Tom Capehart, a partner in an Allentown law firm, has announced his candidacy for judge of the Lehigh County Court of Common Pleas.

A respected attorney who has practiced law for more than 30 years, Capehart says he would bring to the bench extensive experience and a broad breadth of legal knowledge to serve Lehigh County.

“My active involvement in our community coupled with more than 30 years of experience across a broad spectrum of the law makes me uniquely qualified to effectively deal with the issues that come before the Court,” Capehart said. “If elected, I pledge to you that I will not legislate or create law from the bench. I will apply the law fairly to all and treat anyone who appears before me with the dignity, respect and seriousness they deserve.”

Capehart is a partner with Gross McGinley, a 29-lawyer general practice law firm based in Allentown.

He grew up in Emmaus, graduated from Emmaus High School in 1982, earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in history from Dickinson College in Carlisle Pennsylvania, where he played three years of football, and in 1989 earned his Juris Doctorate degree from the University of Akron School of Law in Ohio.

During his more than 30-year career in the Lehigh Valley, Capehart has provided a range of legal services in litigation, business, real estate, divorce and matrimonial law, municipal law, workers’ compensation and wills, trusts and estate matters.

Capehart’s work has earned him the highest possible ethical rating from a national attorney review organization, as well as a distinguished peer rating for high professional achievement.

In 2019, Capehart ran a strong campaign for Lehigh County judge finishing a close second on the Republican ballot to the successful candidate, and now judge, the Honorable Anna Kristie Morffi Marks.

“I am a husband, a father and a lifelong Lehigh County resident who cares deeply about making our community stronger for future generations,” Capehart said. “I have devoted considerable time and energy to numerous civic and community organizations working to help the underprivileged and promote the growth of our community. Running for judge is, to me, another way to serve.”

Capehart gives his time and energy to groups such as the Emmaus Lions Club whose primary mission it to help the blind and visually impaired and where he was awarded the Melvin Jones Award for dedicated service, serving as a board member with the Lehigh Conference of Churches (Interfaith Action Committee and Justice and Advocacy Committee) whose primary mission is to provide housing and meals for the less fortunate, serving as a board member and past president of the East Penn Chamber of Commerce helping and promoting the growth of local businesses, as an elder and past president of Consistory at St. Johns UCC in Emmaus, as a member of the Muhlenberg College Board of Associates, and, previously serving as a board member at the Literacy Center in Allentown helping people gain the necessary skills they need to lead more successful lives.

Capehart has also served for nearly two decades as a PIAA high school football official in the EPC and Colonial Leagues.

“It would be my highest honor and a privilege to serve Lehigh County as the next judge of the Court of Common Pleas. Having spent my life here, having raised my children here, and having given my time in making our community stronger, I am well prepared to serve the people of Lehigh County,” Capehart concluded.

Tom and his wife, Michelle, a teacher in East Penn School District, have been married for 31 years. They are the parents of Matthew, a middle school math teacher and coach in Southern Lehigh School District, and Laura, a high school social studies teacher in Philadelphia.