Norris McLaughlin Attorneys Listed in Lehigh Valley Business Power 30 in Law
The law firm of Norris McLaughlin, P.A., is pleased to announce that three of its attorneys, Judith A. Harris, Raymond G. Lahoud, and Theodore J. Zeller III, Members of the firm, have been included in the Lehigh Valley Business 2021 “Power 30 in Law” listing.
“My colleagues and I are honored to be recognized by Lehigh Valley Business and are grateful for the community in which we live, work, and play. It is always our pleasure to serve the Lehigh Valley and beyond in any way we can,” said Zeller, Administrative Partner of the Pennsylvania office.
David C. Roberts, Chair of the firm, added, “With deep roots in the Lehigh Valley, Norris McLaughlin takes pride in being a part of the community, not only by providing the necessary legal work but through our attorneys’ dedication to community service and leadership roles.”
About the Power 30 in Law
Although the “Power 30 in Law” listing is not a ranking, it recognizes those who shape the community and impact the way residents in the Lehigh Valley live. The attorneys included help make regulations, settle disputes, and ensure fairness in the Lehigh Valley. Each attorney was asked to introduce themselves and share something personal. For more information and to get to know those recognized, visit lvb.com.
About the Lehigh Valley Attorneys
Judith A. Harris
Harris, Co-Chair of the firm’s Estate, Trust, and Tax Law Practice Group, has over 30 years of experience in the areas of taxation, wills and trusts, estate administration, business matters, and tax-exempt entities. She works with clients to structure the optimal transfer of their wealth and business interests to younger generations with minimal tax consequences.
Harris is President of the Board of Trustees for the Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival, a board member since 1993 and former officer of the Allentown Symphony Association, and a board member of the Lehigh County Agricultural Society. She is a board member and past president of the Fund to Benefit Children & Youth, Inc., and a former board member and Executive Committee member of the Board of Pensions of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). Harris is also past president of the Estate Planning Council of the Lehigh Valley and served for ten years on the Lehigh-Northampton Airport Authority board of governors. From 1993 to 2000, she was an adjunct instructor of “Wills, Trusts, and Estates” at Penn State University’s Lehigh Valley Campus.
Harris was recognized as a “Circle of Excellence” recipient for the Lehigh Valley Business 2021 Women of Influence Awards. She earned her LL.M in Taxation from Villanova University School of Law in 1991; her J.D. from American University in 1986, where she was a published Law Review author; her A.B., cum laude, from Bryn Mawr College in 1983; and a Diploma from the Pushkin Institute, Moscow, USSR, in 1982.
Ray Lahoud
Lahoud, Chair of the firm’s Immigration Practice Group, focuses his practice exclusively on immigration law and deportation defense for individuals, families, small to large domestic and multinational businesses and corporations, employers, international employees, investors, students, professors, researchers, skilled professionals, athletes, and entertainers, in every type of immigration or deportation defense matter—whether domestic or foreign. His immigration practice is broad, ranging from corporate and employment immigration and related compliance to immigration litigation before agencies and courts across the United States, for corporations and individuals alike.
Lahoud has received numerous accolades. He has been awarded the Empire State Pro Bono Counsel Award each year since 2012, has been selected as lead counsel, has received the Martindale-Hubbell Platinum Client Champion Award, and has been named a Super Lawyers Rising Star, ranked as a Top Rated Immigration Attorney in the New York Metro Area. EB5 Investors, the leading online portal, conference series, and magazine for investors, developers, and EB-5 professionals, has named Lahoud one of the “Top 5 Rising Stars” nationally. He was also named one of the 40 young professionals from the Greater Lehigh Valley as the Lehigh Valley Business 2017 Forty Under 40 for his commitment to business growth, professional excellence, and the community.
Lahoud earned his B.A. in English, summa cum laude, from Lehigh University, where he earned Dean’s List; was named a President’s Scholar; was inducted into Phi Beta Delta; received the Williams Award, Treen Scholarship, and Littner Scholarship; and was Editor of The Lehigh Review. He earned his J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center, where he earned Dean’s List, received CALI awards in many courses, and worked on the Georgetown Immigration Law Journal.
Ted Zeller
Zeller, Chair of the firm’s Liquor Law, Licensing, Manufacturing, and Distribution Industry Group, has extensive experience in liquor law, regulatory licensing, commercial transactions, real estate transactions, and litigation. He began his legal career as a litigator and has tried multiple cases in county and federal court, including jury trials, and hundreds of cases before arbitration panels, district justices, and administrative law judges. Zeller was lead counsel in a beer rights case brought against the world's largest brewers and now serves as counsel to D.G. Yuengling & Son, Inc., among others.
Zeller’s lobbying efforts helped to modernize parts of the Pennsylvania liquor code. He has authored numerous provisions that have been enacted into law. The bills helped small brewers by allowing more efficient and cost-effective brand registration and altered the package laws for brewery licenses. Zeller also appeared before the House Liquor Committee with the Brewers of Pennsylvania in the Privatization Hearings. Most importantly, his efforts helped change brewery regulations to allow for taprooms. Zeller also authored the Malt Beverage Tax Excise Credit legislation and has written extensively about Acts 39 and 166. As counsel to the Brewers of Pennsylvania, he worked with the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue to enact a new tax law, which imposes a fair sales and use tax on consumer sales by breweries, prior to the effective date of a new Tax Bulletin, which imposed a tax rate that was four times what was subsequently enacted and signed into law.
Zeller was named to The Legal Intelligencer’s 2019 list of “Pennsylvania Trailblazers” because of his contributions that “helped make Pennsylvania the top U.S. producer of domestically-crafted beers and a leader of direct sales to consumers.” He earned his B.A. from the University of Notre Dame in 1989 and his J.D. from The Dickinson School of Law of The Pennsylvania State University in 1992. As a volunteer, Zeller is Chairman of the Allentown Parking Authority and a youth soccer coach.
