Practice areas: Civil Litigation, Insurance Coverage, Business Litigation; view more
Licensed in Pennsylvania since: 2020
Education: Duquesne University School of Law
Selected to Rising Stars: 2026 Call today:
412-944-2166
Free Consultation Hardin Thompson PC
437 Grant StreetPittsburgh, PA 15219 Visit website
Currently serving as a partner at Hardin Thompson PC in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Jacob Deane represents clients across Pittsburgh and Philadelphia. He concentrates his efforts on defending insured clients in general liability cases, which include simple negligence, premises liability and automobile liability. He additionally handles matters involving business litigation and employment law. Through his relentless efforts, he stays dedicated to providing quality legal representation, ensuring his clients receive personalized attention and effective solutions for their cases.
Before pursuing his law degree, Mr. Deane completed his undergraduate degree in politics and criminology from Saint Vincent College. He later enrolled at Thomas R. Kline School of Law of Duquesne University to further hone his advocacy skills. Upon graduating with a Juris Doctor, he was admitted to practice law in Pennsylvania. He is further licensed to appear before the U.S. District Court for the Western, Eastern and Middle Districts of Pennsylvania.
During law school, Mr. Deane served as a law clerk at a leading law firm, where he drafted motions, researched case law, analyzed insurance coverage, organized discovery materials and assisted trial attorneys with commercial and liability defense litigation. He also served as a judicial intern to Hon. Joy Flowers Conti at the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania and Hon. William Baughman at the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio. This federal experience greatly helped in enhancing his legal acumen and advocacy skills.
Among the several cases Mr. Deane has represented his clients in, he notably secured an appellate victory in 2024 by defending a Philadelphia Trial Court nonsuit judgment. Through skilled legal advocacy, he convinced the Superior Court of Pennsylvania that no legal error occurred, defeating a delivery driver's premises liability negligence claim involving a falling security door.
Practice areas
Civil Litigation: Defense, Insurance Coverage, Business Litigation, Construction Litigation: Business, Employment Litigation: DefenseFocus areas
Employment Discrimination, Employment Law - Employer, Insurance, Insurance Defense, Retaliation, Wrongful Termination
- 20% Civil Litigation: Defense
- 50% Insurance Coverage
- 10% Business Litigation
- 10% Construction Litigation: Business
- 10% Employment Litigation: Defense
First Admitted: 2020, Pennsylvania
Professional Webpage: https://www.hardinlawpc.com/attorney/deane-jacob-a/
Bar / Professional Activity
- Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Bar, 2020
Verdicts / Settlements (Case Results)
- Secured a directed verdict in favor of client, a local pizza shop and its landlords in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas. The case revolved around an alleged accident wherein a delivery driver claimed that an overhead metal security gate on the property fell on his head during a produce delivery, resulting in injury. During the trial, when examining the Plaintiff’s mechanical engineer, we objected to the engineer’s testimony, contending that his inability to opine on the precise cause of the gate’s fall, to a reasonable degree of mechanical certainty, warranted preclusion from testifying on causation. Following the court’s approval of our objection and the subsequent exclusion of the expert’s testimony, we promptly moved for a non-suit, highlighting that the Plaintiff was now unable to present evidence establishing causation. The Court, in response to our motion, granted a non-suit, leading to the dismissal of the case in favor of our clients. This outcome was a testament to our effective legal strategy and the successful challenge to the sufficiency of the Plaintiff’s evidence., 2023
- Successfully argued/defended an appeal before the Superior Court of Pennsylvania, who found in my client's favor and affirmed a Philadelphia County Trial Court’s Nonsuit Judgment, in a premises liability case. The Appellant, a delivery driver, alleged negligence after sustaining injuries when a shutter-style security door fell on him during a delivery. The Superior Court reviewed the Trial Court’s decisions and found no abuse of discretion or legal error, resulting in the affirmation of the Nonsuit Judgment., 2024
- Secured a defense jury verdict after a 9-day trial for our client, a security company and their security guards. The case revolved around an incident, where an individual gained access to a building that was secured by our clients, and injured the Plaintiff. We were able to successfully argue that our security guard clients were not negligent in their actions and as a matter of law, if the employee clients were not negligent, then the employer could not be deemed negligent under a theory of negligent hiring, retention and supervision., 2024
Educational Background
- Duquesne University School of Law, 2017-2020
- St. Vincent College, 2013-2017
Selections
- Rising Stars: 2026
