About Michael J.
Michael J. Betts trained at Dickinson College, graduating in 1977, and earned his J.D. from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law in 1980. He moved into practice the same year, joining the litigation group at Reed Smith Shaw & McClay. Those formative years established his approach to contested matters and courtroom work.
He remained at Reed Smith as an associate and then partner, gaining hands-on trial and appellate experience. In 1994 he became a principal in Betts, Hull & Klodowski LLC and continued with successor firms. That period marked a transition from large-firm practice toward roles that combined litigation with dispute resolution and case-management responsibilities.
In 2009 he shifted to in-house work as senior counsel for litigation at PNC Bank’s legal department. The job broadened his exposure to complex commercial disputes and bank-related litigation. He later returned to private practice as the head of small firms: Betts Law Office LLC in 2013, a principal role at Post & Schell, P.C. in 2016, and the establishment of Michael J. Betts LLC in 2018, where he remains principal.
Betts is admitted to practice before the Supreme Court of the United States, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania and Pennsylvania courts, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, and the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania. The Western District has also appointed him to its roster of neutrals and its roster of approved e-discovery special masters and mediators. He holds a certification as an E-Discovery Special Master and Mediator for that district. He belongs to the Allegheny County Bar Association, the Pennsylvania and American bar associations, the Federal Bar Association, and several mediation organizations, including the Mediation Council of Western Pennsylvania and the National Association for Community Mediation.
Throughout his career Betts has split his time between contested litigation and alternative dispute resolution. He accepts assignments as a mediator and special master in electronic discovery, conducts settlement conferences, and represents clients in civil litigation. His work crosses trial practice, case administration, and neutral roles that aim to resolve disputes without protracted hearings. He currently practices from Michael J. Betts LLC and continues to offer litigation and neutral services in Pennsylvania and before federal courts in the region.
