Join the ACBA

With more than 5,000 members, the Allegheny County Bar Association is the Pittsburgh region’s largest and most active bar association … and for good reason. The ACBA is dedicated to helping members excel in their careers as attorneys, judges, paralegals and more. From CLE courses and social events to discounts and resources to help you practice law, the ACBA offers an abundance of benefits and resources. To renew your current membership, click here.  To join as a new member, select from the options below.

Top Reasons to join the ACBA

Networking and Socialization

Want to network with your fellow attorneys? Get some quality face time with judges? Maybe you want to build relationships to help generate referral business, or perhaps you just want to have fun with your fellow attorneys? Your ACBA membership can make those connections happen. We’ve even got sports leagues. Check out our calendar to get a sense of just how much there is going on at the ACBA, and don’t miss our biggest event of the year, the members-only ACBA Bench-Bar Conference, in June when members can network with their colleagues and members of the bench.

Continuing Legal Education

The ACBA presents more than 100 CLE programs each year on a broad set of diverse, timely topics, and ACBA members enjoy registration discounts on all of these programs. Programs are via live, real-time webinars, in-person in downtown Pittsburgh and in Western Pennsylvania suburbs. At the Previously Recorded CLE Hub, you can watch an always-changing selection of previously record CLEs anytime, anywhere. If you missed a program you wanted to see, you can still get “live” credits by scheduling a Live Video Replay. The ACBA also offers the members-only Bench-Bar Conference each June, where members can get up to 8 hours of CLE credit.

Business Development

Want to generate more clients? Who doesn’t. We have the tools to help you do just that. We get thousands of calls from people looking to hire an attorney; by joining our Lawyer Referral Service, you’ll be among those attorneys we refer out to the public when they call. You can generate referrals from your fellow attorneys through an array of lawyer-to-lawyer marketing options. Through the ACBA Website Design Program, members can get modern, mobile-optimized, custom-built websites at a very affordable price.

Career Counseling and Job Opportunities

The ACBA Legal Employment Services is designed to serve the career-related needs of the Pittsburgh Legal Community. We offer an array of services, including career counseling, legal candidate placement, diverse candidate recruiting, the ACBA Job Board and the ACBA Internship/Clerkship Job Board.

Committees, Divisions and Sections

The ACBA has more than 60 subgroups: committees, divisions and sections. There are groups that focus on substantive areas of the law, groups that help plan the major ACBA events and groups dedicated to promoting diversity within the legal profession, the ACBA has a group for you. Check out the full list here.

Insurance

The discount members get on Lawyers Professional Liability Insurance, alone, is often more than the cost of your entire membership. Through the ACBA Insurance Program, members can get deals on nearly every type of insurance imaginable. In addition to LPL Insurance, members can get as deals on auto, home, life and more. Even pet insurance. Additionally, the insurance pros at USI Affinity can help you navigate the health insurance marketing place and select a plan.

Legal News

We keep ACBA members informed about happenings in the legal community and the courts. All ACBA members get a subscription to the Lawyers Journal newspaper, which is loaded with substantive legal articles, feature stories on happenings in the legal community and coverage of ACBA events. Our weekly Sidebar e-newsletter will keep you up-to-date on ACBA happenings. The Pittsburgh Legal Journal is the official legal journal of Allegheny County, and the source for trial lists, legal notices and more. Members also have access to judicial opinions from the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas judges.

Resources for Attorneys

From access to the Expert and Vendor Guide to an abundance of legal manuals to our Gender Bias and Professional Ethics hotlines, the ACBA can connect you with the resources you need to practice law. Check out our Attorney Resources page here.

Promoting Diversity

The ACBA is dedicated to promoting diversity in the legal profession. Overseen by our Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, we have a multiple subgroups and a full slate of programs and events dedicated to this important cause.

Discounts

Membership has its privileges … including discounts on everything from office supplies to rental cars to ABA books.


Membership Types and Dues

Active Member

Any lawyer admitted to the bar of a state, territory, or possession of the United States, and who resides in or has his/her principal business office or place of law practice in Allegheny County.

Year AdmittedDues Price
2023Free*
2019-2022$135
2014-2018$185
2013 or prior$245

Click here to apply online today. If you would like to download a PDF version of the application, go here.

*ACBA Membership year runs July 1 – June 30. Please pay dues based on the year that you were admitted to your first bar of any jurisdiction, even if other than Pennsylvania.

Active Government/Legal Services Member

A government lawyer or judge is defined as a judge or lawyer who is employed full-time by a state, federal, or local government entity or agency or works full-time for a state, federal or local government entity or agency as an independent contractor.

