About Edward F.
Edward F. Chacker completed his undergraduate studies at Temple University in 1969, after beginning there in 1965. He went on to earn his J.D. from The University of Toledo College of Law in 1973. That combination of a local undergraduate education and a Midwestern law degree set the stage for a long legal career tied to Philadelphia institutions and national courts.
Chacker entered practice in the early 1970s and in 1973 became a named partner at Gay & Chacker. He has since maintained a practice that reaches beyond state lines. His admissions include the U.S. Supreme Court, the U.S. Claims Court, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Those admissions reflect steady involvement in both trial and appellate work at federal and state levels.
Public service and bar governance have been recurring themes in Chacker’s career. He has held leadership roles with the Philadelphia Bar Foundation, serving as its president from 2004 to 2005 and later as chair beginning in 2004. He also holds a charter membership in the Foundation’s Andrew Hamilton Circle and co-chaired the Foundation’s "200 for the 200th" fundraising effort. His work on standards and monitoring for the Philadelphia Volunteers for the Indigent Program dates back to 2000 and continues. He sits on the board of directors for that program, which places volunteer lawyers with indigent clients.
Since 2010 Chacker has been involved in multiple Philadelphia Bar Association initiatives. He is a member of the Association’s Cabinet and participates on the Subcommittee on Program Selection. He also joined the Federal Prisoner Rights Litigation Panel around 2010, adding a recurring panel role to his long list of professional activities. These positions indicate an ongoing engagement with institutional and policy matters affecting the local legal community.
Colleagues describe Chacker as someone who has balanced private practice with organizational leadership. His firm work has been matched by repeated stints in governance and fundraising roles. He has stayed active in the volunteer program that connects lawyers to clients who lack resources, and he has remained involved in bar association planning and selection efforts for more than a decade.
As of 2026 he continues to practice at Gay & Chacker and maintains admissions to multiple federal and state courts. His current practice emphasizes litigation and appellate work while he remains active in bar foundation and volunteer legal programs.
