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  • Joseph A. Cullen, Jr.

    Joseph A. Cullen, Jr.

    Shareholder

    Joseph A. Cullen, Jr. is a Shareholder and Member of Stark & Stark’s Accident & Personal Injury Group focusing on the area of catastrophic personal injuries and wrongful death.

    Joseph concentrates his practice in the representation of Plaintiffs in all aspects of personal injury litigation including motor vehicle accidents, motorcycle accidents, trucking accidents, bus accidents, commercial vehicle accidents, bicycle accidents, pedestrian accidents, dram shop litigation, premise liability litigation, and construction accidents.

    Joseph is an experienced and skilled trial attorney litigating both state court and federal court cases throughout the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. He is often called upon by other attorneys to handle complex catastrophic personal injury and wrongful death cases. In addition to personal injury litigation, Joseph serves as Solicitor to the Bucks County Office of the Controller. In that capacity, he provides legal services to the Controller of Bucks County, on a wide array of legal issues.

    Joseph has served as a lecturer and presenter on a broad range of legal topics for organizations including Johnson Kendall Johnson Risk Management, LLC, the Bucks County Bar Association, the Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Villanova University School of Law, Gwynedd Mercy College, The University of Pennsylvania, and Arcadia University.

    Joseph was appointed by the President Judge of Philadelphia County to serve as a Judge Pro Tem to assist the courts in resolving civil litigations in the area of personal injury law. In January 2017, he was appointed by Senator Patrick J. Toomey (PA) to serve on the selection committee for United States Attorney and United States Marshal for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

    Joseph is a fixture of Bucks County politics and government affairs, having served in leadership roles for both the Republican Party in Bucks County and Pennsylvania. Since 2012, he has served as the Vice Chairman of the Bucks County Republican Committee. He also serves as a member of the Republican State Committee. He has served as an adviser and legal counsel to candidates running in state and local elections.

    Joseph is an active member of the Bucks County Community. He was a member of the Bucks County Planning Commission from 2008 to 2015. Joseph served on the Board of Directors of KenCrest Services, the largest provider of community-based services and support to individuals with intellectual disabilities, from 2011 to 2015.

    From 2013 to 2021, Joseph served as a member of the Board of Directors of the Pennsylvania Convention Center Authority (PCCA) as a representative of Bucks County. On the PCCA, he served on the Customer Satisfaction Agreement, Legal Affairs, Administration and Management, and Capital Approvement Committees.

    In February of 2022, Joseph was appointed to the Board of PA Rush Soccer, a non-profit organization in Central Bucks County with 1,300 local youth and adult players from the Philadelphia metropolitan area. In addition to serving as a board member, he will act as legal counsel to the organization.

    Bar/Court Admissions

    • Pennsylvania
    • New Jersey 
    • U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Pennsylvania 
    • U.S. District Court, Middle District of Pennsylvania
    • U.S. District Court, District of New Jersey

    Education

    • J.D., Villanova University School of Law, 1998
      • Villanova Environmental Law Journal
    • B.A., St. Bonaventure University, 1995

    Representative Experience

    *Results may vary depending on your particular facts and legal circumstances*

    Mr. Cullen has extensive experience in both state and federal courts with catastrophic injury litigation. He has served as lead counsel or co-counsel on a series of major jury trials and settlements. Among them:

    • A $22,459,353 settlement for the victim of a catastrophic commercial vehicle accident;
    • Zurich American Ins. Co. v. Budzowski, 95 A.3d 339 (Pa. Super. 2014);
    • Fetherolf v. Torosian, 759 A.2d 391 (Pa. Super 2002);
    • A $4,500,000* settlement in a motorcycle accident case involving the death of a 28-year-old;
    • A $2,350,000* settlement in a trucking accident case involving the death of a 54-year-old;
    • A $2,250,000* settlement in a trucking accident case for a 27-year-old who sustained severe orthopedic injuries;
    • A $1,935,000* settlement in a construction accident case;
    • A $1,500,000* settlement in a psychiatric malpractice case in which a teenager committed suicide following treatment at a psychiatric facility;
    • A $1,350,000* settlement in a medical malpractice case on behalf of women against a vascular surgeon and orthopedic surgeon for failing to diagnose a post-surgical complication;
    • A $1,330,000* settlement for a school bus accident case involving a woman who sustained a brain injury;
    • A $1,170,000* settlement for a motor vehicle accident case involving a young man who was injured as a result of a drunk driver after several bars continued to serve the driver alcohol while he was intoxicated;
    • A $1,135,650* jury verdict in the case of Doman v. Pennsylvania Fair and Reithoffer Shows for injuries sustained by his client in a roller coaster accident;
    • A $1,060,000* settlement in a construction accident case for injuries sustained by his client when a trench collapsed;
    • A $1,000,000* settlement in a medical malpractice case in which an emergency room physician and radiologist failed to diagnose a cardiac condition resulting in the death of a 47-year-old; and
    • A $1,000,000* settlement in a trucking accident case involving an elderly couple who were rear-ended by a truck after the driver fell asleep.