A legal services lawyer is defined as a lawyer who is employed full-time by a nonprofit legal services entity such as Neighborhood Legal Services, KidsVoice, Juvenile Court Project or a lawyer or judge who works full-time as an independent contractor for such an entity.

The lawyer also must be admitted to the bar of a state, territory, or possession of the United States and must reside in, or have his or her principal business office or place of law practice in Allegheny County.

Year AdmittedDues
2023Free*
2019-2022$95
2014-2018$130
2013 or prior$170

Click here to apply online today. If you would like to download a PDF version of the application, go here.

*ACBA Membership year runs July 1 – June 30. Please pay dues based on the year that you were admitted to your first bar of any jurisdiction, even if other than Pennsylvania.

Associate Member

Those eligible for Associate membership include any lawyer who is admitted to the bar of a state, territory or possession of the United States and who does not reside in, and does not have his or her principal business office or place of law practice in Allegheny County; any lawyer who is admitted to the bar of a state, territory, or possession of the United States, and who is not actively engaged in the practice of law but is still on active status with the Court and maintains a law license; any person who holds a JD degree from any ABA-accredited law school, but is not admitted to any court or bar of a state, territory, or possession of the United States or is on inactive status with the court. Persons in this category may include retired lawyers, law professors, or persons in other professions using their JD degree but not admitted to practice by any court.

Associate members shall be entitled to the rights and privileges of active members except that associate members shall not have the right to vote or to hold office in the Association. An associate member may serve as a voting member of any Committee, Division, or Section of the Association, except the Judiciary and Nominating Committees.

Dues: $160 Regardless of year admitted

Click here to apply online today. If you would like to download a PDF version of the application, go here.

*ACBA Membership year runs July 1 – June 30.

Emeritus Status

Those eligible Emeritus Status membership include any lawyer who has been approved for emeritus status in the state of Pennsylvania. As defined by Pennsylvania Rule of Disciplinary Enforcement 803, emeritus status attorneys are retired from the practice of law but seek to provide pro bono services to legal aid organizations. An Emeritus Status Member shall have the rights and privileges granted by the Board of Governors from time to time, except the right to vote or to hold office in the Association. An Emeritus Status Member may serve as a voting member of any Committee, Division, or Section of the Association, except the Judiciary and Nominating Committees. Emeritus Status members are entitled to up to 8 hours of free CLE credit each year.

Dues: $115

Click here to apply online today. If you would like to download a PDF version of the application, go here.

*ACBA Membership year runs July 1 – June 30.

Affiliate Member

Any person, not a lawyer, who is a Magisterial District Judge, arbitrator, or mediator, or is the legal administrator, librarian, or marketing, financial, information technology, professional development or recruitment professional of a law firm or law department, or who is a full-time non-lawyer law librarian, or is the Executive Director or equivalent officer of a Professional Legal Trade Association having its principal office located in Pennsylvania, or is a member in good standing of the Pittsburgh Paralegal Association, shall be eligible to be an Affiliate Member. An Affiliate Member shall have the rights and privileges granted by the Board of Governors from time to time, except the right to vote or to hold office in the Association. An Affiliate Member may serve as a voting member of any Committee, Division, or Section of the Association, except the Judiciary and Nominating Committees.

Dues: $120

Click here to apply online today. If you would like to download a PDF version of the application, go here.

*ACBA Membership year runs July 1 – June 30.

Law Student

Any person who is a law student attending an ABA-accredited law school shall be eligible for Law Student Membership. Membership shall include free enrollment in two (2) substantive law Sections and the right to choose up to three (3) Committees on which to participate. Law Student Members shall automatically be enrolled in: (1) the Young Lawyers Division (YLD), (2) the Women in the Law Division (WLD), if they self-identify as female; and (3) the Homer S. Brown Division (HSBD), if they self-identify as African American on their membership application form. Any Law Student Member may elect to join either the WLD or the HSBD. Division membership is free. Law Student Members shall be entitled to the rights and privileges of Active Members except that Law Student Members shall not have the right to vote or to hold office in the Association or serve as a voting member of any Committee, Division or Section of the Association.

Dues: $30

Click here to apply online today. If you would like to download a PDF version of the application, go here.

*ACBA Membership year runs July 1 – June 30.

If you were previously an ACBA member or not sure if you have an account, please contact Membership at 412-402-6612 or email staff@acba.org before applying online.

Attorney Application

Affiliate Application

Law Student Application