Barbara A. Podell

Barbara A. Podell is a shareholder at Berger Montague in Philadelphia and concentrates her practice on securities class action litigation. She works on complex investor disputes involving alleged securities fraud and corporate disclosures. Her role has included senior responsibility in major federal class actions, requiring detailed factual development, motion practice, discovery, and trial preparation. Her practice reflects long experience handling high-stakes litigation for investors in matters involving public companies and significant claimed losses.

Podell earned a J.D., magna cum laude, from Temple University Beasley School of Law, where she served as Editor-in-Chief of the Temple Law Quarterly and ranked among the top students in her graduating class. She received a B.A., cum laude, from the University of Pennsylvania with distinction in Art History. Before law school, she attended New York University’s Institute of Fine Arts and taught art history at Temple University.

Podell has served as a senior attorney in securities fraud class actions, including litigation involving CIGNA and the Pennsylvania State Employees’ Retirement System as lead plaintiff. That matter involved allegations that operational problems were concealed before a sharp stock-price decline. Her experience centers on developing complex securities claims, evaluating financial and corporate information, and advancing litigation through demanding pretrial stages on behalf of institutional and other investors.

Barbara A. Podell is admitted in Pennsylvania and before several federal courts, including the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and the Second and Third Circuit Courts of Appeals. Her long-standing securities practice combines academic strength, careful legal analysis, and experience with complicated class proceedings. She provides clients with focused advocacy in disputes where financial records, public disclosures, and procedural strategy require sustained attention and disciplined litigation judgment.

Law Office Affiliations

• Shareholder, Berger Montague
• Member, Pennsylvania Bar Association
• Chair, Leadership Annual Giving Committee, Philadelphia Museum of Art (2025-2027)
• Board Member, BalletX
• Co-Chair, 50th Annual Philadelphia Museum of Art Craft Show (2026)
• Chair, Lower Merion Conservancy (2007)
• Docent, The Barnes Foundation
• Volunteer Guide, Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Rodin Museum

Licensed State

• Pennsylvania

Education

• Temple University Beasley School of Law
  Juris Doctor (JD) (Magna Cum Laude)
• University of Pennsylvania
  Bachelor of Arts (BA) (Cum Laude)

Awards & Badges