    *Results may vary depending on your particular facts and legal circumstances*

     

    Thought Leadership

    • Presenter, Handling Motorcycle, ATV, and UTV Cases. Bucks County Bar Association Civil Litigation Section CLE. April 10, 2024.
    • Moderator/Presenter, Reconstruction in Commercial Vehicle Matters. Bucks County Bar Association Civil Litigation Section CLE. January 10, 2024.
    • Presenter, Top Ten Tips for Harnessing Technology at Mediation. Bucks County Bar Association Civil Litigation Section CLE. December 13, 2023.
    • Presenter, Personal Injury Potpourri. The Dispute Resolution Institute. April 20, 2023.
    • Presenter, Settlement Planning from Start to Finish. Bucks County Bar Association CLE Marathon Day. April 20, 2022.
    • Presenter, Investigating Motor Vehicle Crashes. Bucks County Bar Association CLE Marathon Day. April 20, 2022.
    • Presenter, Back Injuries: From Treatment to Litigation. Bucks County Bar Association CLE. December 8, 2021.
    • Presenter, Handling Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) Cases. Bucks County Bar Association. April 14, 2021.
    • Presenter, What You MUST Know About Personal Injury & Workers’ Compensation. Bucks County Bar Association. February 10, 2021.
    • Featured, Protecting Yourself From Pedestrian Accidents. Times Publishing. June 23, 2020.
    • Featured, Stark & Stark: Offering The Community Earnest Support And Individualized Service. Times Publishing. August 6, 2019.
    • Featured, Joseph A. Cullen, Jr Has Been Selected as One of the Top 100 Philadelphia Lawyers. BucksBar.org. June 6, 2019.
    • Presenter, Handling and Litigating Pennsylvania UM and UIM Cases. Bucks County Bar Association. April 10, 2019.
    • Presenter, Nursing Home Litigation. Bucks County Bar Association CLE Seminar. March 12, 2014.
    • Presenter, Dram Shop Liability. Bucks County Bar Association CLE Seminar. October 29, 2013.
    • Presenter, Dram Shop Liability. Pennsylvania Bar Institute CLE Seminar. June 11, 2013.

    Honors & Awards

    • Best Lawyers List issued by Woodward/White, Inc. (Methodology)
      • 2024 -2026; Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs
    • Pennsylvania Super Lawyers List issued by Thompson Reuters (Methodology)
      • 2013 – 2021, 2023 – 2025; Personal Injury – General: Plaintiff, Personal Injury – Medical Malpractice: Plaintiff, Professional Liability: Plaintiff
    • Humanitarian Award issued by the Ted Lindeman Outreach Foundation
      • 2012
    • Pennsylvania Super Lawyers Rising Stars List issued by Thompson Reuters (Methodology)
      • 2005 – 2008, 2010 – 2012; Personal Injury – General: Plaintiff, Personal Injury – Medical Malpractice: Plaintiff, Professional Liability: Plaintiff

    * No aspect of this advertisement has been approved by the Supreme Court of New Jersey.

    Professional Organizations

    • Bucks County Bar Association – Board of Directors, Treasurer 2012 – 2013
    • Bucks County American Inn of Court
    • Pennsylvania Bar Association
    • American Bar Association
    • Pennsylvania Association for Justice
    • American Association for Justice
    • Bucks County Bar Association Charitable Foundation – Trustee

    Community Organizations

    • Bucks County Republican Committee, Vice Chair
    • Pennsylvania Convention Center Authority
    • KenCrest Services, Board of Directors, Secretary
    • Bucks County Planning Commission
    • PA Rush Soccer

    Contact Joseph A. Cullen, Jr.

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    MM slash DD slash YYYY
    Firm News
    May 26, 2026
    Stark & Stark is pleased to announce that multiple attorneys have been selected for inclusion in the list of 2026 Pennsylvania Super Lawyers,...
    Firm News
    March 11, 2026
    Joseph Cullen, Esq. and Nicole Durso, Esq. recently secured a $2,000,000 settlement in a personal injury matter involving a pedestrian who was struck...
    Firm News
    January 27, 2026
    The firm is pleased to announce that Joseph Cullen, Esq. and Ian Abovitz, Esq. secured a $1,935,000* settlement in a construction accident...
    Firm News
    August 21, 2025
    We are excited to highlight the successes of our attorneys featured in the prestigious 2026 Edition of The Best Lawyers in America. This year, we...
    Firm News
    May 23, 2025
    Stark & Stark is pleased to announce that multiple attorneys have been selected for inclusion in the list of 2025 Pennsylvania Super Lawyers,...

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