care, Trusts and Estates, and Tax and Tax Controversy groups working out of the firm’s Malvern office. 

Shohin Vance made the Pennsylvania Rising Stars list for the first time in 2024, and now has been named to the list for a second consecutive year. Vance, a shareholder in the Saxton & Stump Malvern office, made the list for his work in Criminal Defense: White Collar. He is a member of the firm’s Appellate and Post-Trial Advocacy, Commercial Litigation, and Regulatory and Government Affairs groups.

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