About Paul
Paul McConnell built a career that moves between military courtrooms and civilian family law. He began in the classroom, earning a B.A. in economics from Wittenberg University in 1987. He returned to law school at Temple University Beasley School of Law and received his J.D. in 1996. Later he completed an LL.M. at the Army Judge Advocate’s Legal Center and School in 2005.
His early professional life was rooted in the Marine Corps. He served as a trial judge beginning in 2001 and rose to the role of deputy chief judge in 2005. Those years on the bench brought him into a steady stream of complex evidentiary and procedural questions. He continued to handle military justice matters in a reserve capacity and in 2014 took on the title of senior reserve trial judge with the Navy Marine Corps Trial Judiciary.
Between military assignments and reserve duty he spent time in federal prosecution. In 2008 he worked as an AUSA in the U.S. Lawyer’s Office for the District of Connecticut. That role added a different set of courtroom demands: grand jury practice, federal motion work, and a mix of criminal matters that sharpened his trial skills. The combination of military judging and federal prosecution gave him experience on both sides of the aisle.
In 2014 he shifted part of his professional life toward private practice and founded the McConnell Family Law Group. He leads a small practice that draws on his courtroom background. His practice sits at the intersection of litigation and client counseling, where courtroom experience can change the tenor of settlement talks and trial strategy.
McConnell is admitted to practice in Pennsylvania and Connecticut, and he holds current membership in the Connecticut State Bar. He has served in a variety of legal roles across military and civilian systems, and he carries those perspectives into family law matters that often require an understanding of procedural nuance and evidentiary control. Colleagues describe him as exacting in preparation and deliberate during hearings.
He still wears the experience of the bench into his work for private clients. His practice now balances courtroom readiness with the everyday demands of family law: custody, divorce, support, and related contested matters. He focuses his current practice on family law matters.
